Only after driving long distances the bottom of the vehicle is covered in oil

Good morning,

Can you post a picture of the bottom of the engine with the oil showing?

Roy

I tried. Basically droplets of oil everywhere. The AC compressor and alternator were soaked. Eventually all of this will cook off and it'll be like it never happened.

Thank you.

The leak looks like it could be from either the front oil seal on the crankshaft or the oil filter. Since it does it when you are on the highway, that is when the pressure is at the highest.

I would add an oil dye to the oil and then drive it a couple of days and use a LED light to spot the source of the leak.

Then we can discuss options.

Roy

Just re-bumping this for discussion. Since the oil change 2,000 miles ago, it hasn't leaked any oil, to my knowledge. However, the new belt has begun to "glaze" ? I guess from something leaking on it? Or maybe it's lack of tension. What I'm trying to say is that the belt no longer has the nice hard rubber outside and is now soft and stretchy, can almost pull it off the pulleys.

Change the belt and tensioner.

Roy

Quick question, could lack of tension cause the vehicle to just quit at random?

No, it will glaze the belt.

Roy

I've had dye in this car for 2 oil changes now. The front seal should be glowing under the UV light right? There is only oil on the front frame, the skid plate, and a drop on the bottom of the oil filter. No oil around the oil filter base plate. The pan gasket area is dry.

Okay, is the oil on the frame have oil dye in it or is it leftover from before?

Roy

Oil on the frame does have the green tint to it with UV Light. Yes

Then it is coming out of the engine.

Did you check the top such as the valve covers, intake manifold, and the oil fill cap?

Roy

There's a slight valve cover leak up top, but no dye came out of it. Nothing down the exhaust, and certainly not out of the cap. There's a puddle caught in the skid plate, took that out. And a green bit on the head of the drain plug put not the seal around it.

It has to be leaking from somewhere on the motor.

Either that or it is burning it out the tail pipe.

Roy

I'll keep looking... but if it burned it out like that there wouldn't be other evidence right?

You might see something at the exhaust manifolds.

Roy

I attached here the best picture of the crank seal I can get. It looks wet to me... but not showing up florescent green from the dye.

Yes, that looks like it is seeping but has not actually become a leak.

Look at the rear of the engine as well for the rear main.

Roy

The rear main is leaking, but it never has been a problem, just a brown wet spot on the trans bell housing., I can't really see that blowing up to the front during normal driving, especially on long trips.

How much oil do you use between changes?

Roy

That's what's funny. Every time I change the oil the level is full. When we drive it to Louisiana, which is 1,400 miles round trip it will use 2 or 3 quarts.

Okay, check your PCV valve and make sure it is working.

Roy

I don't think there is one on this motor...

It has a PCV system which is a breather. Make sure the hoses and the inside of the air filter assembly are clean of all dirt and debris.

Roy

Positive Crankcase Ventilation Hose/Pipe/Tube Replacement

Removal Procedure


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1. Disconnect the crankcase dirty air hose from the intake manifold.
2. Disconnect the crankcase dirty air hose from the positive crankcase ventilation (PCV) orifice tube.


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3. Loosen the throttle body clamps (2).
4. Disconnect the fuel pressure regulator vacuum supply hose from the air cleaner outlet resonator.


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5. Remove the 2 resonator to engine bolts (4) from the air cleaner outlet resonator (5).


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6. Lift up the front of the air cleaner outlet resonator (2).
7. Disconnect the crankcase clean air hose from the valve cover port.
8. Disconnect the crankcase clean air hose from the air cleaner outlet resonator (2).

I've taken this off and cleaned it and the throttle body before. There is always oil in the resonator. never oil in the air filter though and the only PCV hose is the little elbow going into the valve cover.

Okay, then back to burning it when you are on the highway. That is the only thing that makes sense.

Roy

It's one way to lose oil but I still have green fluorescence on the frame in the front. These don't have a remote oil filter housing or cooler with a gasket that can fail do they?

No, they do not.

Roy

There remains a bead of oil at the bottom of the oil filter, yet nothing around the base plate shows up. The filter is tight, and I've replaced the sending unit just encase it was leaking but there is not florescent green above the filter.

Got it. I think it's burning it up when you are at high speed.

What weight oil are you using?

Roy

5w-30 synthetic blend, Purolator One oil filters or AC Delco original equipment.

Go to 10 30 and see if it helps.

Roy

So get this; it took this long for the UV dye to show that the oil pressure switch is leaking above the oil filter. I finally saw a bead of oil on it the other day, and when I pulled the connector out of it, the end of the electrical connector was covered in oil.

I had replaced this already.. this means the diaphragm blew right? You think this could explain losing 3 quarts of oil on a 700 mile trip up there and 700 miles back?

Yes, it could. Replace it and see what happens.

Roy