the car has been leaking oil. it had been leaking oil for over a year now but she just kept driving it. it’s coming from somewhere above and not to drain plug. in one pic it might seem like it’s the drain plug but it is not. i wiped it down and there was no more oil dripping for hours. the drip or leak only occurs after it’s been driven.
there has been a leak for over a year. we drove this car on. 3 hour road trip in the last year and back. the car runs. i did two oil changes personally. just recently changed oil. once again it’s not coming from drain plug i checked thoroughly. there is no visible leak from the oil filter area. i do note as seen in one pic there seems to be a stain on the oil cooler. i would like advice for this situation. i am poor. she doesn’t have money at this time either we just went through christmas buying gifts. and her car has been to mechanic twice this year alone.
The best way to locate an oil leak is, wash the engine off, and then add a dye to the oil. Drive the vehicle a short distance, and then using a UV light see if the leak can be located.
A UV flashlight might be a good way to highlight the dye. Since the UV bulbs are LEDs, they have a narrow emission range and the dye light emission range should be checked before buying a UV flashlight.
There’s so much oil everywhere that I would have to clean the affected areas first to try and locate the leak. That leak could originate quite far up the engine and flow down from there.
I don’t have much luck with UV dye in locating oil leaks, I prefer to use a leak detection spray after cleaning the affected area.
chevy trax 2015 LT. we looked inside the engine compartment multiple times. can’t find leak from above. if i go underneath car there is that plastic guard and all kinds of things that prevent me from reaching things. i also only have ramps. i dont have jacks for lifting and the driveway is at a slight incline. she doesn’t park on driveway and parks infront of house but her parking spot is starting to collect oil stains and it’s very obvious her car is leaking. i think it’s leaking more than last year. i noticed the leak after i started doing her oil changes because i couldn’t trust walmart. she didn’t want to get it fixed but had to take car to mechanic for other reasons twice. apparently this mechanic who is trustworthy will not mention leaks and will only fix whatever the direct reason for the visit is for. with that leak there we still went on long road trips but now i think it might be risky to go on long trips. i did have to unlatch some hose that spilled coolant to get to the oil filter compartment to remove and install new oil filter. i am not sure if pushing around that oil cooler and oil filter contraption can loosen or dislodge something. there is no visible oil leaks from above once again. but a lot of oil dripping visible from below.
Seems to me if you want to tackle this yourself, you’ll need jack stands and a decent jack
Consider it an investment of sorts . . . and thereafter, you can also start to do tire rotations, brake jobs, etc.
I agree with @asemaster . . . foot powder spray also works, to some degree
After buying those tools I mentioned, drive the car and get everything really hot. Then put the car on jack stands, spray degreaser on the engine hose it off . . . whatever you have to do to get it clean . . . then spray that leak detection spray and let the engine idle
And then you continue to let it idle, while you’re under the car watching. Depending on what it is, it could take awhile
Most important for now is to make sure the engine doesn’t run too low on oil. Always carry some, check level often after the car has sat for at least a couple minutes, and top it up to the full line on the dipstick. (Don’t wait for it to go a full quart or more below its Full mark.) Many cars go for tens of thousands of miles with minor oil leaks, as long as they aren’t driven with the oil too low.
But you are right to find out more about this leak and have more facts before deciding what to do.
All those things, the splash guards, the plastic covers both on top of the engine and underneath the car will have to come off to properly clean and inspect for a leak.
??? There is no coolant hose that needs to be disconnected to change the oil filter on that car. Where does that hose come from/go to?
I recall replacing oil cooler assemblies (filter housing) on these engines for oil leaks, as well as the turbo supply and return lines. The PCV system is built into the valve cover on these cars, I generally see them fail in a way that causes driveability issues.
This is off topic, but a good example of how difficult it is to meet customer’s expectations:
If you bring your car to me for regular service and I tell you there’s an oil leak that requires attention, I am accused of trying to oversell and pad the bill. If I ignore the developing oil leak and don’t inform you about it, I am accused of not alerting you to needed repairs and being sloppy.
by the oil filter canister there is a hose above it that comes out or goes towards the coolant reservoir but meets underneath. if someone put the hose clamp a bit too close to where you unscrew the filter cap it gets in the way of pulling out the cap. i had to unscrew the clamp to get its structure away from the cap so i can pull it out. it started leaking and coolant levels dropped. i smelled it and i believe it was coolant. it’s by the oil filter housing and sits above it and if anything has a hose with clamp and possibly gets in the way of it that’s what i am talking about.
how do i know what a PCV is and how do i know if it is restricted? can you tell this to your 15 year old nephew and would he understand what you are saying? i am about the same level as a mechanic as someone that has done maybe half a dozen oil changes by himself. i only know how to change engine oil and filter and recently changed spark plugs. i dont know anything about cars other than knowing where the engine is and where the wheels are.
If there’s a significant oil leak, meaning that it will drip onto the ground, you should absolutely bring this to the customer’s attention, and suggest a proper repair. If there’s a trivial oil leak, such as slight seepage from a seal, or valve cover gasket, you can still bring this to the customer’s attention, but I wouldn’t recommend an expensive repair. It’s not “padding the bill” to recommend something that’s legitimately necessary, and if there’s a significant customer is too cheap to pay for the proper repair, that’s their loss.
