Just got back from the shop.My Eldorado is leaking oil from the crankcase.They said its atleast twenty hours of labor.Because the repair requires removal of the engine.Twenty hous of labor turns into $1,300.00 in labor alone.The part is $500.00.Im 18 years old and I can't afford this right now.Any suggestions?
Oil leak
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You could do it yourself.
Do you have some tools, mechanical ability, a place to work, and a friend or two to help?
Otherwise you can try some stop leak but don't expect a miracle. Stop leak has chemicals that swell rubber(that might reduce the leak)...but it also softens it and eventually the leak comes back.
Do you have some tools, mechanical ability, a place to work, and a friend or two to help?
Otherwise you can try some stop leak but don't expect a miracle. Stop leak has chemicals that swell rubber(that might reduce the leak)...but it also softens it and eventually the leak comes back.
Do a search on the subject. Some have had good luck in stopping or at least slowing the leak by removing each pan bolt, spraying the hole and bolt threads with brake cleaner, then applying some permatex thread sealer and retorqueing the bolt to specs.
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put a pint of trans fluid in your oil it will swell the seals and help control the leak for a while
I believe the great Rob, once said the seals are silicone and not rubber, in the Northstar (which means the stop leak stuff, won't really work very well).
I suggest getting some break parts cleaner, getting under your car (put it on ramps), and cleaning the bottom.
Revisit it in a day or two, to find out where your leak is coming from.
I had a leak from the oil cooler lines... a slow drip leaving a few drops each time I parked it. I replaced the line with the advice from this forum, and now I only have a "moist" engine... no more drip.
Total cost: $25 for the line.
Good luck!
I suggest getting some break parts cleaner, getting under your car (put it on ramps), and cleaning the bottom.
Revisit it in a day or two, to find out where your leak is coming from.
I had a leak from the oil cooler lines... a slow drip leaving a few drops each time I parked it. I replaced the line with the advice from this forum, and now I only have a "moist" engine... no more drip.
Total cost: $25 for the line.
Good luck!
I think you're thinking of brake fluid, Jesse. Trans fluid doesn't do anything to seals. It's true that brake fluid will slightly swell seals and strip the paint right off your car, but I wouldn't put it in the crankcase, or anywhere but the brake fluid reservoir. That's just me, though. I'd rather fix the leak at the source than band-aid it and potentially damage other seals that aren't leaking.jesse_price said:
I would advise you to NOT put transmission fluid in the oil. Its characteristics are vastly different than engine oil. On the other hand using conventional engine oil designed for high mileage a car that has seal swelling additives has helped some reduce, or even stop oil "seepage". A real leak, usually needs the gasket replaced
Common oil leaks sources are:
1. The O-ring seals on the oil cooler lines to the adapter, to the radiator, oil pan manifold, oil pan, and the dipstick tube.
2. The dipstick tube has an O-ring on it where it enters the engine case. Check tightness on all of the bolts that you can reach, do not over-tighten, that will just strip the bolt hole
The half-case leak is usually a nuisance, more than a real oil loss problem. The silicone seal is not expanding enough to seal the halves any more. Using oil for high mileage cars has had good effect, for some; use the same viscosity as normal. Same type of seal is at the oil pan.
In any case clean the entire area thoroughly before committing to a repair job.
A simple way is to spray a cool, not cold, engine with Wesley’s Bleche-Wite Tire Cleaner. This works great for degreasing, and is non-flammable. It does not appear to hurt paint, but I would be careful to keep it off of the exterior paint. If it does get on the exterior paint, rinse it with water, do not wipe off. I do this cleaning a couple of times a year, and have not encountered any problems.
1. Jack the car up and support it in a safe manner (or put it on ramps).
2. Spray everything around the side and undersides of the engine.
3. Spray the frame rails, mounts, linkage, transaxle, etc. Anything that has oil or grease accumulated on it.
4. Allow to set a few minutes, do not allow the spray to dry, or it will need to be re-sprayed for best effect.
5. Hose off using a garden hose and spray nozzle. Flush the driveway off, after the car is rinsed, to keep the residue from making a mess.
Allow to dry. Repeat if necessary after the area has dried. If you re-spray on a wet surface, the cleaner won’t work well at all.
Drive the car for a few miles then re-examine carefully. Try to determine the real source of the leak, before doing or ordering repairs.
