Please Help Me Diagose Oil Leak (Pics Inside)

flyinb501 · 11-19-2016, 05:39 PM

I recently noticed an oil puddle on my garage floor. Today I jacked the car up to take a look. I snapped some pics. Please take a look and let me know what you think it might be. You can see the oil about to drip in one of the pics. Thanks in advance!

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techwhiz · 11-19-2016, 08:29 PM

Engine oil or tranny fluid?

I just had a leak fixed.
I swore it was transmission fluid. It wasn't.
Engine il was real clean and the leak was at the top of the engine and ran down the back of the engine near the tranny.

I usually fix minor stuff. But for leaks I let the dealer/indie diagnose and fix.
That way if it's not fixed right I can blame someone else.

flyinb501 · 11-20-2016, 08:47 AM

It's definitely engine oil.

Boland01 · 11-20-2016, 10:06 AM

The two mostly likely culprits are the valve cover gasket or oil pan gasket. Take off your engine cover and look and see if you can see oil around the spark plugs. If it's dry the most likely culprit is the pan gasket. I would say the pan gasket is the most likely source.

Both can been done at home. On the pan gasket however you'll have to support the engine and drop the subframe to do it right. Also, you'll need new aluminum bolts. Neither is that hard of a job just very time consuming for what you're doing. Good luck and let us know what you find out.

flyinb501 · 11-20-2016, 11:25 AM

I had the valve cover replaced a year ago so I really hope that's not it...

Snoball M3 · 11-29-2016, 06:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boland01

The two mostly likely culprits are the valve cover gasket or oil pan gasket. Take off your engine cover and look and see if you can see oil around the spark plugs. If it's dry the most likely culprit is the pan gasket. I would say the pan gasket is the most likely source.

Both can been done at home. On the pan gasket however you'll have to support the engine and drop the subframe to do it right. Also, you'll need new aluminum bolts. Neither is that hard of a job just very time consuming for what you're doing. Good luck and let us know what you find out.

+1 Oil Pan Gasket, have that same leak lol just haven't gotten to it ��

e36power · 11-29-2016, 09:59 AM

I had the oil pan gasket leak. Dealer had been telling me about it for a couple years. Let it go until it started dripping on my driveway and required that I top off the oil every 1,000 miles. If I remember correctly, my indy charged $950 to replace the gasket, which was a lot better than what the dealership was quoting (think they were quoting $1,800 or so).

flyinb501 · 12-04-2016, 11:46 AM

Thanks guys. Mine is pretty minor I think as I haven't had to add oil in between oil changes yet. Do you think it is detrimental to let it go for a while until it becomes worst?

arlovarri · 12-04-2016, 12:06 PM

The bolts holding my oil pan on had become extremely loose at 130k causing a leak. (or maybe the gasket had crushed a little causing the bolts to be barely finger tight?) either way, I just snugged them all up and everything is fine. You can reach most with a small socket, and a few require an open end wrench in tight quarters.

e36power · 12-05-2016, 06:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flyinb501

Thanks guys. Mine is pretty minor I think as I haven't had to add oil in between oil changes yet. Do you think it is detrimental to let it go for a while until it becomes worst?

Assuming it is an oil pan gasket leak, no. I drove my 335i at least two years with a diagnosed oil pan gasket leak. Didn't fix it until it became a nuisance to top off oil every 1.5 to 2 months. Just keep track of your oil level. FWIW, the dealer told me my wife's E46 had an oil pan gasket leak 6 years ago. Still haven't fixed it.

flyinb501 · 12-05-2016, 07:59 AM

Wow, that's encouraging. I suppose I should probably bring it in to have it diagnosed to be sure though I guess.

e36power · 12-05-2016, 07:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flyinb501

Wow, that's encouraging. I suppose I should probably bring it in to have it diagnosed to be sure though I guess.

Probably a good idea. Could be other things. And if that puddle appeared over night, its not like you are dealing with a leak that is slowly progressing.

buzzard · 12-05-2016, 09:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by arlovarri

The bolts holding my oil pan on had become extremely loose at 130k causing a leak. (or maybe the gasket had crushed a little causing the bolts to be barely finger tight?) either way, I just snugged them all up and everything is fine. You can reach most with a small socket, and a few require an open end wrench in tight quarters.

