Diagnose Dripping Oil Leak?

keybrdcowboy1 · Feb 5, 2015

So I just put the car back together after replacing the clutch, oil pan gasket and the rear main seal (and several other things, but those are what are relevant). And of course I am leaking oil. SOOOO disappointing to put that much time and energy into something and it still be wrong.... sigh....

Anyways, I took a video of where it's dripping.... is it possible to say for sure that the oil pan and the RMS are leaking? I tightened up the bolts on that side of the oil pan but it's still dripping.....

So I guess I will have to take it back apart and this time install the fel pro RMS and the steel sleeve (terrible reviews on LRS's site) and then re-install the oil pan gasket again? Can I reuse the oil pan gasket? (0 miles on it) Are there any tricks to installing the oil pan gasket? I installed the blue fel pro one....

Any help, as always, is appreciated.... thanks.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vhc1fqJEcW0&feature=youtu.be

MikeR351w · Feb 5, 2015

Yikes. My 93 Leaked from the same spot. I changed the oil pan gasket with the engine still in the car. It was very hard to do but I did it. Afterwards, the leak slowed down quite a bit. It still was not gone completely. I think mine was the rear main seal. so I would assume yours is too and its not the oil pan gasket. Dont overtighten the oil pan bolts too. Mine was so bad before I changed it out that it would hit the exhaust and cause a bad smoke when I got on the gas.

keybrdcowboy1 · Feb 6, 2015

Any other thoughts?

7991LXnSHO · Feb 18, 2015

Trooper, do not fear the quick sleeve. It is a bery widely accepted repair technique, and Fel Pro is a high quality brand. It is not a jedi mind trick. In the rare case that a size of repair sleeve is not available, I have had a rare part machined and the shop make a repair sleeve. Just follow instructions carefully.
As far as reusing a pan gasket, I could never do it. I almost always stick things together that have gaskets. If you installed them dry, is the cost worth a new leak from a reused gasket you already cranked down on?

RangerJoe · Feb 21, 2015

Did you use the blue one piece oil pan gasket? If so, that is your leak. Mine has done it both times I used them. I talked to the machinist about it and he said itnisna fairly common problem.

The one piece uses steel inserts to keep you from crushing the gasket. The problem is that then end seals cannot compress enough to seal sometimes. This isn't always a problem, but can be depending on years of blocks and pans used. If this is the case, you need to drop the pan and smear some rtv on the rear pan seal so it will seal to the block and pan.

Joe

7991LXnSHO · Feb 23, 2015

I would like to think I would have put it on more neatly than "smear" on some type of sealant, but always using some sealant on the oil pan ends and intake manifold ends is why I can not reuse gaskets. And it is not just 302's with this issue. I got help rebuilding an Olds motor, and even with numbers matching parts, the front of the pan leaked very well. Worse than it did from the factory. I was not in the mood to pull the motor up for the new gasket right away. So I used brake cleaner on the area and caulked it with RTV to get by for a while. 10+ years later there is no leak from "smearing" silicone on incorrectly.

RangerJoe said:
Did you use the blue one piece oil pan gasket? If so, that is your leak. Mine has done it both times I used them. I talked to the machinist about it and he said itnisna fairly common problem.

The one piece uses steel inserts to keep you from crushing the gasket. The problem is that then end seals cannot compress enough to seal sometimes. This isn't always a problem, but can be depending on years of blocks and pans used. If this is the case, you need to drop the pan and smear some rtv on the rear pan seal so it will seal to the block and pan.

Joe

keybrdcowboy1 · Feb 24, 2015

So would it be wrong to put the RTV around the whole oil pan gasket? What exactly is meant by "in the corners"? Is that the four outside corners at the ends of the gasket or the corners where it dips down to go around the crankshaft? Do you put the RTV on both sides of the gasket? Sorry for so many questions, just don't want to have to do this again. I just ordered the FRPP one piece gasket so hopefully I will have better luck this time.... and I ordered the Silver Seal sleeve and a new Fel Pro RMS....

RangerJoe · Feb 24, 2015

No need for it all the way around. Yes, you are correct about where the corners are located. I would put some rtv on both sides of the gasket. The u shaped dip is important to put some rtv on.

Joe

Diagnose Dripping Oil Leak?

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Diagnose Dripping Oil Leak?

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