Another car care question......

shawn474

About a month ago I bought a 2003 Hyundai Elantra (manual with 133,000) for commuting pruposes. It passed inspection with flying colors. But, now I have developed a small oil leak that is leaving drip marks on my driveway. I am really not worried about it except I don't want it to be a bigger issue than I think. I had it looked at and the mechanic said that the drain plug at the oil pan was stripped out so he rethreaded and sealed it. After the next oil change it will need to be sealed again he said. Also, it seems that there is a small leak coming from something related to the timing mechanism????? He said that the engine would have to be pulled and re-seal that area. I have no idea - this is where I checked out.........I didn't know oil passed through the timing mechanism.

I only paid $1500 for it and don't want to spend an arm and a leg getting it repaired. It has already served its purpose as using it for commuting has allowed me to save miles on my truck. Last week, I needed my front differential replaced and it was covered under warranty still because I hadn't been using it to commute. Had I not had the Hyundai, this repair would have come out of pocket and cost $1600.

So here's the root of my post. If I kept extra oil in the car and checked it everytime I filled the gas tank, is this enough? It hasn't leaked a noticable amount of fluid form the looks of the dipstick when I check. Some have suggested using 20W50 motor oil the next time I get an oil change to see if that makes a difference. Others have suggested Marvel Mystery Oil. So, club polk car afficianados), what say you?

Thanks in advance,
Shawn

TNRabbit

Lucas oil makes an additive that will swell old seals and CAN decrease minor seal leaks.

If you have a good gasket on your oil pan plug, you shouldn't have any leaks there.

shawn474

TNRabbit wrote: »

Lucas oil makes an additive that will swell old seals and CAN decrease minor seal leaks.

If you have a good gasket on your oil pan plug, you shouldn't have any leaks there.

Thanks.

Yeah, i guess thats the problem. He said that whoever changed the oil before tightened it too much and stripped the thread so they tried to put a bigger gasket on it which mucked it up further. His solution was going to be to rethread a bigger hole and use a larger plug. But after he sealed it, it stopped the leak so we left well enough alone.

I might go ahead and try the Lucas additive just to see if it helps.

gfong

Check it like you mentioned and if you go on a long trip somewhere make sure you check it when you get there and before you leave.
Try the Lucas stuff as mentioned above as can not hurt.

gdb

http://www.cgenterprises.com/drain_plugs_oversize_repair.htm

TNRabbit

gdb wrote: »

http://www.cgenterprises.com/drain_plugs_oversize_repair.htm

FYI: the oil plug is already fixed--see OP post above.

on that site you linked:



HAHHAHAHHA WTF?!?

concealer404

Honestly, if it were MY car, i'd just keep an eye on the oil and drive it, and not let it bother me. But that's not the RIGHT way to do it, just the cheap and easy way.

I can't remember the last time i had a car that didn't leak SOMETHING, but yet all of mine seem to make it to 250k miles with ease.

sda2mike

concealer404 wrote: »

Honestly, if it were MY car, i'd just keep an eye on the oil and drive it, and not let it bother me. But that's not the RIGHT way to do it, just the cheap and easy way.

I can't remember the last time i had a car that didn't leak SOMETHING, but yet all of mine seem to make it to 250k miles with ease.

like he said...just put a board under the car..that's what i do w my 96 civic...got 181k and going strong

shawn474

concealer404 wrote: »

Honestly, if it were MY car, i'd just keep an eye on the oil and drive it, and not let it bother me. But that's not the RIGHT way to do it, just the cheap and easy way.

I can't remember the last time i had a car that didn't leak SOMETHING, but yet all of mine seem to make it to 250k miles with ease.

HAHAHAHA......that's what I have been doing and curiosity got the best of me. I park it on the street now so it doesn't leak in my driveway. I guess I will continue on and keep an extra quart of oil in the car.

gdb

TNRabbit wrote: »

FYI: the oil plug is already fixed--see OP post above.

on that site you linked:



HAHHAHAHHA WTF?!?

After the next oil change it will need to be sealed again he said.

I'd use one of the "piggyback" type of drain plugs with oversize threads for a permanent fix that wouldn't require "sealing" at each oil change.;)

concealer404

Bring it out here. I'll fix it for $25 or less (parts) and a 6 pack. I'd just as soon put another oil pan on it than deal with drilling out the one that's on there now. I can get these oil pans all day long at the local self-service junkyard for peanuts.

2 hour job, tops. Hell, if you can read this post, you can replace it yourself.

But i don't mess with drilling out oil pans, unless i'm tapping one for an oil return line. I would take the pan off anyways to drill it out to accept a larger drain bolt, and while it's off, why not just replace with one that works already?

shawn474

concealer404 wrote: »

Bring it out here. I'll fix it for $25 or less (parts) and a 6 pack. I'd just as soon put another oil pan on it than deal with drilling out the one that's on there now. I can get these oil pans all day long at the local self-service junkyard for peanuts.

2 hour job, tops. Hell, if you can read this post, you can replace it yourself.

But i don't mess with drilling out oil pans, unless i'm tapping one for an oil return line. I would take the pan off anyways to drill it out to accept a larger drain bolt, and while it's off, why not just replace with one that works already?

