Engine Leak From Block??

Paul G · Apr 17, 2015

Saw this strange leak along the front of the engine block, but don't know where it's coming from. It's not from the radiator hose, and it's not from the valve cover.

In an other previous photo it wasn't there from 12 months ago.

It's a persistent oily substance.

What is it? Where could it be coming from? Concern???

SpartaPerformance · Apr 20, 2015

Well if that's it looks like the timing cover is leaking which is really unlikely and being that is a big job I'd have the leak checked better. Perhaps on a lift if you have access

Paul G · Apr 20, 2015

I showed Ford dealer the pic and the service adviser seemed to think it was coming from the radiator hose, which I don't think it is.
That hose looks in good shape and if it was I'd see it at almost every engine run, especially when hot, which I'm not.

So I'll mention what you think it is. Car is under warranty (purchased a plan at Ford) so, if it's big... it should be fixed under warranty.

Car goes in Wednesday. Thanks!

p

Paul G · Apr 22, 2015

Ford techs looked at the engine, pressure tested coolant, no leak there.
They stated, that this didn't look like a leek.

They cleaned it up and want me to drive 100-500 miles and keep an eye. If that it comes back, then we'll investigate timing chain cover, but they didn't feel it was leaking from there.

cmann · Apr 23, 2015

Can you tell if that is oil or anti-freeze?

Paul G · Apr 23, 2015

cmann said:
Can you tell if that is oil or anti-freeze?

No because even anti-freeze has a lubricant.
car only has 50k miles on it. Even Ford stated they didn't think it was a leak. There is no obvious point of origin. Running the car for a while yielded nothing

cmann · Apr 23, 2015

Paul G said:
No because even anti-freeze has a lubricant.
car only has 50k miles on it. Even Ford stated they didn't think it was a leak. There is no obvious point of origin. Running the car for a while yielded nothing

Minor leaks are tough to track down sometimes. Figuring out whether is it oil or anti-freeze would be my first step. Is it possible the PVC hose that connects to the intake manifold just above where the stains is could be possibly dripping oil. These engines do suck a lot of oil from the valve cover to the manifold as part of the crankcase ventilation process. I installed a catch can for this reason and it catches a significant amount of oil on a monthly basis.

I would not recommend this for others as anti-freeze is dangerous to ingest, but personally if I'm trying to figure the difference between a anti-freeze and oil leak, (this is going to sound weird) I touch a really, really small amount to the tip of my tongue, then spit it out immediately. Anti-freeze is super sweet, oil is not. I think some shops use a UV light to tell the difference as well.

Paul G · Apr 23, 2015

I think I'll pass on the taste test and defer to Ford's recommendation.... Put 500-1000 miles and recheck. They cleaned the area pretty good, so anything new should show.

It's under warranty until 6/2016.

I'm wondering if I'm changing oil too quickly. I do an oil change with mobile one when the car comes out of hibernation in May, and another one the card gets put away in November, but that's usually less than 3000 miles

Engine Leak From Block??

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