It might be because we've had so much snow around here lately that I haven't been able to notice it leaking recently. I was aware of an oil leak SOMEWHERE because everything pretty nasty under the car - plus it's a land rover PLUS I know my steering box is leaking as well, so I didn't think much of it.

I bought the car as a beater with 146k on the odo and it've put 1500 mi on her in a little over a month (and 74" of snow later, so she's paid for herself) BUT I haven't had to top off any fluids except coolant, which was down a bit when I got the car and it's stayed put since then.

I opened the hood today to get the tire iron out so I could take the spare off and install the rear wiper (which was.. missing? who knows.) I was instantly hit with that warm oil smell (you know, the smell you get when you drain the oil from the engine and it's sitting in the drain pan?)

I looked under the car and it's dripping from everywhere - splattered on the front diff and had a few drops coming off that, a few off of misc. suspension components, front tie rod, etc.


LOCATION: Okay, while it's splattered on the oil pan, it appears to be coming from the front of the engine. My valve covers ARE leaking, but I'm fairly certain that it couldn't cause this volume of oil to leak out. The valve covers are more.. seeping (there's no recent drip marks on the manifolds or anything below the valve covers)

That plastic guard piece under the front of the engine prevents me from seeing exactly where it's coming from, but some is also dripping off of the oil filter (I'll check that tomorrow, but again.. looks like splatter to me - from somewhere else)


I know I'm not giving you all much to go on, but is there a common item that would leak on the bottom front of the engine? It's a 1999 DII. Interestingly enough, the dip stick STILL says it's perfect - I've got 2 quarts in the back just in case.

Another possibility is that the roads were dry today... it's been snowing so much lately that the underside of the car is constantly being "washed" off so there isn't much to drip off normally. Today was the first dry day in a while (too cold to melt) and I think the splatter-effect just covered more stuff than usual. I put pans under the car and I caught a few drops from 4 different things that were covered (diff, tie rod, etc) so it's not a HUGE leak or anything - but it is annoying because it's going to stain the $hit out of the driveway of the townhouse I rent from, and I don't want to pay for it later!

 

Maybe I'm on to something!

So, on the way home - I had to pass this car doing ~25mph in a 55. Soooo, I sorta floored it - she downshifted twice and went a little over 3000rpm, so it wasn't anything too extreme. It was however the first time that I've had her over 2500rpm since I BOUGHT it. Yes, I baby it =)

I wasn't going to mention this because mechanically-speaking, if a gasket or seal is leaking, it shouldn't really be rpm-dependent.

BUT after reading like 20 threads on related topics (gotta love forum search) and seeing a few people mention PCV clogging issues.. that MIGHT have something to do with the relatively-high rpm (comparatively-speaking..) I hit on the way home, and the oil leak.

If the PCV wasn't venting correctly, it's gonna leak from somewhere (and on a 150k motor.. there's probably plenty of options )

So my next question is this.. if I fix the PCV and it works correctly, will my leak STOP, or is it permanent due to the PCV issue requiring replacement?

The talk about valve cover leak problems being caused by the PCV is what got me thinking - because I KNOW my valve cover gaskets are leaking, hence it's probable that I have a clogged PCV apparently?

 

Definitely check your PCV and clean or replace your oil seperator. You need to pressure wash your engine completely so you can see exactly where it is leaking from besides the rocker covers. You can snug down the outer bolts on your rocker covers. As far the high RPMs, these engines just operate at higher RPMs than most other V8s.

 

a clogged PCV system will make any car leak in funny places. Clean it out and then wash teh engine. Look for new leaks then.

 

I once had oil leaking from the oil pressure switch, which would then drip off the oil filter, it was leaking a lot, so you may want to check that, see if the "plastic bulb" has cracked...

 

Cool thanks guys! I was a little freaked out at first (mostly because I discovered this after JUST getting back from Lowe's and buying a new cordless drill to fix my busted mud flaps, and was finally going to install the rear wiper blade that I've REALLY needed lately) so I'm taking these steps forward, and... AHH oil leak!

But stuff like this isn't stressing me out as much as it used to.

I really need that LR bumper sticker that says "If it's not leaking, it must be empty!"

Any advice for working on the PCV? It's FREEZING out so I'm trying not to fumble around too much. I'm looking through RAVE right now.

My list for tomorrow is:
*check oil filter
*check oil filter housing mount bolts (one thread revealed 2 of 4 bolts to be loose, causing leak)
*tighten outer valve cover bolts; 8mm, 10lb-ft
*check/clean oil separator
*check PCV lines
*check oil pressure regulator switch (thanks herblatham!)

 

Someone in one of my searched threads said "check oil pressure regulator switch" but didn't elaborate on it. Where's this guy at?

Thanks!

 

Remove that plastic pan under the truck and throw it away if you want.
Common leak points are all gaskets and seals as well as the oil pressure sending unit.
Most common being the front crank seal and the oil pan gasket.

 

It is right above the oil filter, it will have a single wire coming out of it.
It is a $15 part that is prone to cracking over time and then leaking.

 

Ugh, most of these possible culprits make me glad I bought that intensely bright LED head flashlight. This is sounding like fun =)

If it's the front crank seal, I'll probably trash the clutch fan and do the electric fan swap while I've got all that stuff out.