Noticed an oil puddle today...

[IceHockeyJedi]

I warmed the car up before leaving work. When I came out to leave I noticed a hamburger sized oil puddle. Dipstick reads full. I crawled underneath a took a few pics. Looks pretty messy. :frown: Any thoughts?

 

[IceHockeyJedi]

 

[kidglok]

valve covers?

 

[charlief1]

Your car was marking it's territory.:biggrin: They only do that after a vette drives through the neighborhhood.

 

[GullsGN]

Its either valve covers or rear main, likely both. I suspect your car does not handle very well, either. Your control arm bushing near the header is shot.

 

[86george]

Snug up the valve covers a little. A new pair of gaskets would slow those drips down a lot.

 

[big reazon]

Is there a recommended gasket he should use for the valve covers?

 

[chopped39]

When There is no puddle is when you worry. That means your out of oil:biggrin:

 

[IceHockeyJedi]

Thanks for the responses, guys. I'm assuming I have to buy the set of control arm bushings and the one that's shot isn't sold solo?
I went ahead and got some FEL-PRO valve cover gaskets from kirban's. I'll get the rear main from Gbody, too. It's never easy for a noob, lol.

 

[big reazon]

Yeah your local parts store has them solo like 15 to 20 bucks each from what I remember.

 

[turbo nasty]

Spray it down with brake clean and then pin point it

 

[kidglok]

its hard to tell from the pics but if your steering shaft has oil on it that could be coming from the dipstick tube...are your breathers dry?

 

[novaderrik]

is your power steering pump or reservoir leaking?

 

[IceHockeyJedi]

its hard to tell from the pics but if your steering shaft has oil on it that could be coming from the dipstick tube...are your breathers dry?

Yes, it feels dry. There is no breather on the pass. side valve cover. Unless it looks different?

 

[IceHockeyJedi]

is your power steering pump or reservoir leaking?

It was, badly. The previous owner had a cracked PS cap wrapped in duct tape on there! I got the correct cap and checked the fittings on the lines. They're covered in sediment but aren't wet. I've been monitoring the fluid level and it has remained stable. However, it's sometimes very hard to turn the wheel when shifting from R to D or when I'm creeping into a parking space.

 

[rmar]

Like mentioned above ...Clean it all up. Start with one thing. Fix it. If the rear main is barely dripping leave it alone for now.

 

[Bruce Urie]

Your car was marking it's territory.:biggrin: They only do that after a vette drives through the neighborhhood.

:biggrin:LOL!!!!!! Ah, Charlie, we can always depend on you to come up with a good one!!!!! I'm stealing this line from you now......remember: "Imitation is the highest form of flannel shirts.....er..ah...flattery", that's it.

Bruce '87 Grand National

 

[IceHockeyJedi]

Like mentioned above ...Clean it all up. Start with one thing. Fix it. If the rear main is barely dripping leave it alone for now.

Understood. The seal is cheap so I'm going to go ahead and get it. Thankfully, I've got all day to look her over. Unfortunately, it's 35 outside...lol

 

[Clark6]

Take a pic of the top of your engine lets have a look. You SHOULD have a breather for the passenger side, if not once you get on it (into boost) oil will ride up & out of the oil dip stick. Saw this happen once it was UGLY. On a relatives Buick.

 

[novaderrik]

Your car was marking it's territory.:biggrin: They only do that after a vette drives through the neighborhhood.

my car marks it's territory by draining the entire contents of the trans pan out the front seal.. it is a constant drip that doesn't stop until the fluid level in the pan is below the filter..
if i don't remember to put a drain pan under it, the puddles is bigger than the car after a few days and it take 3 quarts to get the car to even go into gear..