hey guys something weird happened today when i went to get in my truck. it's a 94 f-350 4x4, 351 motor, i haven't driven the pickup for about 5 days. the truck was parked in a parking garage. i got to the truck and i always look underneath to see if anything has leaked, anway i saw a puddle of something so got down close to look. it looked slightly green, but didn't smell like anti-freeze and lighting was bad, so i dipped my finger in it and smelled it, i couldn't identify it, but smelled like oil or steering fluid, it was on the ground underneath the transmission, my truck was parked so that it's front was exposed to the air and we had some serious rain the other day, so anyway i checked the oil and it was fine, started truck, started to leave the parking garage, my steering pump always whines, so i ignored that but listened to everything else, thought i could hear a sort of clicking sound every now and then, like when you run over a strip of plastic, that kind of sound, but it was consistent, i stopped a few levels down and checked the a/t fluid, it was okay while i was driving it seemed like i could her a hissing sound, like air coming out of a tire, but all 4 tires were fine, also there was a poping noise sometimes when i turned,also smelled like something was hot under the hood, but it almost always does, so i parked the truck for now so i can try to figure out what's wrong, so what do you guys think? could water have gotten in the engine compartment and messed stuff up temporarily? please help if you can i'm a student so my money is low but i really need to fix this before i drive 200 miles home. i'll be on here for the next few days so i'll respond to any questions/comments with speed. thanks

 

If the oil puddle you speak of was found below the tranny (where the engine and tranny meet) then it may be that your rear main seal is leaking....not uncommon among small block Fords. If there is coolant in there with that oil leak then you may also have a blown head gasket. If this is the case then a leak down test should be able to identify that.

 

Do you still hear these "unusual" noises or find puddles under the truck?

It's been my experience that structures like garages and even under-passes tend to amplify and echo the normal sounds of a running engine. Not only do you hear sounds that you don't normally hear, but they seem to come from strange places.

You'll definitely want to keep an eye on things, but the puddle of 'oil' could have been a low spot in the cement where rain settled after washing other vehicle fluids off the floor. The clicking could have been something as simple as a stone trapped in the tire tread that made a noise as it hit the concrete with each revolution. The hissing noise may have just been the engine sucking air.

 

i hope NoMo is right but just in case how do i do a leak down test, thanks for replying guys i know my post was really long

 

Before you go much further, were any of your fluids noticeably low? How about over filled? Do they all appear as they should? Tranny fluid redish, oil gold/black, anti freeze green? I'm going on you saying the puddle was green. - Anti freeze, possibly dilluted to the point you couldn't smell it. The hissing, therefore, could be a leak in the cooling system. If you gotta get home be sure your levels are good, extra water/antifreeze on hand, & keep an eye on your temp. & levels. Try some Bahr's stop leak & cooling syst. conditioner. $5 & can't hurt!

 

my oil and a/t fluid were okay, i tried to see into the radiator, but couldn't tell how full it was, but i checked again today and the fluid was a sort of grey sludge looking color, did somebody just mix my fluids or is it oil getting into my radiator? if it's not normal what could it be, do i need to flush my system? tell me what you think
thanks