I have a 1997 4.0L Ranger with an oil leak. It is near the front of the engine, I don't really see where it is. I was wondering if there is any common oil leaks near that general area?

Thanks.

 

Pretty common spots are the pan gasket or the front cover where it, the block and the pan all come together. It should have been assembled with a dab of silicone at that spot to 'fill in the gaps'. The other choice is the rubber pan gasket is starting to ooze out from between the block and pan. If it is not assembled dry and clean, any lube there will allow it to creep. The last thing would be the front cover seal for the crankshaft. That would drool oil down the front of the pan more than the sides. Crawl under and take a look. Be careful when looking up to not brush anything and break dirt/crud loose to fall in your eyes, or wear protection.
tom

I thought this was a 3.0 Vulcan. I still think the junction is a good place to look.
tom

 

I would say check the front seal or have a mech look at it - it's been my experience that the front seal on the Ranger starts leaking by at about 100k miles...at least that's what happened to my old 97 Ranger and my current 02 Ranger.

 

Thanks both of you for your replies, I'll make sure to go take a look at those. The ranger currently has 65,000 miles on it

 

No sweat!

My 97 had 104k on it when it started leaking - my 02 had 95k when it started leaking, although that one wasn't the front seal, it was the timing chain gasket that went.