mystery oil leak???

[tredse1]

this is really confusing me...i have oil all over my engine compartment, hood, ect...the thickest coverage(probalble cause area) is the intake manifold and fuel rail area...not on the little lip(the petruding part of the head) under the valve cover tho..my first though of course was the valve cover gasket(new gasket tho-timing belt new), mabey that's it, not sure yet.---what i don't get though is that my engine compartment goes from pristeen clean to completely covered in oil in like 30-40mi of driving...and yet after doing this since i bought the car (aprx 1000mi ago) it still registers full on the dipstick!!

okay, mabey this is a diff fluid..don't think so but mabey...if it is then why would it concetrate around the intake?? it also puddles in the grids on the plenum and the "spark plug valley" in the valve cover...and i can smell it burning off the exaust pipe from time to time.

hope'n someone has been through this before i start randomly replacing gaskets!!:help:

 

[zorrex]

If you have oil in the spark plug valleys, then you definitely need to change your valve cover gasket. It's a pretty quick fix, maybe a dozen or so bolts.

 

[tredse1]

If you have oil in the spark plug valleys, then you definitely need to change your valve cover gasket. It's a pretty quick fix, maybe a dozen or so bolts.

just set the vct timing...has new gasket...like 2-3 hundred miles on it...still think'n bout changing it though..
-the oil in the "spark plug valley" i descibed i didn't mean like in the head, it's on top of the valve cover, the valley where the wires run...brand new bostch wires so i really hope oil ain't got past them into the valley!!
-and it also leave small puddles on the ground...

:shrug: but my main question is about why does it not show any loss on the dipstick? there is at least 2-3qts under the hood right now, and i washed it a couple days ago!!

 

[striker2]

the oil cap is on and tight correct? i know when i forgot to put the oil cap back on once that within about 5 miles i had oil on the hood and could smell it burning off the exhaust.

i would also verify that it is actually oil and not trans fluid or power streering fluid.

 

[tredse1]

the oil cap is on and tight correct? i know when i forgot to put the oil cap back on once that within about 5 miles i had oil on the hood and could smell it burning off the exhaust.

i would also verify that it is actually oil and not trans fluid or power streering fluid.

i've been wondering about trans fluid...but why and how would it be most prevalent on the top of the intake? none or it makes any since...notice the 85 F150 in my sig? i'm not by any means new to fluid leaks! this one justs stumps me!

 

[striker2]

i suspect its coming from a high pressure line of some kind. at one point i actually had a leak from one of the hard lines on the rack itself. it was just a small leak but it would spray fluid everywhere. luckily it was pointed at the firewall so it didnt get all over too much stuff but i could see one coming up behind the intake manifold. the only problem with that theory is you would notice you have no powersteering.

im not sure how the cooler lines are run for the trans but thats a possiblity as well.

 

[tredse1]

i suspect its coming from a high pressure line of some kind. at one point i actually had a leak from one of the hard lines on the rack itself. it was just a small leak but it would spray fluid everywhere. luckily it was pointed at the firewall so it didnt get all over too much stuff but i could see one coming up behind the intake manifold. the only problem with that theory is you would notice you have no powersteering.

im not sure how the cooler lines are run for the trans but thats a possiblity as well.

didn't think of that power steering line...but it is in the right spot...but my steering works fantastic!

cooler lines...not sure where they run either but i hope to add a extra cooler up front so mabey that project will help discover the answer to this problem...would be nice to fix...i dare not waste time on detailing for fear it would only piss me off!!

 

[zorrex]

Oh I see what you meant by the "valleys." So then it isn't your valve cover gasket. As striker said, it could be your power steering line. There is a high pressure line running right next to your timing cover. This could be a good place to start. I would clean off the entire engine, and use some Simple Green to degrease it, and just drive it around until you see this "oil" start building up. And just so you know, the PS fluid is actually ATF, haha.

 

[tredse1]

update:
i have inspected all over and the only potentional "leak" i can see is what looks to be a vacume line from the tranny that runs behind the block under the intake..it is cracked and very brittle...also another running similar only it comes from the motor..posibly the pcv line.:shrug:

however it still confuses me because there is no drop in any of the fluids, they are all maintaining full level. i will replace those line soon and clean it all up and update from there....

 

[tredse1]

UPDATE:
I recently replaced the crankcase vent hose(to the airbox) and notice that the PCV hose that runs up under the intake was severly brittle and completly colapsed...i replaced it to. After seeing the condition of that i'm thinking that it probably is oil...unable to "breathe" properly i'm sure it pushed oil out at any weak place it could. I had this prob on my F-150 years ago...bad PCV caused it to blow intake gaskets...three before i finally figured out why!:troutslap: anyway i plan to clean the engine thoughaly and probably replace the valve cover gasket as soon as i can afford it.