Engine/Transmission (1998.5 - 2002) Front oil leak

[SWC]

I have had an oil leak from the left front of the motor for some time. This fall I checked and sure enough there was oil dripping from the vacuum pump. I got the repair kit from Cummins and did the repair. The next day I took the truck to town. I stopped the motor to run my errands and looked under the front of the truck and saw some black drips in the fresh snow. My first thought was another attempted repair gone wrong.

I don't consider myself a skilled mechanic. I like a challenge and after checking the threads on the repair I thought I can do this. When I got home after the truck dried off underneath I started the motor and checked my repair. Expecting to find oil dripping off the vacuum pump I found none. Whew! But what I did find causes me more concern. Oil appears to be leaking from where the gear case meets the block on the left side of the motor. It is hard to see in there.

My question, is my guess correct or what else would I check?

My apologies for the longer thread. Any advice would be appreciated.

Thank you

Stan

 

[JFaughn]

This does not apply to all yrs , KDP = killer dowel pin , so nows a good time to see if yours is an issue , this pin aliens the timing housing to block , over time of folks posting about this ,many have found that the bolts for the housing & cover come loose , so taking the cover off checking to see if the pin is an issue [ fix if needed ] then pull all bolts , one at a time , clean bolts & holes , then blue lock tight , & torque , the worse case , some times the gasket is bad , when I did mine , it was pushed out a little in one spot .

 

[SWC]

JFaughn thanks for the reply. My truck is a 24 valve. The KDP as a rule is not an issue on this model.

I do have around 250000 miles on the odometer. There are many more hours on the motor. I hauled RV's for one year and I lived in the truck when I was on the road. I idled the motor every night I was on the road. Just to get ahead of the idleing naysayers, I always have taken oil samples and the results never indicated any fuel in the oil. I was careful to keep the engine temp up in the winter.

Thanks

Stan

 

[DCreed]

NO 2nd gen is safe from KDP!!! do some searches.

 

[FourBarR]

There are 2nd. gens with the old front cover that have thrown the dowel pin out. had mind done at Piers . better check it out . it could be an expensive repair if it comes out and gets in the gear train.

 

[DCreed]

as was said earlier, the case bolts loosen too!

 

[SWC]

Thanks for pointing out that the case bolts may be getting loose. JFaughn brought this up in the first post. This did not sink in immediately.

JFaughn did you pull the whole gear case to replace the gasket or could you get to the bolts without pulling the cam and just the timing cover removed? I did check with Cummins in Saskatoon about replacing the gasket between the gearcase and block. They said rough estimate would be $2000. They said they have done this but not often.

When I pull off the front cover it would be logical to check the dowel pin as well.

Thanks TDR guys!

Stan

 

[JFaughn]

There are long & short bolts , the short ones just hold the cover , then a bunch of long ones that hold the cover & case , then a few more that are under the cover holding the case & one that [ I for get , is under a gear or you may be able to get to through a hole in gear ] , I did not replace gasket , just pulled bolts cleaned holes & used blue lock tight & torqued .
May take 1/2 day in non shop setting , the hardest part is getting the fan shroud out of the way .

 

[SWC]

JFaughn, thanks for the response. Did you leave the radiator, intercooler etc inplace? I would pull mine out and clean all of the cooling systems because I know I have a lot of oil and gunk in all of those fins.

Stan

 

[Jed]

How much does it leak between changes?

 

[SWC]

It used to be quart in 3000 miles. It is now closer to 2 qt in in 5000 miles.

I hate the mess it leaves when I park it and the how everything under the truck is an oily mess.

Stan

 

[JFaughn]

I just removed the fan & shroud .