Yes I've done a search, and have found out quite a bit of info on my situation. However, some of my information is still incomplete. I have a 92 SE Auto and I have had a small oil leak for a while now. Last week, I was coming home from an out of town trip. I pulled through the toll booth, stopped to pay, and noticed smoke (not sure which color) drifting in front of my headlights. (it was night) Anyway, I pulled over and popped the hood and could swear I smelled oil burning. I checked my oil level and saw that it was a little low, but not dangerously low. I only had 15 - 20 miles to home so I thought I would go on home and check it out in the morning. The next morning, I popped the hood again and noticed that oil had been slung all over the passenger side of the engine bay and all along that underside of the car. I came online, did some SEARCHING and have determined that it was my front main seal. Now comes the problem. I had my friend/mechanic come over yesterday and look at it. I was wanting to replace it. I gathered that it was a seemingly simple fix from some of the other posts, but my friend said that you would have to probably pull the motor in order to get to it. He said he wasn't sure, so he would ask another friend of his that actually works at a Nissan dealership. Anyway, My question is, besides my manuals, is there any other place I could go, online or otherwise, where I could go to find instruction? I understand it should be a fairly easy DIY, but rookies still need help. Anyway, I apologize for the long post and appreciate any positive feedback I can recieve. Thanks.

 

Could be any number of things. It could be that your oil pan drain plug was tightened too much or too loose. The former is catastrophic (could require a new oil pan!). The latter is easily fixable.

Check your CV boot too. If there is a lot of oil/gunk, it's time to change your axle. If it's the Rack and Pinion boot, it's a $7.00 replacement part. Both these boots have grease in them so if the boots cracked, this could be the cause of the burning oil smell.

But check all the simple things: loose oil cap etc. Though many may advise otherwise, there are products that you can add to your that "stop engine oil leaks." I had a small drip recently. I used one such product and after about 250 miles, the drip was gone. Do you notice drips underneath your car?

Just some things to check...see what others say.

 

1) A busted CV boot will not cause oil to be slung all over the engine bay
2) No insult intended, but if your mechanic friend said pulling the engine is probably needed to change the front seal I wouldn't ask him to change the seal, but he did mention he wasn't too sure.
3) How's your power steering fluid, could that be leaking
4) Front oil seal is a coomon leakage problem for the VE, I've changed mine before. I've also removed my oil pan and re-silicone it due to it leaking. But it wasn't leaking to the point where oil will collect on the ground, just enough for that oil sludge and dirt to collect
5) You probably will not find any mechanical repair procedure on-line due to the liability factor, then again I'm not totally sure. Most mechanical instructions will be in printed materials such as your manual where they probably will put "To be done by trained professionals"
6) If your front seal is leaking, it's a pretty straight forward repair. Hardest part will be removing and installing the front pulley

 

*stroking chin*

sludge. dirt. around oil pan.

I have those symptons and I have a VG.

*rocking back and forth*

this must mean ol' FrankBattle can do this too, yes?

 

If its the front cover crank seal its fairly simple to replace. If you are a DIY'er all you have to do is take the belts off of the crank pulley, remove the crank pulley, pry the old seal out and install the new one. You also may want to put the pulley and the belts back on too.

 

Oil sludge and dirt will form around any to most engines regardless of make, model, nationality or creed IF the leakage is minor enough where it will not drip or run off.

I'm not too sure about the VG, but droping the VE oil pan requires removal of the engine cross member. The cross member that attaches from the radiator support to the chassis, front to rear. And removal of this cross member require proper support for the engine and tranny due to the engine mounts being supported by this cross member.

Persoanlly I wouldn't have removed the oil pan to repair that leak if I wasn't already in that area due to the engine repair I was doing at the time. I've lived with that sludge for serveral years. My oil was always at the proper level, so I deemed it no big deal.

 

Don't you have to remove the timing chains to do the front seal on a VE? If so, that could be a real PITA. My half seals were leaking on my oil pan enough were it would create a little drip. When I remove my engine I planned on changing both the front and rear seals but it turned out to be the half seals on the pan had dried out and were not sealing it anymore. The oil pan would be a pretty hard job with the engine in, it has about 25 bolts on it and you have to remove the crossmember like Candiman said. The steering boots are not filled with grease. Whatver it is you should be able to find it quite easily, and good luck.

 

No you do not have to, enjoy