oil leak

[Pam]

Hi, I noticed today that I have a slow oil leak. Can anyone tell me what part this is? It is near the front slightly towards the driver side from the middle.




Thanks, Pam

[petrified.rabbit]

thats the connection between the oil pan and transmission bell housing. most likely If it is coming out of the bell housing, it is the rear main seal. more likely though it is trickling down from somewhere. Oil creeps. so it could be the oil pan seal, or even from the oil filter. If it is a "slow leak" that your car is still driveable. Then i would clean the entire area with brake and a wire brush, and then check it until you see the first sign of where the oil is coming from. I would hate for you to try to replace the rear main, as it is probably the most expensive labor cheap repair there is, if it turns out to be the oil filter, or even valve cover along the top of the bell housing.

[Thymeclock]

Hi, I noticed today that I have a slow oil leak. Can anyone tell me what part this is? It is near the front slightly towards the driver side from the middle.




Thanks, Pam

How old is your car and how many miles are on it?

[Pam]

It is an '05 with 114,700 miles on it.

[Pam]

I checked the spark plug wells yesterday and they are clean, no oil in them. I had the valve cover replaced twice, first time in oct when it went bad with a major oil leak. Then again in jan because it was a faulty part and oil got into the spark plug wells. Is the valve cover ok then since no oil is in the wells?

[ontarian_frog]

I would say the crankshaft seal needs to be replaced... You would need to drop the transmission to do that. I'm not 100% sure though.

[avguy]

You've already received the recommended course of action from Rabbit, and even if you can only use rags to wipe the area clean, that might be enough to show where the leak is coming from. Once the surface is cleaned-up, it needs to be checking constantly because you need to find the exact place the oil is coming from. The oil pan gasket is notorious for shrinking up over time, just like the valve cover gasket. So one very easy thing to do is tighten every oil pan bolt you can reach. Just snug on those bolts, using a criss-cross tightening pattern. If they seem to be snug already, leave them alone. The other thing is to consider what your plan for this vehicle is, if the leak does turn out to be the crank seal. If you are going to try keeping it for an additional number of years, then eventually you MIGHT have to replace the seal. However these seals sometimes hang together for a long time, and just an occasional topping of oil may be all it ever needs. And some folks have reported success with Bars leak-stop or other similar products. But you wouldn't want to do that unless the leak gets to be significant. But definitely try to find out exactly where the oil is coming from, because it may turn out to be something very simple and easy to fix.

[Thymeclock]

I would say the crankshaft seal needs to be replaced... You would need to drop the transmission to do that. I'm not 100% sure though.

I'd bet it's that. I've been through it several times with several cars over several decades. The car is old enough and has enough mileage on it for the leak to be coming from an engine oil seal. When the seal fails totally it might suddenly start hemorrhaging oil by the quart.

Changing the seal is a labor intensive job and an expensive one. If you decide to have it repaired, also replace anything else that might be in that area, like the timing belt, water pump, etc. Your other alternative is to sell the car while the leak is still small and forego the major expense of the essential repair.

[Nane]

Did you ever fix oil leak on your aveo

[Brit01]

Did you ever fix oil leak on your aveo

I'm interested to know also. I have exactly the same leak in the same place. Sometimes smell burning oil. Mine only has 67,000 kms!! I will check the tightness of the oil pan bolts first. Nightmare if its the crank seal!! Only 67,000 kms!!