T5 leaking oil through input shaft?

[T-rex]

Hey all, got an interesting one here and need some more info on it. Pretty much I think the input shaft on the t5 is leaking but not 100% because I've never heard of something like that happening.

Now the things that make me think its the box is because the oil level on the dipstick has barely moved the whole time its been leaving oil on the concrete under the bell housing area so I'm pretty sure it isn't engine oil.
Also it leaves more oil when its on a nose down slant than nose up, and I'm pretty sure the gear box is getting hotter at running temp.

Thoughts?

[VK SL 3800]

Input shaft can leak, almost every holden's rear main will leak to some extent. Gearbox oil will leak out fairly clean and have a different smell to engine oil, if its black its probably engine oil.

Check the gearbox level, a oil leak has to be pretty bad to notice a change of level though.

[hako]

If it is indeed oil leaking past the input shaft, I'd check the breather on the gearbox - if it's not venting the gearbox, the pressure will force oil out 'wherever'.

[T-rex]

Cheers guys, I don't really know my round the T5, where about is the breather? and yeah the oils pretty clean compared to when I've had engine oil spilled on the same concrete.

[hako]

I don't know my way around them either, but breathers are normally towards the top of whatever they are venting so look around the top of the box. It will also leak if it has been overfilled. Back a few years the practice was to not have an oilseal on the input shaft - they would have an oil scroll there which in theory encouraged any oil back away from the clutch.....it didn't always work and oil on clutch facings makes them slip then overheat and burn.

[T-rex]

Cheers mate, it shouldn't be overfilled because I changed the box oil start of last year so I can't imagine how it would start leaking now but would that burning gearbox oil smell sort of like burnt fireworks?

[Andrew426]

It would smell of burnt ATF - WC T5s are meant to run dex2 atf or similar

[T-rex]

Yeah its got dex 3 and lubrizol, I just don't know what burning gearbox oil smells like but theres a strange burnt fireworks smell when I finish a trip, its not very strong but you can just smell it.

[sticksicks]

...boom...