Hey all,

Found out that my low oil pressure was due to low oil. Didn't know the cause, however - assumed it was burning it. But I guess it started a leak while I was on the road...

Right now I have a good sized leak, it only leaks after driving, about a puddle the size of my hand, maybe larger. It's quite hot outside so I have to rush taking a look - it looks to be coming from the passenger side, that side of the oil pan is covered in new oil... it is dripping / spraying some onto the exhaust near the oil pan on the passenger side. I don't notice anything on the driver side. I also can't really tell if there is anything new above the oil pan - there may be but I am unsure.

If needed, I can probably get some pictures, although there isn't much to show...

Any common places for this kind of leak to occur? How difficult / costly are the repairs?

I should have someone looking at it soon, but online opinions are always helpful.

 

valve cover gasket is pretty common.

 

I had similar oil leak. If its a tpi, check rear intake gasket,

 

It's carbed. The problem is just trying to find new oil - there's mud and old oil all over the place... fun has been had with the car

I do know that the things to tighten the valve covers were relatively loose, but I don't know how tight they're supposed to be. Can't really tell if the oil is coming from there either, but I will try to look closer...

Edit: Tightened the long wing nut things just before hand-tight (about one full turn for 5 or 6 or them, at least half for the others). Just drove it around... when stopping I didn't notice the leak anymore. It is smoking though, but that's probably from all of the left over oil if it was leaking from the valve covers...

I've never had a fix this easy though, so I will post back with results in a couple of days.

Thanks all

Edit: Still leaking, just took a little bit to drip down when I stopped. It may be less now though... need to get a mirror to get some better views of where it could be coming out at.

 

Had a guy finally look at it. Turns out it was the oil pan and the oil filter... watched him tighten it up, clean it, and no more oil leaks.

However, I now have a ticking noise that I previously did not have. Very aggrivated with this damn car.

 

The oil filter is on the driver's side, not the passenger side.

I'm betting that if it leaked onto the pass side oil pan before, it still will; unless whatever got tightened on the oil pan, was at the front.

I'm also betting that the smog pump has been hacked off of this car. Am I right about that?

That usually causes a highly distressing "mystery" oil leak; which DOES coat the entire passenger side of the engine in oil. The oil pan, the block, the exhaust, even on top of the fuel pump.

You can take the car to the quarter car wash, and pick up a couple of cans of engine degreaser along the way, the kind that's just diesel fuel in a spray can; Gunk Engine Bright, or the equivalent store brands, is the stuff. Park the car in the wash bay. Wait 10 minutes or so, for the engine to cool down a bit so you don't start a fire with the fuel. Take off the air cleaner, and spray every exposed surface of the engine with the cleaner, except the carb and the distributor. Let it soak for a couple of minutes, and soak it again. It'll take at least 2 cans, maybe more, depending on how funky it is. Let it soak a couple more minutes, then blast it off with the engine cleaner function and then the soap. Finish it up with the spray wax, to help keep it from rusting.

It's alot easier to find leaks, and to fix them, on an engine that isn't smothered in a couple hundred thousand miles of the funk. A whole lot less unpleasant to work on, too.

 

sofakingdom, thanks for that. The issue is resolved though. Both the oil filter and oil pan were leaking. Still no leaks that I can see.

Also, the smog pump is still on the vehicle - no belt on it, though.

I have an entirely different issue that arose since doing this though that I have no idea about.

Thanks for the tips about cleaning up the engine though