Fixing an Oil Pan Leak

Fixing an Oil Pan Leak

Author: taamiv

The oily and dark spot from the car on your driveway means that there is an oil leakage. Any spot where two metals are joined by a gasket piece is the possible location, although the complicated part is to identify the right location of the leakage. The sooner the leak is repaired, the better it will be for the car. Here is a guide to repair oil leak. Follow the simple directions.

Tools Needed
-    Wrench
-    Screwdrivers
-    Gasket (rubber, cork or a tube of gasket sealant)
-    Scraper

Directions
Observe the gasket on the valve cover and check for any signs of leaks, deposits or sludge. Before making any decision to replace the gasket, tighten the bolts that clamp the valve cover with the gasket. During this process, you may come across any loose bolt which can be the source of leakage. For tightening, use a screwdriver or a wrench.

Loosen every bolt and pry the valve cover from the gasket if the leaks continue. Use a flat screwdriver for this to loosen the immovable gasket. All the breather cables and spark plug cables have to be removed.

The gasket can get hard and its pieces will start falling apart by this time. Do this cautiously to prevent the pieces of torn gasket from dropping in the engine internals. When the valve cover will pop up, use a scraper for removing the remaining gasket which is still connected to the valve cover. Before the new gasket is positioned, apply high temp silicone on the edge of the valve cover. Bolt the valve cover now and apply reasonable force for tightening every bolt. The new gasket will hopefully run for roughly 100000 km before the time comes for next change.

Visually examine the drain plug bolts and check for any signs of build up sludge as this may be a sign of damaged threads. It is a usually observed fact that every change of motor oil needs unbolting and installing that screw that soon wears out the thread.

Proceed and inspect the oil filter and oil pan. The oil pan is held by bolts and has a gasket for making sure that the seal is tight, it will prevent any oil leakage. The oil filter if probably not properly tightened can be resolved by increasing the rotating force of the filter. A torque wrench can be used to tighten all the bolts. If the problem still persists, then a replacement gasket would have to be scheduled.

First, all the motor oil has to be drained before dropping the pan. To pry the pan free, use a flat head screwdriver. Scrape off the immovable gaskets before applying high temp silicone, this procedure is similar to the valve cover procedure. Now the gasket has to be positioned in place and bolt the pan. Finally, the engine oil should be filled and check for any sign of leakages.

This is a fairly simple DIY method and will help you stay away from irritation of visiting a mechanic besides saving some money.

You might also be interested in learning how to seal an oil pan leak and how to prevent leakage in radiators.

Article Source: http://www.a1articles.com/article_1583808_31.html

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