MG4 Reduction Gearbox Oil Leak

[siteguru]

FWIW this Friday will be the first time my car will have been back at the dealer ... hopefully the only time (until the first service is due).

 

[nivs123]

its a shame but completely understandable..... I losing faith by the day with MG and reports like this are only adding to me thinking about doing the same.....and I dont even have the car

Ditto.

 

[Deleted member 10041]

FWIW this Friday will be the first time my car will have been back at the dealer ... hopefully the only time (until the first service is due).

To be fair you've had your car less than 3 weeks! If MG had been proactive and fitted the new breather to all cars prior to handover you wouldn't have needed to take it back. This should have happened in my opinion and not been left to wait and see scenario.
Who wants to be checking under their brand new car every other day to see if it's got a well documented fault, that as above could have and should have been rectified prior to handover

 

[BarryH]

It sounds to me like the very commonly reported issue with the reduction gear oil. There has been "a fix" for this notified to dealers so if your dealer is looking blank at you then they are not keeping up with the updates from MG Motors UK. It is also reported that technically this isn't a fault and is just an overfilling of a relatively few cars. On the Podcast on November 21st it was discussed several times I seem to recall. MG has said that some but not all cars have been overfilled and it would seem that after driving 100+ miles plus the oil can warm up and excess oil blow out the oil breather pipe. There is a longer oil breather dealers can fit affected cars, but if the car wasn't overfilled, then there is little point in touching it. I would think it is more likely to show up if those first 100+ miles were done in longer runs giving the oil time to warm up and expand than if multiple short trips which might account for dealer's demonstrators not revealing the issue perhaps? There is no recall as I understand it and far few cars have been reported back to MG Motors than social media might suggest. After all, I have not before today gone online to report that my ZS EV didn't leak water, oil or brake fluid in the past 3 years, why would I? But if you are unlucky to get oil dripping from your brand-new car onto your nice brick driveway, then you have every right to be outraged

 

[Deleted member 9692]

but if the car wasn't overfilled, then there is little point in touching it

I’m not sure the suggestion that this was just an overfilling issue is correct if that’s what you are saying. My dealer followed the recommendation in the early days and reduced the oil fill level from the 0.9l original spec to a new advised level of 0.75l and it still leaked profusely. The solution was a modified breather, not the adjustment of the fill level.

Edit - and if it was a simple overfill issue (I don’t believe this for one moment) then the fix would be even simpler. No modified breather needed and just check the fill level on the PDI, adjust as needed, problem solved. I’ve never believed the “overfill” explanation from MG and I don’t believe the “only a few cars” bit either (many owners on here will testify and my dealer has had the leak on all 8 cars now received, in two different batches months apart, to date). There will be many users unaware they have had a leak who may now have a reduction gearbox with a much lower than recommended oil level. The very least MG should be doing here in the absence of a recall is to communicate to all owners the potential issue so they can check for themselves. I park on a gravel driveway and would never have known I had a problem but for this forum.

 

[BarryH]

I’m not sure the suggestion that this was just an overfilling issue is correct if that’s what you are saying. My dealer followed the recommendation in the early days and reduced the oil fill level from the 0.9l original spec to a new advised level of 0.75l and it still leaked profusely. The solution was a modified breather, not the adjustment of the fill level.

I have been told by more than one dealer that MG says some cars were overfilled and also that the modified breather was an extended breather. Also, they said that there was no plan to recall or replace all breathers just those when a problem was reported. Now if it turns out that there is a design fault I would hope that there will be 1, that there will be a FOC replacement, but I wouldn't expect a recall as there is no safety issue here. And 2, that all new cars are factory fitted with the new design breather plus cars with dealers will have the new breather fitted during the PDI process.

 

[Deleted member 9692]

I have been told by more than one dealer that MG says some cars were overfilled and also that the modified breather was an extended breather. Also, they said that there was no plan to recall or replace all breathers just those when a problem was reported. Now if it turns out that there is a design fault I would hope that there will be 1, that there will be a FOC replacement, but I wouldn't expect a recall as there is no safety issue here. And 2, that all new cars are factory fitted with the new design breather plus cars with dealers will have the new breather fitted during the PDI process.

If it’s overfill that caused the issue then you don’t need a modified breather. It is already clear there is a design fault and there is a FOC replacement, the new breather. I think there are far more cases than MG will admit to in public and I also think the treatment of customers by MG on this matter is extremely poor

 

[Deleted member 10041]

Your last point is 100%

If it’s overfill that caused the issue then you don’t need a modified breather. It is clear there is a design fault and there is a FOC replacement, the new breather. I think there are far more cases than MG will admit to in public and I also think the treatment of customers by MG on this matter is extremely poor

100%

 

[PeteC]

I’m not sure the suggestion that this was just an overfilling issue is correct if that’s what you are saying. My dealer followed the recommendation in the early days and reduced the oil fill level from the 0.9l original spec to a new advised level of 0.75l and it still leaked profusely. The solution was a modified breather, not the adjustment of the fill level.

