1985 1.9 76hp waterccoled oil leak.

[Wilf1234]

Hi.
We're looking at a t25 with a 1.9 water-cooled engine (possibly the 76hp). It's got an oil leak. Engine has 100k on it, runs OK and is in regular use. The leak is currently only an advisory on the mot.
Are we right in assuming it's not likley to be a simple repair and we might be looking at a rebuild or new engine? Any idea of ballpark figures?
Many thanks for your help.

[Mocki]

Morning , it rather depends where it is leaking from, it could be as simple as replacing the oil pressure switch between the push rods , or it maybe just a crank seal. It could also be push rod tube seals or rocker cover gaskets, it may even just be the sump plug needing a new crush washer . None of these are cause for changing the engine .

Golden rule is buy on body condition , mechanical stuff is cheaper and easier to fix on these vans , bodywork is where you lose your house to pay someone to fill it full of filler and paint it poorly over a period of time months longer than promised !

[Wilf1234]

Great, thanks Steve

Really useful thoughts. The seller seems salt of the earth type of bloke, and his mechanic reckoned that it didn't warrant further investigation at present, but obviously I've no idea if that was a load of flannel.

But the Body work is pretty tatty as well, loads of scrapes and surface rust, but it looks like the majority of the panels are solid and I spotted only a couple of bits of filler around the front bumper and the bottom corner of the screen. Mot a couple of weeks ago didn't mention anything about corrosion to anything stuctural.

I was intending spending the summer sanding down and re-spray myself. Is that completely unrealistic? I'm not fussed about it being pristine, just want to keep the thing solid...

[Mocki]

The window screen is a point of worry , it will mean that the lip the screen sits on is rotten, and you will have rain water ingress , and the main electrics and earths are under there on the n/s . It’s screen out to fix , but its not major , but it is a little more than sanding and painting , if its showing on the outside , its already nasty inside .

Pay carefull attention to the suspension mounting , especially the rear swing arm mounts and the inside seams of the swing arms themselves.

Don’t pay silly money , bodywork’s costs a lot to put right . Good luck