Oil Dilemma
03-16-2012, 05:55 PM
#1
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Oil Dilemma Hello,
New to forums so if i post incorrectly please let me know. Move me if necessary. I have a 2000 Z28 LS1 with 241k miles that still runs great. I recently had some fixes done (alternator just went out - corrected) and new belt. 2 Months ago i was attempting to locate the oil leak on the engine. It had been leaking for a while because it was such a slow leak. Recently it had gotten a little worse (meaning i could go 3000 miles with the leak and not need to add oil but now i do). I successfully changed the oil pan gasket, the oil filter gasket (the side gasket that goes to nothing) and had all these parts dropped to be cleaned including the baffle. Once i put on the new FelPro gasket and torqued the bolts accordingly i figured it was corrected. The engine continues to leak at the exact same rate it did before which leads me to beleive that what i did was not the problem.
To explain what it looks like, there is a small amount of oil on each oil pan bolt dripping down from the head. The front drips are MUCH smaller than the rear. The rear is where it seems to actually drip from. There are bigger drips from the heads on the back pan bolts and they to as high as the starter bolts. That is where i feel it may be coming from somewhere else.
Today i had a thought (yes it was in the shower) that maybe i have a blockage of air releasing from the engine block forcing the oil to come out of the seals or alternative methods. I am not sure what to look for here so i am leaving this idea open for comments. I do not enjoy taking my car to the shop if i can fix it but the leak has been progressively getting worse even with attempts to fix it. I was hoping for some input. Feel free to spill as many thoughts as possible for i am tech savvy just not tech knowledgable (meaning i dont know much about a certain thing untill i take it apart - ie Oil baffle had no idea it had one till i took it apart and now i know what it is, where and why)
Thanks for your input and help.
Mike.
New to forums so if i post incorrectly please let me know. Move me if necessary. I have a 2000 Z28 LS1 with 241k miles that still runs great. I recently had some fixes done (alternator just went out - corrected) and new belt. 2 Months ago i was attempting to locate the oil leak on the engine. It had been leaking for a while because it was such a slow leak. Recently it had gotten a little worse (meaning i could go 3000 miles with the leak and not need to add oil but now i do). I successfully changed the oil pan gasket, the oil filter gasket (the side gasket that goes to nothing) and had all these parts dropped to be cleaned including the baffle. Once i put on the new FelPro gasket and torqued the bolts accordingly i figured it was corrected. The engine continues to leak at the exact same rate it did before which leads me to beleive that what i did was not the problem.
To explain what it looks like, there is a small amount of oil on each oil pan bolt dripping down from the head. The front drips are MUCH smaller than the rear. The rear is where it seems to actually drip from. There are bigger drips from the heads on the back pan bolts and they to as high as the starter bolts. That is where i feel it may be coming from somewhere else.
Today i had a thought (yes it was in the shower) that maybe i have a blockage of air releasing from the engine block forcing the oil to come out of the seals or alternative methods. I am not sure what to look for here so i am leaving this idea open for comments. I do not enjoy taking my car to the shop if i can fix it but the leak has been progressively getting worse even with attempts to fix it. I was hoping for some input. Feel free to spill as many thoughts as possible for i am tech savvy just not tech knowledgable (meaning i dont know much about a certain thing untill i take it apart - ie Oil baffle had no idea it had one till i took it apart and now i know what it is, where and why)
Thanks for your input and help.
Mike.
03-16-2012, 09:24 PM
#2
Mike,
Is this correct...that there is oil only on one side of the pan?
The 'less oil in front, and more oil at the rear bolts" may just be that it is leaking at the front, and the wind is forcing the leaking oil rearward.
I'm gonna say that the oil is leaking at the front.
Because there is so little to be seen from the top, can you get underneath the car during daylight, and see if you can trace the leak?
Hope you have a safe way to support the car frame.
I prefer secured 2x6's under each corner of the frame, in addition to the jacks.
Is this correct...that there is oil only on one side of the pan?
The 'less oil in front, and more oil at the rear bolts" may just be that it is leaking at the front, and the wind is forcing the leaking oil rearward.
I'm gonna say that the oil is leaking at the front.
Because there is so little to be seen from the top, can you get underneath the car during daylight, and see if you can trace the leak?
Hope you have a safe way to support the car frame.
I prefer secured 2x6's under each corner of the frame, in addition to the jacks.
03-16-2012, 10:33 PM
#3
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Try putting the car on ramps, or better yet 4 jackstands to keep the car level. Clean as much as you possibly can with brake/parts cleaner, that cleans fresh oil off almost instantaneously. Get the bottom of the engine as clean and dry as you possibly can. Dust any areas that you might suspect with talc powder and let the engine run for a while. Go back out and check for areas where oil has soaked the talc powder. If its a sever leak you can probably get away without even using the talc powder, but I have heard this used before.
