I think I over filled 328 gear oil- possible harm?

I believe the spec is 4L + 4 ounces (so a bit more than 4 quarts), but don't mess with the drain plug to correct/check -- with the coachwork level, just remove the gearbox fill plug A on the rearward face of the gearbox (see pages 78-79 in your OM):

If gear oil comes out, just let it drain until the level is at the bottom of the fill plug A hole.

If no gear oil comes out = add more

 

+1...spot on.

 

As above, pull the gearbox fill plug on the back of the box, if oil comes out then its over filled, just let it drain from there till it stops and put the plug back in.

Points to note for changing the gearbox oil:

- the car should be level.
- Before draining always make sure you can get both the fill plugs out!
- its much easier to fill it through the transfer case
- when you fill it through the transfer case it takes a long time for the oil level to stabilise across the system so put no more than 4.5 quarts in and WAIT. It can take 10 minutes + before you start seeing oil coming out the gearbox fill plug.

My 328 always takes at least 4.5 quarts.

By the way, why will having extra oil in your gearbox help with leaking cam seals? The gearbox is an entirely separate seperate thing from the engine as far as oil is concerned (or at least it should be!)

 

I thought it was a "two plug" procedure but did not recall the details...Thanks guys!

 

If you drained out 5 quarts it might mean the shifter seal between engine and gearbox is leaking engine oil into the gearbox. Thats likely what he meant.

 

As Andy said.

The gearshift shaft passes through the engine sump to gearbox & there is a seal on the front side of the engine sump & another in between the gearbox and the engine sump. When that one fails it lets engine oil into the gearbox from the engine. The tell-tale is an over full gearbox when you remove the gearbox fill plug.

Its quite common & not that difficult to fix (as long as you have a ramp). It involves removing both sump pans (the dipstick tube needs to come out to drop the engine sump). Then the shift shaft & then replacing the seals.

 

Before you assume the overfill was caused by a leaking shifter shaft seal, drain your oil down to the upper fill plug as already noted (and as described in the Owners Manual), drive the car a few hundred miles then check the level again. It may be that the gearbox was overfilled by using the transfer gear fill plug to fill the entire gearbox.

I was surprised by an overflow from my upper plug (as in oil all over the garage floor) the first time I changed my gear oil. I thought I had a blown shifter shaft seal, but it was only from an overfill at the prior change.

 

Indeed, entirely possible. As I said above, when you fill via the Xfer case you need to put 4.5 quarts in and then wait at least 10-15 minutes before you might see some coming out the gearbox fill plug. It seems to take a long time for it to work its way through.

 

One of these days someone at Ferrari has to explain to me why it was a good idea to drill into the engine oil pan for the gear shift shaft to pass through. Could it be that at 5PM on a Friday, the design engineer said "eff it, let's drill and call it a day." Chianti time.

 

Bah! Its a baby in comparison to the madness that is the Countach's drivetrain layout!

 

I think its a brilliantly simple design which results in one simple straight shift shaft. The other way, to "go around" the engine would have lost all the precision of the gearchange.

Look at the Lotus Esprit: The mechanism consists of a bowden cable and 2 bellcranks for the left/right movement and a linkage with a rocker lever fore-aft. Even when the mechanism is in perfect order its a vague movement and when its worn its like stirring porridge.

 

All I can tell you is Toyota or Honda would have designed an intricate linkage system that works, Porsche would have turned the engine/gearbox around, and only Ferrari chooses to drill two holes into the oil pan with inadequate oil seals.

I don't think it is "brilliant."

 

The Miura is similar but has a tube that extends thru the sump that the shaft passes thru.