Mongo

Hey guys I've been keeping an eye on an oil leak that is starting to turn pretty serious on the car. I can't seem to pinpoint it and everytime I crawl under there there's too much blowback to even tell where the oil is coming from. The location is somewhere along middle part of the engine on the passenger side. The pan gasket looks ok, but I'm wondering if it could be a line. Anyone ever fixed an oil leak related to that area????

mspiegle

I think the oil lines run on the driver's side. I think a good way to check for oil pan leaks is to look at the bolts themselves. I noticed that each of mine had a drop of oil on them. Also, I took a small wrench and lightly tightened mine up and all of my oil leaks were gone.

Bill Ball

Jack up the car and from underneath look up at the cam cover gasket.

Mongo

if the cam cover gasket is leaking, wouldn't it be dripping onto the manifold and I'd be seeing burning oil smoking from the hood???

Randy V

You sure it's engine oil and not trans fluid?

Bill Ball

Andy:

Not necessarily. My cam cover leak runs between the manifolds and down the block. Granted, this would not usually be a SERIOUS leak, but it is in the right spot. Other sources are the cam cover caps, but they usually go down the front or backside. Rear main seal wets the rear pan and bellhousing. Front main seal wets the whole thing starting at the front and blowing back - that could be it, but it should cover the whole bottom. Oil pump seal would be front and blow back favoring the driver side (US). Get under the car with a flashlight and look above the oil drip at the block. Oh, another source is the trans cooler lines and fittings (Randy was getting at that) - I had a fitting leak at the radiator that ran down the hose and dripped under the hose on the passenger side. Trans fluid should be red.

worf928

Yup. Agree with everything so far. Andy, you need to get the car up and Stig your head under there to see exactly what's wet with oil. If the leak's crufted up everything already to the point that you cannot find exactly what's leaking, you may need to start the process with an under-block cleaning session.

Mongo

oh believe me, I'm going under there this weekend. I do have a leaky transmission cooling hose, but its that weird one that I posted a while back connecting from the radiator to the transmission cooler, something completely separate. I havea feeling now i very may well be that valve cover. I have tons of engine cleaner so I can clean everything up under there over the weekend too. I will let everyone know what I find

BC

Andy - those cam tower gaskets can absolutley GUSH oil. More then I think you may be imagining. The passenger side doesn't have much more then that unless you wish to investiage if the cam seal is leaking at the front and running down, and blowing backwards.

Daniel Dudley

When I was a kid I blew an engine going to the store to buy a gasket. A twenty min. drive.