97 Teksid 32V oil leak

[Tillerman77]

My stock 97 Cobra (78K mileage) started generating a hot oil smell last Fall after being driven for an hour or so. Oil smell = oil leak. The smell seems to be more noticeable on the passenger side of the engine with the hood open. No obvious signs of increased oil usage so far and no floor drips either.

Car is in winter storage at the moment, but with Spring coming, I would like to know where to look, i.e. does this engine have any typical leak spots?

TIA

 

[jgt58]

Valve cover gaskets leaking into headers

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[Tillerman77]

Perfect - thanks!

 

[scottydsntknow]

Usually the covers yeah, o rings can go bad too. Pulling them is a bitch and a half with the engine in the car because of the stupid brake booster but it can be done. Not really many other places it likes to leak from as far as oil... main seal but you'd have a floor stain if it was that...

 

[98 svt]

Can also develop an oil leak at the cooler. That's on the drivers side and not near a hot source it would drip on.

 

[Tillerman77]

Thanks everyone for the information. Should know more once the streets are clear of salt.

Where are the o rings that can leak?

 

[98 svt]

Thanks everyone for the information. Should know more once the streets are clear of salt.

Where are the o rings that can leak?

The O rings he is referring to are gaskets for each spark plug hole.
With a bad o ring though its easy to spot. Pull the plugs one at a time and look for the ones covered in oil.

 

[Tillerman77]

The O rings he is referring to are gaskets for each spark plug hole.
With a bad o ring though its easy to spot. Pull the plugs one at a time and look for the ones covered in oil.

OK - thanks. If the o ring or o rings were leaking, could oil seepage there in the spark plug hole cause a hot oil smell?

 

[98 svt]

OK - thanks. If the o ring or o rings were leaking, could oil seepage there in the spark plug hole cause a hot oil smell?

I had a bad o ring and never experienced any ill affects. No smell, no misfire, no visual oil leak. Only the obvious spark plug drenched in oil.
These cars are getting older I'm sure they are all drying out if they haven't been replaced yet.

 

[scottydsntknow]

Yep, the longer I keep these SN95/Edge cars the more looks they start getting... at least with my old pristine 1998 with a Cobra bumper and Cervini R hood and S281 wing you'd think I was driving some sort of exotic and its like 10x that over here in Spain where they never sold them with my 2000. I drive through town during the summer and I might as well be driving a Ferrari...

 

[dkblue98gt]

Mine had a leak at the back of the oil pan gasket . I thought it was the main seal replaced that and the clutch and flywheel since I was in there. Not long after that the oil cooler o ring failed and poured oil all over my driveway and luckily not out on the road. Replaced both and now it is leak free. Old cars...

 

[Tillerman77]

Update - so the roads are free of salt around here for a few weeks now, so I have had some driving time. I had it put up on a lift, and the mechanic showed me where oil was staining the engine on the passenger side and to a lesser extent, the driver side. He said it was the head gaskets leaking.

Is it possible to have an oil leak from the head gasket?

I should mention that oil consumption remains minimal, no drips on the floor, no typical indications of a head gasket failure (e.g. coolant contamination or bubbling, compression loss, or oil contamination). The engine seems to run fine with no codes. The main symptom is the hot oil smell after a long drive.

 

[jgt58]

Valve cover spark plug gaskets....

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[jgt58]

I'm telling you change the valve cover gaskets and spark plug gaskets. Mechanics will say anything right now to get work

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[DSG2003Mach1]

i would find it highly unlikely to be head gaskets.

 

[jgt58]

Leaking head gaskets don't
Stain the side of the block.

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[Tillerman77]

Thanks @jgt58 and @DSG2003Mach1 !
Obviously, I would prefer the valve cover and spark plug gasket fix over the head gasket diagnosis any day of the week. That is why I asked on this forum, to get a reality check over potential misinformation.

@jgt58 if a head gasket WAS leaking oil, would it appear in the coolant or somewhere else?

 

[Tabres]

Save yourself the mystery and purchase an UV leak detection kit. A small UV pen light and some glasses, and oil compatible dye... can order it all for about $30 or less online and you'll know exactly where the leak is coming from. I'd sure as hell be doing that before I ever went to the work to swap head gaskets.


I'm with everyone else, though. I'd bet dollars to donuts its the valve-cover gasket.

 

[jgt58]

Thanks @jgt58 and @DSG2003Mach1 !
Obviously, I would prefer the valve cover and spark plug gasket fix over the head gasket diagnosis any day of the week. That is why I asked on this forum, to get a reality check over potential misinformation.

@jgt58 if a head gasket WAS leaking oil, would it appear in the coolant or somewhere else?

You would be burning blue smoke

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[DSG2003Mach1]

Thanks @jgt58 and @DSG2003Mach1 !
Obviously, I would prefer the valve cover and spark plug gasket fix over the head gasket diagnosis any day of the week. That is why I asked on this forum, to get a reality check over potential misinformation.

@jgt58 if a head gasket WAS leaking oil, would it appear in the coolant or somewhere else?

head gasket leaks can happen a number of ways - my lightning was dripping out between the head and the block, I had no coolant in my oil, no oil in my coolant, no coolant/steam out the exhaust either.