Same with mine. The oil level was dropped before I got the car but it still leaked after about 200 miles.

 

[BarryH]

Unfortunately, I'm not available for December's MGEVs Community Podcast on December 21st at 7:30 pm, but although it is a Christmas edition, I'm sure there will be questions and hopefully some answers as its mission is to "discuss all MG electric vehicles, hoping to inform and entertain you, for about an hour"

 

[Thorpey]

I've just checked for the first time today and have an oil leak after 350 miles. It's only been on local journeys, I don't think it has ever exceeded 50 mph but a lot of oil on the undertray and a few big patches on the drive.

 

[pd2]

I had a new driveway installed before delivery of the car, it’s yet to be parked on it!
As mentioned before, mine was leaking before the 40 miles mark.
Dealer took pictures last week to send to MG. (Still waiting to hear back)
I’m almost at the 500 mile mark and it’s still pee’ing all over the place…. Can’t be much left in it!

 

[Les burrows]

I trust all these new oil leaks are being registered in the thread ( oil leak poll )
if not please do.
Les

 

[Deleted member 9692]

I trust all these new oil leaks are being registered in the thread ( oil leak poll )
if not please do.
Les

No need Les, it’s only a “very few cars” definitely caused by an “overfill” and because it’s reported on a forum we are not representative of the real world right? Excuse my petulance and negativity this morning, it’s cold and I‘m grumpy. I second your appeal to register in the poll by the way.

 

[Sloucher]

FWIW, my dealer has delayed the collection of my new car from this week until next in order to have the new breather installed. He also informed me of the software update to fix the locked in problem.
Both these issues were raised by the dealer, not myself, so I believe that most of the lack of communication that is being rightfully complained about can be laid at the door of some non-proactive dealers, rather than MG as a whole. I do seem to have a pro-active dealer, so why can't they all be?

 

[PhilYerBoots]

I trust all these new oil leaks are being registered in the thread ( oil leak poll )
if not please do.
Les

Where is the poll Les ? I'll add my 'new breather fitted but still leaks' vote, before I return the car to dealer tomorrow and get our old ZS back.

 

[Deleted member 9692]

FWIW, my dealer has delayed the collection of my new car from this week until next in order to have the new breather installed. He also informed me of the software update to fix the locked in problem.
Both these issues were raised by the dealer, not myself, so I believe that most of the lack of communication that is being rightfully complained about can be laid at the door of some non-proactive dealers, rather than MG as a whole. I do seem to have a pro-active dealer, so why can't they all be?

We are totally reliant on the dealers here because the assistance and proactiveness at corporate level seems to be nil, and worse than that, the many responses I have personally seen from corporate have been extraordinarily poor. I am lucky that I have a great dealer otherwise my car would have been returned already, it is solely them that has avoided this. Others do not have such a good dealer experience and they effectively have no recourse to MG corporate as they are fobbed off and then ignored (as happened to me). It’s for this reason that I get annoyed when people comment in here implying that this is a “social media” problem and that it is not widespread, or “it’s just an overfill”. It’s very clear there is a problem that is widespread and communication from MG, in my considered and learned opinion, has been pants.

 

[siteguru]

Where is the poll Les ? I'll add my 'new breather fitted but still leaks' vote, before I return the car to dealer tomorrow and get our old ZS back.

MG4 Oil Leak Poll (Part 1)

To help understand the problem, please only answer if you already have an MG4. Edit: All comments to the oil leak thread as linked below please.

www.mgevs.com

 

[PhilYerBoots]

Totally agree @Crawfyp .
I had the 'pleasure' of dealing with the infamous Mr. Smart from MG customer service over our AC charging fault and oil leak. He said to get it into a dealer for investigation but in his opinion as it would charge ok on DC charge points and just not on some chargers (ALL ac chargers in fact..) it was unlikely to be a fault with the vehicle and not covered under warranty...really ?!!
At this point I realised the 'Teflon' nature of MGs' attitude towards customers problems.
In contrast the dealer has been very understanding and appreciates why we have lost confidence in keeping the car and has handled the rejection well, agreeing to return our part-ex ZS to us and a full refund of what we've paid. That is proper customer service.

 

[PhilYerBoots]

MG4 Oil Leak Poll (Part 1)

To help understand the problem, please only answer if you already have an MG4. Edit: All comments to the oil leak thread as linked below please.

www.mgevs.com

Thanks @siteguru . There isn't a category for 'new breather fitted but still have a leak' so I've cast a vote as 'have a leak and it is or was more serious' as the breather hasn't fixed it..