I have checked around here, but it seems you need to be "in the know" nowadays to get anywhere with a junkyard operator. I have called a few and they are less than willing to help. I could do it I think. I am pretty mechanically inclined having replaced my brakes, shocks, struts, front and rear diff fluid, etc. on my truck. I guess I get a little nervous around the "internal" stuff taht involves engines and such.

By the way, is it possile that oil could be leaking from the "timing mechanism" or did I hear him wrong?

exalted512

No idea on the timing mechanism, but also remember oil tends to spread and a small amount can cover a large surface area (thats what its designed to do!), so a spot on the ground usually looks like more oil has leaked out than it really has.

-Cody

concealer404

shawn474 wrote: »

I have checked around here, but it seems you need to be "in the know" nowadays to get anywhere with a junkyard operator. I have called a few and they are less than willing to help. I could do it I think. I am pretty mechanically inclined having replaced my brakes, shocks, struts, front and rear diff fluid, etc. on my truck. I guess I get a little nervous around the "internal" stuff taht involves engines and such.

By the way, is it possile that oil could be leaking from the "timing mechanism" or did I hear him wrong?

Sure... oil could leak from a few things that have something to do with "timing" in a roundabout way.

Cam seals, distributor seal, etc etc etc.

I think it may be a location issue as for the unhelpful junkyards. The midwest is the land of the self-service junkyard. I go in, pull my own parts, and pay pocket change for said parts. I'd look and see if there's an LQK around you or something. You may be able to get away with this with minimal hit to the pocket if you decide that you care enough to fix it.

I'll be hitting my yards again next week once i get back from this weekend's adventure with yet another POS car. If i can grab a good pan for $20 or less, want me to grab it for you? What motor is in your car?

shawn474

concealer404 wrote: »

Sure... oil could leak from a few things that have something to do with "timing" in a roundabout way.

Cam seals, distributor seal, etc etc etc.

I think it may be a location issue as for the unhelpful junkyards. The midwest is the land of the self-service junkyard. I go in, pull my own parts, and pay pocket change for said parts. I'd look and see if there's an LQK around you or something. You may be able to get away with this with minimal hit to the pocket if you decide that you care enough to fix it.

I'll be hitting my yards again next week once i get back from this weekend's adventure with yet another POS car. If i can grab a good pan for $20 or less, want me to grab it for you? What motor is in your car?

I really would like to fix at least the oil pan, especially if I can do it cheaply. If you come across one, I'd obviously reimburse you for the part, shipping and your time. I really appreciate the advice and offer. Honestly I am not sure which engine it is. It is a 2003 hyundai elantra 4 door sedan with manual transmission. The only markings on the engine are 16V DOHC, but other than that I don't know if it is the 1.6, 1.8 or 2.0L.

EDIT: A quick wikipedia check and I guess it is the 2.0, as the 1.6 and 1.8 were apparently only made for the New Zealand market.

concealer404

Sure, i'll take a gander next week and see what i can find.

And yeah, i think that's got what Hyundai likes to call the "Beta" engine? I've got a friend that's big into the "Crooked H" so i'll make sure i know what i'm looking for before i go out there. As a matter of fact... i think he's got that same identical car in white. Go figure.

Find out where the other leak is. The cam seals might not be too much fun (timing belt WEEEE!!!!), but if you luck out and it's the distributor (if these cars even have one), that's a cake job.

concealer404

I see that swegyptian is viewing this thread... i'd be interested to see his view on small trivial leaks, since they're a fact of life when dealing with 15-20 year old Toyotas.

joeparaski

You can fix the threads in the oil pan using a Heli-coil. As for the "timing mechanism", if oil is leaking from that area, it could be the cam seal or the crank seal. If the leaking oil is getting on the timing belt, then the belt won't last long because the oil will deteriorate the belt. When the belt fails, it will most likely bend one or several valves in the head, and yes, that is a VERY bad thing.

concealer404

For the record, DO NOT helicoil or try to tap a bigger plug in there. This is an aluminum pan, and it takes a special longer bolt than the "shorties" that most steel pans take.

This will REQUIRE a new pan to fix. Nothing else is even worth trying.

joeparaski

concealer404 wrote: »

For the record, DO NOT helicoil or try to tap a bigger plug in there. This is an aluminum pan, and it takes a special longer bolt than the "shorties" that most steel pans take.

This will REQUIRE a new pan to fix. Nothing else is even worth trying.

Please explain why a heli-coil won't work.

Joe

concealer404

joeparaski wrote: »

Please explain why a heli-coil won't work.

Joe

Oh, it MIGHT. Just like the other options. They MIGHT work.

I guess personally, i'm not big on messing with aluminum. It's not real strong to start with.

I may have been a bit hasty to lump it with the bigger bolt idea, which is definitely not a good idea.

joeparaski

Well just so you know, we've repaired quite a few aluminum pans with heli-coils and all were successful repairs. If the damaged thread is accessible to use the repair kit then there is no reason it can't be done. It's a hell of a lot cheaper than changing the oil pan.

Joe

gdb

No matter which method you end up using..........ALWAYS use a torque wrench to tighten the drain plug to the proper torque amount. Prevents stripped threads !;)