Where Has My Turret Fluid Gone???

[Adam_NAclubman]

Should I just get new oil instead of grease then?

[Babalouie]

Should I just get new oil instead of grease then?

Up to you..the oil just leaks out anyway

[Adam_NAclubman]

Figured I'd get the grease before the rubber and nylon bits... There was still plenty of oil in there but the top boot is ripped into two, guess I'll replace that soon. Put a fair bit of grease in there, will take it for a spin soon to see if its made a difference.

The oil that I took out was very very thin (though I had just dríven the car...)

[aSimpleLife]

Thought I'd add to this old thread rather than starting a new one. I think it's the first time I've actually found one to use

I've had my 1 previous owner NB8A 5 speed for about 7 years and rarely dríven it. If it wasn't from the start , certainly after a couple of years I noticed what I felt was stiffness and notchiness in the gear shift. Particularly when cold. And I think especially into second.
I mentioned it to a couple of general mechanics over the years during servicing but both times the response was, "that's just how they are" and "the gearbox oil is fine".

After finally getting round to doing my own research here and on other forums I realised there was this turret reservoir. Of course mine was dry and both boots were perished. So I cleaned it out, refilled it, replaced the white plastic cup bush and both boots. And the shifting is much improved. I also degreased under the car around the gearbox

However, I started noticing burning gear oil. I hoped it was just from my clean up and would burn off but it didn't. Pulled the console off again and could see oil seeping out around the turret. Went back through the guides and I believe I overfilled the turret. There was no gasket and I had previously seen no reference to using sealant. This time I used an RTV silicone under the lower boot. Only topped up oil to the lower level. Also cleaned everything up again under the car.

The burning gear oil smell was reduced but it didn't go away completely. So pulled the console out yet again and it looks like there is still some weeping through the 4 screw holes? So I cleaned them and put RTV in the holes as well this time. Hopefully that's the end of the matter but haven't tested as yet.

[aSimpleLife]

And I forgot to add, I have been pondering where my original turret oil actually went and why.
I don't know if I have the leak down into the gearbox, so I'll assume not for now.
I know it recently leaked after I replaced the boots.

I definitely over filled the turret on my first attempt and I did not use any sealant.
On my second attempt I did not use sealant and it still leaked.
On my third attempt I used black rtv sealant (all I had) and I still seemed to have a much smaller leak.
And on my fourth attempt I have sealed the 4 lower boot screws as well.

I am pretty sure the turret has never been touched before this.
Is it most likely the original oil leaked out after the lower boot began to perish?

It is still possible the leak may be from where the turret joins the gearbox? I can easily get to 3 of the 4 screws from the console area. Maybe the 4th with a spanner? However not sure if there would be enough room to clean and reseal the turret? The instructions I have seen so far all have the gearbox removed. And it's not "that" important to me

[ralt]

Hi.
The oil goes into the turret and out into the gearbox. the rod from the gearlever goes through a housing in the turret which apparently has a seal which over time wears. Somebody advised although there shows a seal nothing exists.Oh no not another mazda oversight. People use grease in the turret which lasts.

[aSimpleLife]

Yes I will use grease if my last attempt to seal the turret fails. Thankyou.

[aSimpleLife]

I don't think I am losing my turret oil into the gearbox. Each time I refill the turret oil it seems to leak and I get the burning gear oil smell. And it seems to be happening again after I tried sealing the screws too (problem is you have to wait a while for what was there before to burn off.

I have been trying to find white lithium grease locally but all I see is spray cans. From the forums I get the impression it should be in a normal grease form? Then there seems to be a question about whether the max temp rating of lithium grease is high enough to prevent melting and risk contaminating the gear oil if you do have a leak down there from the turret.

If I was going to try again to seal the turret. I assume I will need to remove the turret itself this time? The leak must be coming from where the turret joins the gearbox? At least that would explain why the turret oil empties. But it looks like I will need to drop the gearbox to do this? Only 3 of the 4 screws are accessible from the top and I am not sure I can get the turret off enough to then seal it anyway. I am not keen on dropping the box

[aSimpleLife]

According to this thread, it can leak between the turret and the gearbox. And you can remove it from within the car? There is no gasket. So I need to get some RTV blue sealant. I'll give this a shot next before I try no oil and grease only.

https://forum.miata.net/vb/showthread.php?t=564267

Note to self...put the shifter into 1st gear before removing. That leaves it in the best position for sucking out any turret oil.

[hks_kansei]

Can i STRONGLY suggest that you download and review the factory manual for whichever model you have.

From memory the manual includes an exploded diagram, and should have the process and specs to disassemble the box.



Otherwise, if you want detailed pics of the turret area before you remove the box etc, let me know.
I have 4 (maybe 5?) spare 5 speeds from memory. (all were cheap, and I figure it's good to have spare parts handy)

So I can get you pics easily of the turret area, from all angles if you want.

[aSimpleLife]

Thankyou very much for that. I have just reviewed both versions of the manual that I have for the NB 5 speed. I can't find anything specific to removing the turret. One of them does highlight using grease as well as oil...but not instead of.

Before I start anything I will get the car back up on blocks, and pull off the console, and try to identify exactly where this seeming slow turret leak onto the exhaust is coming from. It could still just be the old oil burning off but I don't know how long that would last for and it doesn't seem to be improving with each drive. It also seems to be feeling notchy again which is either my imagination or the turret oil level is down again. I will also check first if I can remove the turret from the top without dropping the box (last resort).

I found this video which is better than the others. Here the guy has a 5 speed box out of the car on a bench for the turret service. Unfortunately he doesn't remove the turret from the box though.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=biBjZhmkxZc

And I probably need to be more careful when applying the RTV next time.

"If you don't seal the shifter boot to the turret (with a good gasket or RTV), then oil can slosh out and make burning smells on the exhaust or make you think you have a leak. If you use RTV, make it THIN ... the shifter lateral detents and springs are IN the shift turret, and the tolerances are fairly tight - you don't want RTV blobs down there.