+1
Same thing happened to me. Be careful, don't try to crank em down or they will break. They're aluminum. Another common oil leak is the oil filter housing gasket. Look for fresh oil around the housing and under the housing (look down through/between the air intake manifold runners. And there's also the possibility it's the oil filter cap leaking where it seals. This happened to me a couple times. I replaced the filter and large rubber seal and it was fine. To check for this, let the engine idle with the hood up and look to see if oil is seeping from the cap.

11-19-2016, 05:39 PM	#1
flyinb501 Captain 72 Rep 627 Posts Drives: 2009 E90 335i Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Minneapolis, MN iTrader: (1)	Please Help Me Diagose Oil Leak (Pics Inside) I recently noticed an oil puddle on my garage floor. Today I jacked the car up to take a look. I snapped some pics. Please take a look and let me know what you think it might be. You can see the oil about to drip in one of the pics. Thanks in advance! [IMG][/IMG] [IMG][/IMG] [IMG][/IMG]
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11-19-2016, 08:29 PM	#2
techwhiz Colonel 453 Rep 2,973 Posts Drives: e90 335i Sedan - Arctic Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Bay Area, Ca iTrader: (4)	Engine oil or tranny fluid? I just had a leak fixed. I swore it was transmission fluid. It wasn't. Engine il was real clean and the leak was at the top of the engine and ran down the back of the engine near the tranny. I usually fix minor stuff. But for leaks I let the dealer/indie diagnose and fix. That way if it's not fixed right I can blame someone else. __________________ Arctic Metallic\CF Splitters, Spoiler, Mirror Covers\LED Tails\LSD\Tinted\Coded\Apex Square SM10-19"\LED Angel Eyes\Gloss Black Grill\Integrated V1 & Galaxy Tab\M-Performance Brakes\Cobb Tuned\xHP Flash\Resonator Removed and -> is your friend.
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11-20-2016, 08:47 AM	#3
flyinb501 Captain 72 Rep 627 Posts Drives: 2009 E90 335i Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Minneapolis, MN iTrader: (1)	It's definitely engine oil.
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11-20-2016, 10:06 AM	#4
Boland01 Lieutenant 151 Rep 460 Posts Drives: 2010 535ix, 2008, 2007 335i Join Date: Sep 2013 Location: Magnolia, TX iTrader: (0)	The two mostly likely culprits are the valve cover gasket or oil pan gasket. Take off your engine cover and look and see if you can see oil around the spark plugs. If it's dry the most likely culprit is the pan gasket. I would say the pan gasket is the most likely source. Both can been done at home. On the pan gasket however you'll have to support the engine and drop the subframe to do it right. Also, you'll need new aluminum bolts. Neither is that hard of a job just very time consuming for what you're doing. Good luck and let us know what you find out.
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11-20-2016, 11:25 AM	#5
flyinb501 Captain 72 Rep 627 Posts Drives: 2009 E90 335i Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Minneapolis, MN iTrader: (1)	I had the valve cover replaced a year ago so I really hope that's not it...
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11-29-2016, 09:59 AM	#7
e36power Private First Class 43 Rep 175 Posts Drives: E90 335i Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Atlanta iTrader: (0)	I had the oil pan gasket leak. Dealer had been telling me about it for a couple years. Let it go until it started dripping on my driveway and required that I top off the oil every 1,000 miles. If I remember correctly, my indy charged $950 to replace the gasket, which was a lot better than what the dealership was quoting (think they were quoting $1,800 or so).
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12-04-2016, 11:46 AM	#8
flyinb501 Captain 72 Rep 627 Posts Drives: 2009 E90 335i Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Minneapolis, MN iTrader: (1)	Thanks guys. Mine is pretty minor I think as I haven't had to add oil in between oil changes yet. Do you think it is detrimental to let it go for a while until it becomes worst?
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12-04-2016, 12:06 PM	#9
arlovarri Enlisted Member 5 Rep 35 Posts Drives: e90 330i & 07 Z4 Join Date: Dec 2014 Location: Portland OR iTrader: (0)	The bolts holding my oil pan on had become extremely loose at 130k causing a leak. (or maybe the gasket had crushed a little causing the bolts to be barely finger tight?) either way, I just snugged them all up and everything is fine. You can reach most with a small socket, and a few require an open end wrench in tight quarters.
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12-05-2016, 07:59 AM	#11
flyinb501 Captain 72 Rep 627 Posts Drives: 2009 E90 335i Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Minneapolis, MN iTrader: (1)	Wow, that's encouraging. I suppose I should probably bring it in to have it diagnosed to be sure though I guess.
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