Car Has Developed A Large Oil Leak.

[Gabba 0]

Hi guys,

 

My 205 has developed a large oil leak over the last couple of weeks, and i can't seem to locate where from.

 

So was looking for some possible ideas of where to start, best ways of locating, possible areas of problems.

 

It seems like the oil is coming from somewhere under the inlet manifold, with it running down onto the sump, and pooling on the floor just under the sump, the sump is soaking in oil.

 

Have had my axle stands nicked from under my car a few weeks back and haven't been able to replace as yet which has made it difficult to local the leak.

 

I am wondering whether its worth removing the inlet manifold to have a look, but that'll mean that i will not be able to run the car, which i feel will make it harder to locate said leak.

 

Any help would be great.

 

Cheers

 

Alex

[Anthony 1,003]

Oil leak from underneath the inlet manifold is possibly from one of the two oil pressure sensors on the front of the block (if it's towards the alternator side) or possibly from a split breather pipe, particularly if low down on the block.

[Gabba 0]

Oil leak from underneath the inlet manifold is possibly from one of the two oil pressure sensors on the front of the block (if it's towards the alternator side) or possibly from a split breather pipe, particularly if low down on the block.

 

Ah that might be it, the oil pressure on the dash has been playing up for a little while, was sticking at around 4 bar, but now doesn't seem to be work at all.

[Tom Fenton 1,541]

There are not that many places it can come from on the front of the block. Personally I usually start off with a can of spray degreaser and a petrol station jetwash to get all the crap off so you can see what is what, then go from there. The oil pressure switches can and do fail and leak out of the middle.

[Gabba 0]

the car has started to make a strange clanking noise on acceleration, reckon it could be bad.

 

i've up loaded a video, am hoping someone might be able to diagnose from it.

 

 

best heard from about 17 seconds onwards.

[Anthony 1,003]

Major oil loss and a knocking noise under load? I'm guessing you've just knocked out a big end....

[Gabba 0]

hmmm guess that means a fubar'd engine??

[DamirGTI 342]

Undo the sump ASAP and take a look (do not start/drive the engine until you investigate the issue) ... it does sound as a big end bearings

 

Damir

[Gabba 0]

Undo the sump ASAP and take a look (do not start/drive the engine until you investigate the issue) ... it does sound as a big end bearings

 

Damir

 

What am i likely to see when i do remove the sump if it a big end bearing?

[DamirGTI 342]

First sign - bronze (babbitt) particles mixed with oil (it'll look kinda as bronze shine coloured .. especially when you drain the sump off in the bucket on the bottom of it you'll see bronze fragments ..)

 

Second - undo all the big end bearing caps and look at the bearings surface (if it's scuffed and you're able to see the bottom bearing babbitt layer that's gone ..) .. also , take care not to mix bearing caps when you remove them from the conrods as they're matching part .

 

Damir

 

Can't quite see the oil pressure gauge , but it seems low ...

 

Bearings (like so , but can be much worse than these on the pic .. ) :

 

Edited September 18, 2012 by DamirGTI

[ALEX 98 1 Cars]

Could be a blown head gasket.

Is it presurising the cooling system?

[Gabba 0]

I've had issues with coolant loss as well, and did wonder whether the head gasket was on its way out. i'm starting to wonder whether its worth repair it now.

 

would the cheapest thing to do be to possible look at getting a replacement engine and doing a engine swap?

 

it the most fun car i've owned and would love to try and keep it on the road if i can.

[Slo 283 1 Cars]

unlucky for you but im glad you never replied and sold it me now

Edited September 19, 2012 by Slo

[Anthony 1,003]

Almost certainly cheaper to source a replacement engine if it's an 8v, although obviously you need to consider the costs of getting someone to swap it if you're not in a position in terms of space/tools/ability to do it yourself.

 

It's hard to be sure from a video alone, but certainly it sounds like big-end failure to me and not head gasket. A HG failure might make it run roughly, but wouldn't explain the clanking/knocking under load - a big-end failure would, and a starvation/lack of oil is what generally causes it.

[Gabba 0]

It feels like its more a big end failure to me as well. I expect that a lot of the coolant loss is from degraded coolant hoses that are to old.

 

I'd like to have ago at swapping the engine myself as it would only help with my knowledge and skills.

 

I'm guessing there are no real major skills for doing it.

 

Is it a case of draining oil and coolant, then stripping all the ancillaries off the engine, disconnecting the loom (making sure to label where they came from), removing the exhaust manifold, driveshafts. and then checking nothing is still attached use a engine hoist to remove.

 

could anyone point me in the right direction of a good thread to help etc.

[Tom Fenton 1,541]

You are on the right lines really. Exhaust manifold can stay on, just split the downpipe joint. Ancilliaries generally can stay on, alternator off helps a bit with clearance and is easy to remove. It is worth removing the radiator to avoid damaging it when lifting the engine out, once the hoses are diconnected it is very quick and easy to remove out of the way.

Two choices once the driveshafts are out is to remove the gearbox first and then lift the engine out, or you can leave it attached and lift the engine and box combined out as one lump. I have done it both ways before, both have pros and cons to be honest.

[DamirGTI 342]

Before when i haven't had an crane , i used to undo the engines from the bottom out .

 

Up the chassis front on a jack stands , few blocks of wood two small hydraulic jacks for manoeuvring with the engine , cardboard on the floor and with a little bit of wiggling/step by step lowering down the engine on a cardboard .. then i just pull/push the engine along with the gearbox from the LH side out ... cardboard seemed to help cos it's kinda slippery so was easier to move the engine around the floor ...

 

Damir