-George
Common oil leaks sources are:
1. The O-ring seals on the oil cooler lines to the adapter, to the radiator, oil pan manifold, oil pan, and the dipstick tube.
2. The dipstick tube has an O-ring on it where it enters the engine case. Check tightness on all of the bolts that you can reach, do not over-tighten, that will just strip the bolt hole
The half-case leak is usually a nuisance, more than a real oil loss problem. The silicone seal is not expanding enough to seal the halves any more. Using oil for high mileage cars has had good effect, for some; use the same viscosity as normal. Same type of seal is at the oil pan.
In any case clean the entire area thoroughly before committing to a repair job.
A simple way is to spray a cool, not cold, engine with Wesley’s Bleche-Wite Tire Cleaner. This works great for degreasing, and is non-flammable. It does not appear to hurt paint, but I would be careful to keep it off of the exterior paint. If it does get on the exterior paint, rinse it with water, do not wipe off. I do this cleaning a couple of times a year, and have not encountered any problems.
1. Jack the car up and support it in a safe manner (or put it on ramps).
2. Spray everything around the side and undersides of the engine.
3. Spray the frame rails, mounts, linkage, transaxle, etc. Anything that has oil or grease accumulated on it.
4. Allow to set a few minutes, do not allow the spray to dry, or it will need to be re-sprayed for best effect.
5. Hose off using a garden hose and spray nozzle. Flush the driveway off, after the car is rinsed, to keep the residue from making a mess.
Allow to dry. Repeat if necessary after the area has dried. If you re-spray on a wet surface, the cleaner won’t work well at all.
Drive the car for a few miles then re-examine carefully. Try to determine the real source of the leak, before doing or ordering repairs.
-George
Don't take their word for it. Some shops are excellent, some are mediocre, some are incompetent and some are lying sacks of .... .Do as growe3 suggested and see for yourself. With the way a small bit of oil can blow around underneath it's hard to tell where it's coming from unless the area is really clean. How bad is the leak?94ETC said:
Unless you are gushing oil, keep in mind that most shops make money "upselling." These guys need to make boat payments, or maybe Christmas shopping, vacation, rent, etc.94ETC said:
Oil seepage is normal in a car that is a few years old. It wont lose its oil, but rather keep the bottom half of the engine "moist."
Seepage is not the same as a constant drip. And even constant drips have sometimes been attributed to leaky lines--which are not expensive to repair.
Wow, thanks for all the replies everyone. I haven't been on here since I posted this thread(got real busy). It does leak, I got under there myself, amazingly, the dealer is not lieing. Its not a major leak. I took the car off the road because winter hit hard and the town started salting so its its in the gargare on 4 jacks. Since then theres maybe a spot the size of 2 or 3 quarters. Not bad, and I do start it and run it once a week. I will look into some of these methods of slowing the leak. But if it doesn't work, will the leak eventually get worse and leak more? Or will it just stay at this rate? New problem also. Altenator is shot. Dealer wants 300 for an altenator. I have found one Northstar at the local boneyard(totalled) but the engine was already pulled by the time I got to it. Any suggestions in that field? I don't want to pay $300 for an altenator. Considering I don't work because of lack of time(wrestling,track soon). Someone told me about Advance Auto that sells them for like $130 with a life time warrenty. Can I get them cheaper? Thanks for all the replies.
Not too likely that the leak will get much worse. Maybe a little but it will never become catastrophic.
I have heard of people putting in an aftermarket alternator and having problems with it. You can beat the dealer price on A/C Delco OEM parts here http://rockauto.com or http://www.gmpartsdirect.com
I have heard of people putting in an aftermarket alternator and having problems with it. You can beat the dealer price on A/C Delco OEM parts here http://rockauto.com or http://www.gmpartsdirect.com
Do as Ranger said, I was a victim of the $130 alternator. It worked for about 2 months before it left me stranded in bumper 2 bumper traffic. They replaced it and paid about 30% for the labor, It took me a week to get that money but trust me that is not a job that you want 2 do twice94ETC said:
Sorry about that.I did not see the dates on the posts. Re: Alternator. In the past I have replaced the diodes in alternators. Not a difficult job and inexpensive. I have not done it with a Northstar but I think an alternator is a fairly common design.
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