Serious 4AGE oil leak

[Golberg]

Now I've answered quite a few people questions lately so I figured I'd ask one myself for a change.

Basically just completed my engine conversion which is a small port 4AGE in an AE71.

Now too my surprise after I got the engine in and running I found that it leaked oil rather badly and it looks like its coming out around the oil pump seal gasket as it is dripping off the side of the oil pump. Now the engine to my knowledge wasn't leaking oil in the previous car it was in and it had only been recently installed into that car before it was rear ended (AE82) prior to which the engine had been freshened by resealing a lot of things including the sump, manifolds, water system etc (but the oil pump gasket looks factory) and cleaning out all the crap built up whilst in Japan.

Once the engine gets a little warm the leak is bad enough that is literally goes drip-drip-drip about 3 times a sec onto the ground but only leaks very slowly (probably a few drips an hour at most) when cold.

I'm leaning toward it being the pump gasket and not the front crank seal, because that'd probably weep slowly would it not?

I guess the point I'm a getting to, I'm going to pull it all apart soon but should I expect something untoward? Like maybe a cracked oil pump?

Cheers for the advice.

[Jonny Rochester]

Just pull it apart, crank pulley off, timing belt off etc. Take the oil pump off and silicon it onto the block, and get a new front seal anyway, cheap enough. Then it should be good.

[gunbz-r]

When you get the oil pump off, pull it apart and clean it, when its back together, turn the pump gear, and see how tight it is, if the car it was previously in was smashed, it may have caused the pump to hit something and bend, it is very common for this to happen with subaru's, haven't seen it happen with a 4a, but would be good to check, might save you doin the job again, might save your motor one day.


Cheers
Rhys

[Sparkle86]

While you have it apart it might pay to do the cam seals at the same time, because if the crank seal is worn you can be pretty sure the cam ones are too.

[SpotterOne]

Run your engine for a little bit, and have a look for a line of oil on the ground or the underside of your bonnet perpendicular to the car. If there isn't one there, its unlikely to be your front crank seal. If it is your front crank seal, the oil would invariably spin down the crank, onto the crank pulley and get sprayed in a nice neat line around it.

Check the pump housing very carefully for cracks and damage. When you get it off, put it on a known flat surface to check for warpage.

While you have it off, change the seals as the others have said, and change the cambelt as well. You have to take it off anyway!

[Golberg]

Thanks for all the responses (y)

The wasn't any front end damage to the car so I wouldn't have thought that'd the impact would have caused a problem but I guess a lot of force still goes through the car and could have caused a problem. I did in fact change the timing belt just before I put the engine in so its still basically brand new. I also had a good look at the cam seals when I did the timing belt and there was no evidence of any leaking or damage there.

I had forgotten but oil is in fact going onto the crank pulley also I noticed that there was oil splatter in a line up one of the skirt panels (no bonnet on so I wasn't going to see any on the bonnet).

But so the general consensus is to take the thing off, clean it all up, inspect for any cracks, damage or warpage and for how freely the pump spins. Then reassemble with a new crank seal and seal the pump to the block using silicone sealant.

Not sure when I'll get to do this because I plan on doing it when I go to take the engine out again because A it will be easier and B I have some semi-structural rust to fix at which time I'd rather not have the weight load of the engine and gearbox in. But I can't fix the rust yet because I don't have a MIG welder and I can't afford to buy a new one so I'm looking for a good gas one second hand or at least one I can borrow for a week or so.

One other question, will I need to take the sump off to take the oil pump off?

[SpotterOne]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Golberg @ Jul 2 2008, 02:33 PM) </div>No. You can get it out by undoing the 4 x 10mm bolts that go through the sump into the bottom of the oil pump housing. There is no sump gasket, so nothing to mess up there. Just make sure you clean the sealing surfaces well without letting any gasket goo go into your sump.

It can be harder to put the pump back on though, because you can't really keep the gasket goo on the sump flange properly when you put the pump back on.

If the oil is mostly coming out of the crank seal, you can change the seal in the car fairly easily. Get a cheap #0 Phillips screwdriver and sharpen it up. Bend the last 6-8mm over in a right angle. Hammer it into the seal and pull the seal out. don't hammer it in till it bottoms out, just far enough so you can twist it around. Bash a new one in very gently with a flat piece of metal under your hammer, making sure you do it as evenly as possible.

[rthy]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (SpotterOne @ Jul 4 2008, 11:26 AM) </div>does the oil pickup go directly to the pump though? I can't remember

[Golberg]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Sam_Q @ Jul 20 2008, 09:25 AM) </div>Yep, that's why I needed to take the sump off completely.

[riceburner]

Whats your oil pressure like