Name that oil....

[theaxe]

I finally picked up my Chimaera 500 on Saturday from Gatwick TVR.

I've been out for a couple of runs and I'm loving it! The power is stunning and the sound is fantastic!

I expected good looks and sound but I didn't anticipate a slight oily smell. At first I figured that it was just a couple of drips on the manifold but there were a few drops on the drive where the rear of the car had been. Further investigation revealed that there a was oil around the exhaust brackets. It looks & smells like engine oil to me but it was near the diff.

Isn't diff oil red? Any ideas what's going on? I need to get a decent jack & axle stands to get a proper look.

[tvr keith]

Sounds like you need to go back to Gatwick TVR!

[theaxe]

Well no more had appeared since... I'll get it up on stands to take a propper look later this week...

[stuartc]

Your pages look good but why not change the fork pick now ?? a fellow 500 driver

[razorman]

tvr keith said:

Sounds like you need to go back to Gatwick TVR!

I agree, why take the risk, just take it back and get them to put it up on a ramp and have a look at what's wrong.

[jonnyb]

No diff oil is not red. It depends on what oil you use, but it should be a sludgy black colour. It sounds like they have changed the diff oil and some has spilled over. If your local to Gatwick TVR then take it back and get them to have a look at it to be on the safe side. But it sounds like overspill.

[theaxe]

Good point about the fork, I'd forgotten about that.

The Bible mentionions an oil breather which I guess could allow a bit of overspill out. No more oil has appeared since.

I might take it over to Gatwick anyway as I'm sure that the passenger wiper arm is shanked the wrong way!

[mongoose]

Just for those wondering what colour oil can be found where.This is a bit of a misleading way to identify which type it is.My engine oil is red(silkolene pro's'),my gearbox oil is red(redline mtf) and my diff oil is an opaque pinky red(redline heavy shockproof)!!All of these could equally be golden brown also if they were other brands.Its unusual for atf oil to be anything other than red(atf),but even then,if you used proper hydraulic oil,it may be different.You could also find engine oil traces as far back as the diff,so things can get a little misleading!

[theaxe]

Maybe they should be scented! (or flavoured...)

[mongoose]

theaxe said:

Maybe they should be scented! (or flavoured...)