oil leak help Options

[captb]

for a few months now i've been leaking a few drops of oil a day. nothing major but i finally got time to look for the leak today.

what i found:
1) there are signs of oil reaching just below the cylinder head. only on rear side of engine though.
2) i cleaned underneath and ran idle for 10mins and didnt see anything.
3) #3 spark plug had oil, but not on where the spark comes from, mostly on the threads and head.
4) there was some oil in the distributor cap.

car info:
1) 125,000miles
2) never touched engine bay for minimum 4months

im thinking it may be the head gasket, or does my engine block need an overhaul. all help is appreciated.

[Mstoochn]

for a few months now i've been leaking a few drops of oil a day. nothing major but i finally got time to look for the leak today.

what i found:
1) there are signs of oil reaching just below the cylinder head. only on rear side of engine though.
2) i cleaned underneath and ran idle for 10mins and didnt see anything.
3) #3 spark plug had oil, but not on where the spark comes from, mostly on the threads and head.
4) there was some oil in the distributor cap.

car info:
1) 125,000miles
2) never touched engine bay for minimum 4months

im thinking it may be the head gasket, or does my engine block need an overhaul. all help is appreciated.

oil dripping down the back of the block is valve cover gaskey leak, same with distributor, distributor also has its own seal or u can just FIGP around it.
find someone with a compression meter and check each cylinder, if there is a large variance it could be headgasket or valve seals

[captb]

thanks Mstoochn.

some additional questions.

1) how much does a compression meter run. (those always come in handy when buying used car)?

2) im thinking i may be able to handle a headgasket replacement but how bout a valve seal replacement? would i need to be ale to remove the engine from the chasis?

[Mstoochn]

thanks Mstoochn.

some additional questions.

1) how much does a compression meter run. (those always come in handy when buying used car)?

2) im thinking i may be able to handle a headgasket replacement but how bout a valve seal replacement? would i need to be ale to remove the engine from the chasis?

you would need to remove the head and take every little piec apart, If you are not extreme mechanically inclined/Careful I would advise a professional, pending where u live there are people on here that would certainly take a day with you to do it!

Pick one up at lordco for about 40$. All 4 cylinders should be at about 265-280 if there is more than 10 between any cylinders could be a HG problem.

ALSO ### if there is oil around the plug but not on the tip i would advise tightening all 4 nuts on the cylinder wells. be sure to do it slowly and equaly, your valve cover gasket is old and warn

This post has been edited by Mstoochn: Jun 16, 2009 - 3:08 PM

[captb]

Update: Problem was the valve cover gasket. turned out to be an easy fix. Car is running cherry with no leaks. hopefully itll last till 200k miles.

[Bitter]

did you also replace the spark plug tube seals?

[captb]

nope. was i supposed too? seems to be fine now.

[trdproven]

for a few months now i've been leaking a few drops of oil a day. nothing major but i finally got time to look for the leak today.

what i found:
1) there are signs of oil reaching just below the cylinder head. only on rear side of engine though.
can be from the valve cover or distributor leaking and as the car moves it reaches the rear of the engine.
2) i cleaned underneath and ran idle for 10mins and didnt see anything.
takes longer than that to catch especially without the normal driving unless the leak was super big.
3) #3 spark plug had oil, but not on where the spark comes from, mostly on the threads and head.
Could be spark plug tube gaskets (Orings)
4) there was some oil in the distributor cap.
Aha! matches number ones answer. one problem solved. In time, you don't get it replaced or rebuilt it will not give you spark anymore. thus your car wont start

car info:
1) 125,000miles
2) never touched engine bay for minimum 4months

im thinking it may be the head gasket, or does my engine block need an overhaul. all help is appreciated.
A: You can tell if the headgasket, you have milky engine oil, and same as coolant. means the two are mixing. you are getting overheating, I think you are referring to valve cover gasket. but it looks like you need to doublecheck and replace your distributor first and see where the leak is after. one step at a time.