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I’ve read a lot of posts on here, but feel I need more personal advice.
my ‘99 maxima has 340k miles, all of the maintenance has been kept up with through the years and it runs absolutely fine, except there’s this oil leak that’s been really bothering me for the past year or so. The oil is dripping down on to the lower arm bushing and I just recently had to change it because it completely destroyed the bushing. I assume it only leaks while I’m driving because there’s a few drops on the ground every time I stop, but it doesn’t get any bigger through the night.
the leak is on the passenger side and you can see from the pictures I attached that the oil is heavily accumulating on the oil pressure switch and oil pan area.
i just replaced the pressure switch and that didn’t seem to help. The valve cover gaskets were recently replaced and I thoroughly inspected the top of the engine and I don’t think it’s trickled down from there. I also looked around the tc cover and I don’t see any oil residue around it.
what do you guys think the culprit is? I’m hoping it’s just the lower oil pan because I know the upper is an absolute b**** to take off.
any advice is appreciated!
** also it’s important to add that one time I parked with a 20-30 degree slant to the left and for whatever reason it made the oil leak 15x as fast. Now I avoid parking like that, but it’s gotta indicator where the leak is coming from
My 2000 Maxima had oil soaked in the same spot. I ended up resealing the timing cover and along with the rest of the engine. But during the process it seemed like most of the oil in that area had been coming from the crank seal and just got spun around everywhere. My timing cover was leaking very badly as well so it was hard to tell. But if timing cover is dry up top im definitely gonna have to say either crank seal or upper oil pan
My 2000 Maxima had oil soaked in the same spot. I ended up resealing the timing cover and along with the rest of the engine. But during the process it seemed like most of the oil in that area had been coming from the crank seal and just got spun around everywhere. My timing cover was leaking very badly as well so it was hard to tell. But if timing cover is dry up top im definitely gonna have to say either crank seal or upper oil pan
I'm going to guess that the cause is the crank seal.
the dye test might show a spew pattern from there.
The fix is not that difficult nor expensive. Unless you need to replace the huge pulley. AKA Harmonic Balancer.
I’m gonna run the dye through just to make sure. I’m really hoping it’s the crank seal as that would be best case scenario. I really don’t wanna go through the hassle of removing the oil pan.
Haha yeah. I would DC all electrical connections and tape them up/wrap them in sandwich bags, get the front end up in the air, throw 2 or 3 cans of Gunk on it, let it sit for a bit then go to town with the hose, a brush, and a bunch of soapy water. Unless you can get your hands on a pressure washer. Dirty job but well worth it. I've been there.
Haha yeah. I would DC all electrical connections and tape them up/wrap them in sandwich bags, get the front end up in the air, throw 2 or 3 cans of Gunk on it, let it sit for a bit then go to town with the hose, a brush, and a bunch of soapy water. Unless you can get your hands on a pressure washer. Dirty job but well worth it. I've been there.
awesome, thanks for the tips! Is it necessary to cover all the connections if I disconnect the battery then let the car sit in the heat for a few hours/all night afterwards?
awesome, thanks for the tips! Is it necessary to cover all the connections if I disconnect the battery then let the car sit in the heat for a few hours/all night afterwards?
Protect electrical components/connections, the method matters not.
It has to do with your ability to accurately locate the source of the leak.
Those of us who try to help less experienced people ask questions for the same reason a doctor does. We need to know enough of what the symptoms are to decide what possible issues are.
Then we prescribe a solution.
You want to know where a leak is coming from.
First you need to get rid of old oil and grease.
Then you can see where new oil is coming from.
The oil dye will help.
It has to do with your ability to accurately locate the source of the leak.
I know. I’m not completely clueless, the car has 340k and I’ve done countless repairs on it. Honestly I’m on here to document the problem for people who potentially have the same problem.
I know. I’m not completely clueless, the car has 340k and I’ve done countless repairs on it. Honestly I’m on here to document the problem for people who potentially have the same problem.
Oh ... in that case, never mind.
You’re right. Locating an oil leak through nicely dyed motor oil grim is way way easier than locating one through just plain old motor oil grim.
