oil leak

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I have devoloped a slow oil leak from the front cover/oil pan area,have any of you experienced this looks like a big job to replace the gasketand I thought I could get some input from some of the high milers here.

 

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ramman
Pressure wash the underside of the motor and then watch closely the bottom space between the vacuum pump & the power steering pump. Theres a seal and o-ring in there that may be your leak. After awhile the fan will blow the oil all around and it will look like the front cover leaking.
good luck CPFF

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CUMMINS POWERED FAST FORD

 

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You wouldn't happen to be running Amsoil in your engine, would you? I've seen dozens running on Amsoil dripping oil from the front cover area. If so, this is only the beginning of the Exxon Valdez that the B engine is destined to become when the seals all swell from the synthetic formula. The repair is costly, and a switch over to regular oil will be a safe investment when the repair is over.

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520 Rear Wheel H. P. and 800+ ft/lbs Torque = 15. 5 sec @ 97 mph with the rear wheels spinning in 5th gear going through the traps in the quarter mile. No slicks here, pal, no fancy auto transmission, just the truck in full street trim, 7400 lbs. of Auto Wurks Diesel/BD Performance raging, fire-breathing DIESEL POWER

 

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I had the same problem with only 29,000 miles. It was a big job for removing the gears and getting to the seal. I was running Shell Rotella non-synthetic so stop looking for little holes to bash Amsoil. It's one thing to explain a swelled seal that was definitely caused by synthetics, and another thing to just bash a product that many are using.

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1998 CUMMINS Dodge Ram

 

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First thing to try is tighten up all the small bolts on the front of the front cover.
I had two loosen up.
a couple 100k later the front crank seal started to leak,Not a hard job BUT you need to take the front cover and have them press in the new seal from the rear,with a jig.
Also the a kit comes with a wear ring if the crank shaft has a grove worn in it--------- Not a chance with low miles.
Not to bash syn"s but this has been a problem when going to them after using natural oils then making a switch.

 

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Thank for the reply's guys,after cleaning it appears to be coming from the left lower corner ot the timing gear case not a bad leak yet but makes it look like a detroit parks in the garage which i can't have. My mechanic at the dealer had told me of having a couple of cracked front covers but if it continues I guess he'll get to find out as thats what the warranty is for,Right???

 

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DieselB59 said "this is only the beginning of the Exxon Valdez that the B engine is destined to become when the seals all swell from the synthetic formula. "
If the seals swell, then wouldn't that PREVENT leaks? Please explain the effects of various kinds of oil on engine seals.

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'95 2500 SLT ClubCab, automatic, 3. 54 LSD

 

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Oil leak??? Well, I guess Im lucky in that dept. No oil leaks yet in 48000, knock on wood, BUT..... Dont count on any Chrysler warranty covering it. They have a really bad track record with me by not covering anything on my extended 7/100,000 zero deduct warranty. Anything that goes wrong, they clame it was a "non covered" part that caused the failure. . Good luck. I myself was about ready to crush my truck with my D-9, but after several prozac, Ive kissed my beautiful red truck and kissed off the Chrysler boys. Life is just too short! May I suggest a tube of J B weld. Works wonders and you dont have to put up with thw crap from the dealer!
Good luck!

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98 Quad Cab 4X4 Cummins Automatic Totally loaded Minus fuel sender plus right brake pull, no extra charge!

 

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I've just seen a case which mimics yours in the shop this week. Apparently, a dowel pin that aligns the timing case during factory engine assembly can work its way out with the diesel vibration. The hole that it inserts to is drilled through instead of just countersunk, and the dowel in this case worked its way out and hit the timing gears and was ejected through the lower right corner of the timing case to the roadway below. The result was a teaspoonfull of oil on the floor during an overnight rest.
As far as bashing synthetics, I'm not... just stating facts. This is a DISCUSSION FORUM, gentlemen! All opinions and facts are welcome here. All posts are moderated and if they were felt to be offensive or inadequate, they would be edited in such order. Those who are professionals and are in the business and have been inside the B series, agree with me or disagree with me. Those who are full fledged mechanics just because you have a stickshift in your hand, there is so much more to learn than what you read in sales brochures.

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520 Rear Wheel H. P. and 800+ ft/lbs Torque = 15. 5 sec @ 97 mph with the rear wheels spinning in 5th gear going through the traps in the quarter mile. No slicks here, pal, no fancy auto transmission, just the truck in full street trim, 7400 lbs. of Auto Wurks Diesel/BD Performance raging, fire-breathing DIESEL POWER

 

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Originally posted by DieselB59:
I've just seen a case which mimics yours in the shop this week. Apparently, a dowel pin that aligns the timing case during factory engine assembly can work its way out with the diesel vibration. The hole that it inserts to is drilled through instead of just countersunk, and the dowel in this case worked its way out and hit the timing gears and was ejected through the lower right corner of the timing case to the roadway below. The result was a teaspoonfull of oil on the floor during an overnight rest.
As far as bashing synthetics, I'm not... just stating facts. This is a DISCUSSION FORUM, gentlemen! All opinions and facts are welcome here. All posts are moderated and if they were felt to be offensive or inadequate, they would be edited in such order. Those who are professionals and are in the business and have been inside the B series, agree with me or disagree with me. Those who are full fledged mechanics just because you have a stickshift in your hand, there is so much more to learn than what you read in sales brochures.

Sounds like someone got out of bed on the wrong side today! Personally, I use Chevron Delo. No leaks, No problems, Great price. 100,000,000 truckers couldnt be wrong!


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98 Quad Cab 4X4 Cummins Automatic Totally loaded Minus fuel sender plus right brake pull, no extra charge!

 

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I can't comment on whether your problem could be Amsoil (I doubt it) but I will defend properly formulated synthetic motor oils.
I have used synthetics in an 89 Cummins that had 70K on it before I switched to Royal Purple 15W40. I put another 100K on that truck before I sold it to buy my 96. That 89 is still running on Royal Purple and has somewhere around 300K without any leaks.
I changed the 96 over at 5K and now has 113K using Royal Purple 15W40 and do not consume oil nor leak oil.

By the way, I am a certified Oil Monitoring Analyst by STLE (Society of Tribologist and Lubrication Engineers) as well as being a degreed Mechanical Engineer.

Synthetic oils do not cause oil leaks. The greater cleaning ability of the base oils and superior additive packages used in the synthetics will EXPOSE a MARGINAL Seal that may have cracked or hardened due to running a mineral oil too long (past it's useful life).

I can also show you the analytical results of ICP Spectral wear analysis if you're interested.



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For the record I use rottella t and I don't have a hole in the case that can be seen the leak is a couple of drops on the floor over night and appears to be the gasket between the front case and block,haven't had time to visit my dealer yet and to defend them the warranty is only as good as your mechanic and the shop foreman after going thru one buy back I know this first hand. On the synthetic oil,I had a class by a mobil rep and they explained the carbon chain in synthetic oils and yes if you have a leak or near one it will leak more and sooner but the oil may still be a superior lubricant.