I noticed a small puddle of oil on my garage floor where I park my car. After researching, it appears that the most common problem may be associated with the oil pan. For those that have had oil leaks, can you tell me if this is one of the most common problems and if so, can you give me a ball park figure of what it is going to cost to get it fixed. I have an 02 SE with 104K. I want to take it somewhere this weekend, but I do not want to get beat.

 

get under the car, and see where the leak is from. Could just be the oil filter leaking, or the oil pan drain bolt.

 

I've heard about problems with the rear valve (rocker) cover leaking too. The fix is to replace it with an '04 and newer valve cover. Check the easy stuff first though, loose oil pan bolts, etc.

 

check the axle seals on the tranny, the rear main seal along with the front main seal. how is you valve cover gaskets holding up? rusty oil pan perhaps? get the car on the lift and look under it, i usually clean the dirty spots with brake cleaner, air dry with air gun and start uop the engine to see for any leaks (for major ones that is), this will also help later on to see if gaskets are leaking, check after a few days of driving.

 

Thanks All. I will jack it up tommorow to check some of these things. I hope it is something as simple as a leaking oil filter. I want to get me some new rims for Christmas. I would hate to have to spend my money on a repair.

 

just blew my rear main seal. On the hunt to see what it's going to take to fix it.

 

The parts for the RMS are ~$70-$80 from Dave B. That includes axle seals, etc. Labor varies by shop, but the tranny does have to be dropped. My mechanic quoted me ~$300

 

I have a 2002 SE....had an oil leak as well....took it to the dealer who claimed it was the oil pan....they removed the pan and re-sealed it.....leak still there....went back to dealer....they said, "Oh, the tech missed a little section of sealer....we'll fix it".....still leaked.....back to dealer.....they then claimed the oil pan needed to be replaced.....but they would give me the pan for cost and install it for free.....that was about $100.....still leaked.....took it back.....they then determined it was the oil cooler (before someone jumps on here denying the presence of an oil cooler, 2002's do have them....it's between the oil filter and the engine block).....dealer wanted $550 to replace it....I told them no thanks....went on line and bought the part for about $180 (I think) and a buddy of mine and I installed it ourselves....THAT was the ticket....no more leaks. The job was pretty easy to do actually....the fact that the dealer wanted $550 was a joke. Hope this helps.

 

Sounds like what my Dad went through with a POS Buick Century (he bought it new in 1983). The rear main leaked right from the start. Several times in, several times out and it still leaked. I got up under the car and could see all they were doing is slapping gasket sealer around the outside of the rear main where the pan bolts to the block. My Dad had me take pictures and then contacted the zone manager and sent him the pictures. That afternoon, the dealership called, put my Dad in a rental and removed the oil pan, resealed it and fixed it right. Damn shame he had to go through all that crap. Last GM he's owned too.

Really pathetic how dealers can't seem to fix cars right or try to take shortcuts.

Good info about the oil cooler, I didn't know my car had one. Now I do.

 

it could be something simple... or something complex... u gotta get underneath and check it out first... .


i once had it leak cause i didnt tighten the filter up properly ... when i changed my oil... er leaked again...


just take a look... and post pics iif you want and someone might be able to fix it for you.. .


and another time it leaked because my oil pan lost its seal with the block.... i did a temp fix of using jb weld all around it... and nev

 

I just fixed a leak by the drain plug. It was the oil pressure sensor switch. Channel locks removed it and a 22mm wrench installed the new one.

 

Did you get your money back for all the unnecessary work that they did on your car? When something like that happened to me I made nissan pay back all the money i paid. I received a check int he mail 10 days later.

 

I just had the oil pan replaced on my 02 6 spd. It was ready to go, lots of rust. Only 103,000 km. Never heard of that before but glad I caught it before the problem became bigger.

 

I have an 02 SE 6spd that had an oil leak which appeared to be at the rim of the oil pan - after cleaning up the area, I saw that the leak was actually coming from the oil cooler.

I replaced the oil cooler gasket part#B1304-43U00 and the leak is gone.

 

Interesting. I had 2 techs tell me it was the pan, but then again, I've had so many techs tell me the wrong things over the years I always doubt what I am told. Oh well, $400 later and there's no leak. Lucky me.

 

after getting under my car I could see the oil pan leaking. I had the oil pan seal replaced for about $90. I have not seen any oil since.

 

Well this week i had same problem OIL Leak only while engine running. After i lift the car up in my shop i notice that header that is close to the firewall had some spots of oil so i tear apart intake and replaced Valve cover gaskets made a huge mistake by buying them from Napa. The material they made them from is very stiff. I did install as it says in Nissan manual applying rtv gasket maker to corners and still it leaked then i called Nissan dealer and got OEM gaskets they was awesome nice and soft and no more leaks in that area but after about 15 minutes of idling time new leak appeared and it was oil pressure switch again got it from Nissan very good quality also replaced at the same time my spark plugs got NGK laser IRIDIUM, knock sensor, PCV Valve and Fuel Filter. over all very happy with a result runs smoother and getting better MPG this car is in my family since it was brand new she has 255k and runs like new

 

Holy old thread aleart

 

Found this!