Just joking. Can't wait to see a clean engine! Have you come up with a plan of attack yet?
yes sir. I’m gonna use the method you stated earlier to clean the area, although I may just dc the battery then let it dry for some time after I’m done. I’m gonna do an oil change while I’m down there and put the dye in when fill it up.
hopefully this will confirm that it’s the crank seal, I’ve got the garage and tools on standby to replace it ASAP since it seems like a pretty easy fix.
I really appreciate your help with this! I’ll give an update when I can confirm where the leak is from.
yes sir. I’m gonna use the method you stated earlier to clean the area, although I may just dc the battery then let it dry for some time after I’m done. I’m gonna do an oil change while I’m down there and put the dye in when fill it up.
hopefully this will confirm that it’s the crank seal, I’ve got the garage and tools on standby to replace it ASAP since it seems like a pretty easy fix.
I really appreciate your help with this! I’ll give an update when I can confirm where the leak is from.
Crank Sensor seal is very easy to reach under the hood, on the right side of the block near the pwr steering fluid reservoir. I did mine not too long ago. You could easily wipe the area Around the sensor and see if it leaks from there again. Not to say you don’t have other leaks down low by the pulleys, but that one is a typical one which is easily tracked and fixed without heavy cleaning In tight spaces and uv dyes in your oil.
Crank Sensor seal is very easy to reach under the hood, on the right side of the block near the pwr steering fluid reservoir. I did mine not too long ago. You could easily wipe the area Around the sensor and see if it leaks from there again. Not to say you don’t have other leaks down low by the pulleys, but that one is a typical one which is easily tracked and fixed without heavy cleaning In tight spaces and uv dyes in your oil.
awesome I’ll definitely check this out thanks for the reply!
That’s the camshaft position sensor which is installed in the timing cover, not the block ... located at the front of the engine not the right side.
Yes you are correct cam sensor at the timing cover. Didn’t mean to get into semantics of engine positioning, I was referring the the right (passenger) side of the vehicle itself for simplicity. Regardless of naming it is still a common leak location.
Can you confirm where the leak is coming from? I believe I have the same leak as you.
it was the crank seal. Pretty easy to replace with the right tools. Make sure you run dye through to see where it’s coming from before you waste money replacing stuff.
it was the crank seal. Pretty easy to replace with the right tools. Make sure you run dye through to see where it’s coming from before you waste money replacing stuff.
I have the similar oil leak covering as your area. I think it maybe the same issue. I will check it out. Thanks for posting OP.
Thanks for asking.
Frankly, I haven't had the chance to look at it yet. I am going to do some works on our cars soon. Will let you know.
gotcha. I let mine sit around for over a year. Honestly the only reason I fixed it was because it destroyed the bushing on my control arm. If it’s not getting any worse and not destroying anything it’s more of an annoyance.
Finally got to fix the o-ring seal. It was the o-ring. The leak has actually stopped now. I just bought some random size set Viton o-rings from Autozone. It was a bit more to buy but they are supposed to be for higher temperature. No issues so far.
Was that on your cam sensor? I know mine is leaking some.
Originally Posted by glycine4
Finally got to fix the o-ring seal. It was the o-ring. The leak has actually stopped now. I just bought some random size set Viton o-rings from Autozone. It was a bit more to buy but they are supposed to be for higher temperature. No issues so far.
Was that on your cam sensor? I know mine is leaking some.
Yeah, it was the cam sensor o-ring. the oil was leaking and flowing down to bottom at making a mess at around near the oil pan area. Also, it was flowing down around the thermostat area and made it look like the water pump was leaking, too. Not a good thing because it could make you mis-diagnose things.
I opted to buy some random o ring then go to OEM at the dealer. I couldn't bother with that, car is not worth the money and if it leaks again, I will just grab another o-ring. It's still going fine. It's really easy to replace the o-ring.
Yeah, it was the cam sensor o-ring. the oil was leaking and flowing down to bottom at making a mess at around near the oil pan area. Also, it was flowing down around the thermostat area and made it look like the water pump was leaking, too. Not a good thing because it could make you mis-diagnose things.
I opted to buy some random o ring then go to OEM at the dealer. I couldn't bother with that, car is not worth the money and if it leaks again, I will just grab another o-ring. It's still going fine. It's really easy to replace the o-ring.
