I took a trip over the holidays and since I've returned, I've noticed an oil puddle under my truck. Today I checked it out. When I fired up the truck (it was about 28º), oil was streaming off of the front driver's-side corner of the block, above two steel tubes that appear to go back toward the oil cooler. I went to get a flashlight to see where it was coming from exactly, but when I returned a few minutes later, it had stopped.

I figure the cold, thick oil was overwhelming a seal until it got running and thinned out a little and made the oil pressure drop some. Sound plausible?

I checked it again while driving (well, I did stop first) and it seemed to be a slow drip.

It was bad when I first started it. In the 3 or 4 minutes it ran, it accumulated a pool of oil about 12 inches wide and 20 inches long. I figure it was between a half pint and a pint of oil. I topped off my oil Sunday before starting my trip back home and have lost a total of 4 quarts of oil since then. My daily commute is 10 miles each way, and I didn't drive it on Tuesday. So I guess for Monday and Wednesday, I lost 2 quarts each day. Not good.

To my knowledge, the oil cooler is toward the back of the motor where the oil filter is located. Is there something up front feeding it, or perhaps some other seal or something like a sensor that might be dumping oil? Geez, I hope it's not a head gasket. That would ruin my Christmas.

 

sounds liek an oil cooler, can you see exactly where the drip is coming from?

 

sounds like the oil cooler, just did mine it runs from the front end of the engine to the filter boss along the drivers side of the engine. mine leaked outta the front end cap of it.

 

I can't see exactly where it's coming from. The vacuum and power steering pumps are in the way from the topside view. I can almost see it from the bottom, but it's so wet down there and it stopped leaking by the time I got under there.

When I started it after work today, it didn't pour out like it did this morning. It sat for 5 hours. I suspect the oil was still thin enough to not have enough pressure to push past the seal.

Where's the best place to get a seal kit? I don't mind spending a little extra for an OEM seal kit, but I'd still like to save on a quality kit if I can.

On an aside, I just replaced my flat-side idler pulley three weeks ago. The grooved one crapped out yesterday. At least they're cheap and easy to replace. I got pulleys that have a lifetime warranty. I'm just glad it got through my Christmas vacation and didn't come apart in the middle of PA. I think the Almighty was lending a hand there.

 

What sucks is I have access to a lift, but my truck's too damned long to get it in the air safely. Novelties have their drawbacks.