How to avoid the infamous oil leaks
03-20-2004, 03:01 AM
#16
Alexander:
I think it's safe to say that the cylinder head leak on early cars can definately happen, but it isn't as common as we've been led to believe. The other leaks are the real concern, because the 964, like any other car, will eventually develop leaks anywhere it has a chance. I overhauled an MR2 years ago and found one of the most offensive leaks on the car to be a tiny little O-ring gasket that fits on the base of the distrubutor drive. When I pulled this thing out (it was creating an unbelievable leak, considering it's size) the thing was as brittle as a dry twig. It actually snapped when I evaluated it. Another post points this out above, but this time it's a 964. It's an indication of age.
A survey was done on John Miles site years ago that addressed the leakage issues. If it's still up, you should read it because it identifies many of the more common leaks. Leaks WILL happen given enough time, but with your model and year, if you have any leakage at the heads it will likely be one of the cylinder head gaskets failing due to age, and not warping due to heat (granted, I suppose it's possible you could warp stuff somehow, I just don't think it's very likely). All of this is pretty much normal for ALL older cars.
Hope this helps,
I think it's safe to say that the cylinder head leak on early cars can definately happen, but it isn't as common as we've been led to believe. The other leaks are the real concern, because the 964, like any other car, will eventually develop leaks anywhere it has a chance. I overhauled an MR2 years ago and found one of the most offensive leaks on the car to be a tiny little O-ring gasket that fits on the base of the distrubutor drive. When I pulled this thing out (it was creating an unbelievable leak, considering it's size) the thing was as brittle as a dry twig. It actually snapped when I evaluated it. Another post points this out above, but this time it's a 964. It's an indication of age.
A survey was done on John Miles site years ago that addressed the leakage issues. If it's still up, you should read it because it identifies many of the more common leaks. Leaks WILL happen given enough time, but with your model and year, if you have any leakage at the heads it will likely be one of the cylinder head gaskets failing due to age, and not warping due to heat (granted, I suppose it's possible you could warp stuff somehow, I just don't think it's very likely). All of this is pretty much normal for ALL older cars.
Hope this helps,
