Oil Leak From Hell

[azazel_18_2]

MY brother in law has an 88 Accord lx wth a five speed and it has an oil leak from hell. We first checked the oil pan gasket and it's fine. I looked at the oil filter adapter and it DOESN"T seems to be leaking there. I replaced the oil hose and o-ringon the PCV chamber. I pulled the intake off and couldn't pinpoint where it was leaking. I can tell for sure it isn't the head gasket. What else is on the back side of the motor that can leak oil down the oil pan and onto the exhaust? Any ideas? Block isn't cracked because we had it torn down a few months back and it is great. The car looses about a quart every 50 miles!! It is pretty bad and smoke will poor out from under it at a stop light. No smoke from the exhaust just from the damn oil leak. The car runds great other than this. Any ideas?

[nswst8]

Backside of engine, leaking on the exhaust is a sure sign that the Oil filter base gasket is your culprit. I believe you said you checked it but when was it last replaced.

Only other idea CV joint/transaxle seal could sling oil around that area but would look like a rear main seal failure.

[88Accord-DX]

Yup, I agree on the oil filter base gasket. Good way to see what is going on, is to get up underneath it & spray it with carb or brake cleaner good. Wipe it off with a rag. Jack the car up to get underneath it with a shop light & see where it's leaking from. If your want, fling some foot powder around suspected points. It'll show up real quick. :wave:

Rear main seal, look at the transmission bellhousing for oil drip at the bottom.

[2oodoor]

pretty much would have to be coming from that area, in addtion to what has been already said: oil sender, oil filter base housing gasket. If it drips most likely the culprits. if it were oil pan it leaks from gravity or slings out, not so much from engine oil pressure.

[w261w261]

1 qt every 50 miles is a real good leak, so shouldn't be hard to find. This won't be the cause of a big leak, but I had a problem with it: the face of the oil filter adaptor (where the oil filter screws on, where the oil filter's gasket mates with the surface) can get a ring of crusty stuff on it, preventing the oil filter gasket from making a tight fit. You can feel it when you do an oil change, just rub your finger around. I had to scrape it off with a plastic scraper, then get the rest with a rag. It helped some, but I had to also do the filter adaptor's figure-8 gasket to stop most of the leaks. I still have a small one though....pain.

[twistyrider]

My 87 had a really bad leak a couple months ago. Had the same problem finding where this really bad leak was coming from. My car also had the oil pan and valve cover gaskets leaking. So I had oil almost all over the under side of the engine. Turned out to be the oil pressure sending unit. It was just old and dried up. The unit is a steel threaded piece with a plastic inner. The plastic dries up over years of heat cycling and develops a small cracks that just grows until they springs open and oil goes everywhere around the filter housing. To check it, reach up on top of the filter housing with a rag and dry it off as best that you can. Then remove the boot that is covering the plug-in on the sensor. With mine I had to cut and pry to get it off and when I did I got more oil so I definetly knew that it was the problem.

The bad:
It's a pain to get out. You will have to use a very short wrench that you will mostlikely have to make yourself since the wrench size is a 17 or 19mm (I think).
I ended up using 4 inch vise grips to get it off. I took about 20 minutes to get it out.

The good:
$8-$10 at your local auto parts store.

[Blkblurr]

I also agree. The oil filter base adapter gasket. They get brittle and crack. MIne did the same thing and leaked the same way.

[azazel_18_2]

Well, I got the gasket today. I will probably get the sending unit as well. It would be easiest changing the sending unit while I have the oil filter base removed from the block. My brother in law can handle a little drip of oil but damn 1 quart every 50 miles? That is bad. I looked on top of the base where the oil pressure sending unit is and it is CLEAN but I will change it anyways.

[2oodoor]

Well, I got the gasket today. I will probably get the sending unit as well. It would be easiest changing the sending unit while I have the oil filter base removed from the block. My brother in law can handle a little drip of oil but damn 1 quart every 50 miles? That is bad. I looked on top of the base where the oil pressure sending unit is and it is CLEAN but I will change it anyways.

I think the sender blocks access to one of the bolts, watch for it.

[azazel_18_2]

got her fixed. $8 gasket and $5 oil pressure sending unit and no oil leaks. thanks