Hello,
I have a 2015 Lexus IS 250 F sport and noticed few drops of oil leak under the hood. On doing research, I found oil leak is commonly seen in older cars from gasket wearing out etc but what causes oil leak in a new car.
Thanks
Tom
This is not a new car, it is 4 years old. And oil leaks can occur on a new car as well.
Oil leaks are usually seen UNDER the car as gravity makes the oil go down and not up. Are you sure it is oil? Is it oil dribble from your last oil change?
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No mention of mileage either. 2015 is not a new vehicle. Anything can happen in 4 years of usage.
Yes it looks like oil and feels like oil. Last oil change was about 11 months ago and noticed the oil on the garage floor only recently but it is possible it is from last oil change and I just never noticed it before. Thanks for your reply
Sorry, it has about 41k miles on it.
+1
If the OP is as old as I am, he might recall seeing large drip pans under brand-new American cars sitting in showrooms, as recently as the '70s. And, if you peered under the car closely, those drip pans always contained some oil that had leaked… from brand-new cars.
10,000 miles a year, and your last oil change was 11 months ago ?
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Where exactly are you seeing the oil drips?
Yes, we don’t put much mileage on the car. I follow manufacturer recommendation of changing oil every 10k or 1 year whichever happens sooner. Currently we only have about 7k on it since last oil change.
The drips are under the hood near the driver side. I looked at the underside of the car and can see the oil there. I am attaching a picture of underside of the car. Hope it makes sense
The location on top is more important.
I do not see it from top.
Looks like the sub oil pan is leaking, hard to tell from the picture if the oil is coming from above.
The sub oil pan can be resealed, Form-In-Place-Gasket or RTV sealer is used to seal most parts on Toyota/Lexus engines.
The Powertrain warranty is for 6 years/70,000 miles, the repair should be at no cost to you.
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Thank you so much! Appreciate your reply.
Well, I haven’t seen oil drops migrate from the oil pan up into the engine compartment. So I’m guessing it’s something else leaking.
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One common source for engine oil leaks is the valve cover. That’s at the top of the engine but the oil eventually drains down and shows up at the bottom of the engine, usually on the oil pan. Once it gets to the oil pan the airflow under the engine will blow it around, making it hard to tell where the actual leak is. I’ve had to replace the valve cover gaskets on my 27 year old Corolla a couple of times for oil leaks. And I’ve had to improve the seal w/a sealant in spots a few times too. Everytime you drive the car the engine heats up, then it cools down when you turn the car off. This hot/cold cycling expands then contracts the metal in the engine, and eventually , over time, that back and forth movement can cause a gasket to deform & leak.
Thank you for your suggestion. I didn’t know Lexus had power train warranty up to 6 years until you told me. I took to dealership and they are fixing it under warranty!! Yay! You saved me a few hundred or may be thousand dollars.
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Now thats what I call a GOOD SOLUTION! Great advice from Nevada, and good for you OP.
Great. Let us know what was leaking.
I may not get this entirely correct but it was something like “rear differential gasket” was worn out and needs to be replaced. He said it is a 20 hour job!