- Thread starter
- #26
Dhan
Supporting Member
- 3,772
- 190
- Apr 29, 2010
-
Denver,
Colorado
7.0 Fixing oil leak turns into much more
As of 2019, I am in my senior year. I took the summer off from school but kept working my day job. At last I had plenty of free time to tear into the Talon again.
I didn't really have the funds to fix the transmission so I decided to finally address the oil leaks that the car had had since the first day I drove it home. It was never enough of a leak to form a puddle or drip drip drip, but enough of a leak that oil spray coated everything on the timing belt side and dirt and sand steadily built up. Every once in a while I'd jack the car up and wipe everything down. I'd had enough of this mess and decided to tear things apart around the front case to try and see what the root of the problem was.
The cam shaft seals are a usual suspect in this region, but mine were bone dry and still holding strong from when I rebuilt the head a few years back. So I traced the dirty trail piece by piece on the block. The oil filter housing (OFH) was coated in gunk and so was the lower section near the balance shaft belt. Obviously oil was weeping from somewhere and being flung all over the place by the belts and pullies and/or a gasket was bad somewhere.
The more I pulled apart, the more difficult and uncomfortable it was to work on. With how big the mess was I finally just decided to yank the whole motor out. So my girlfriend fronted me the cash to buy a Harbor Freight engine hoist and stand (cause she's awesome) and I got to work. Aside from kinking one metal coolant line, the engine removal went smoothly.
Through it all, I was never able to pinpoint the true oil leak culprit. The timing belt was moist (I love that word) all the way around on its inner side, so it was likely the cause of the spray on places like the water pump and the OFH areas. The balance shaft belt was clean though.
Several spots looked to be the actual leak source. The area behind the tensioner pulley arm was the highest point I found 'wet' oil. Also high on the list of suspects were the two bolts on the right side of the front case. Both bolt's threads were soaked in oil and even farted out a bit of oil when I removed them.
In addition, the front case gasket was damp with oil all the way around. It was hard to tell if this oil got on the gasket during my disassembly or the gasket had indeed failed and was also leaking oil.
Lastly, the oil pan. Whoever put this on last just globed on the grey RTV. It wasn't sealing or the pan was warped, or maybe both. To get the pan off I used a spackle tool and a mallet. You don't have to go crazy here, use light taps and work your way around slowly to avoid gouging anything.
As of 2019, I am in my senior year. I took the summer off from school but kept working my day job. At last I had plenty of free time to tear into the Talon again.
I didn't really have the funds to fix the transmission so I decided to finally address the oil leaks that the car had had since the first day I drove it home. It was never enough of a leak to form a puddle or drip drip drip, but enough of a leak that oil spray coated everything on the timing belt side and dirt and sand steadily built up. Every once in a while I'd jack the car up and wipe everything down. I'd had enough of this mess and decided to tear things apart around the front case to try and see what the root of the problem was.
The cam shaft seals are a usual suspect in this region, but mine were bone dry and still holding strong from when I rebuilt the head a few years back. So I traced the dirty trail piece by piece on the block. The oil filter housing (OFH) was coated in gunk and so was the lower section near the balance shaft belt. Obviously oil was weeping from somewhere and being flung all over the place by the belts and pullies and/or a gasket was bad somewhere.
The more I pulled apart, the more difficult and uncomfortable it was to work on. With how big the mess was I finally just decided to yank the whole motor out. So my girlfriend fronted me the cash to buy a Harbor Freight engine hoist and stand (cause she's awesome) and I got to work. Aside from kinking one metal coolant line, the engine removal went smoothly.
Through it all, I was never able to pinpoint the true oil leak culprit. The timing belt was moist (I love that word) all the way around on its inner side, so it was likely the cause of the spray on places like the water pump and the OFH areas. The balance shaft belt was clean though.
Several spots looked to be the actual leak source. The area behind the tensioner pulley arm was the highest point I found 'wet' oil. Also high on the list of suspects were the two bolts on the right side of the front case. Both bolt's threads were soaked in oil and even farted out a bit of oil when I removed them.
In addition, the front case gasket was damp with oil all the way around. It was hard to tell if this oil got on the gasket during my disassembly or the gasket had indeed failed and was also leaking oil.
Lastly, the oil pan. Whoever put this on last just globed on the grey RTV. It wasn't sealing or the pan was warped, or maybe both. To get the pan off I used a spackle tool and a mallet. You don't have to go crazy here, use light taps and work your way around slowly to avoid gouging anything.
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