it used to be just a timing cover leak, but now everything around the mid block coolant hose and down to the alternator is soaked with engine oil, some on the other side of the block, too. i can't figure out where its coming from! it does not look like the valve cover.

either way, with the alternator soaked in engine oil, i'm worried about a fire.... i kept getting a burning smell on the way to work this morning.


Al

 

Probably the oil pump seal bad. Wash her real good, take a spin, lay down a piece of say clean cardboard and look for leaks.

 

i just looked up pictures of the oil pump, and i think you are right. i guess instead of camping this weekend i'll be tearing the truck apart...

Al

 

not sure how pressed for time you are but, its only like a half hour repair.

 

yeah...quick job to replace oil pump...not bad at all.

 

well if its the front main he doesn't even need to pull the pump. but yea quick and easy either way.

 

is the oil pump seal included in the timing cover seal sets? i can't find an oil pump seal kit anywhere....

http://www.autozone.com/autozone/par.../N-iv9s5Z8znn8


i need your good vibes that she won't catch fire on the way home.... oil in alternator.... can't be good!

Al

 

it's only a single seal , no gaskets required .. and then if you remove the pump , there is an o-ring behind it .

I would recommend the /95 o/pump seal from the dealer .. it is "thinner" then the earlier style seals ..

usually this type of repair requires a speedy sleeve as well , because the inner lip of the seal rides on the same place on the front pully/balencer wearing a groove . the /95 seal (being thinner) can be set into the pump deeper then the original , therefor giving the inner lip a new serface on the pully , nagating the need of a speedy sleeve


.

 

well, its deeper than i originally thought. it is not leaking from the oil pump. from what i can tell it is leaking at the head above the water pump. i found an entire tube of sealant crammed up there.









any ideas on what the problem is? i'm assuming is a problem with the head... and it will need to be removed.


Al

 

most likely someone has over tightened the front (hidden bolt) into the timing cover and cracked the alum. timing cover boss .. I have seen this many times ... again .. just trying to help

time for a new timing cover

.

 

where is the 'hidden' bolt?

thanks

Al

 

right where you pulled the silicone from ..

the front boss on the timing cover to head .. in your picture the upper bulge in the cover .

if you were to pull the valve cover .. the bolt in question , is under the distributor gear , usually in a "pool" of oil .. you would need to pull the distributor , to get to this bolt ..



.

 

naa she wont catch on fire, its just the oil heating up that you smell, there will be a big cloud of smoke before it catches fire, so if you see exxesive smoke coming from under the hood, shut the truck off lol

 

Hey Al: if you want you can swing by and pick up my FSM if you want to borrow it....I am off for the next few weeks

 

thanks, i thought that was a bolt but couldn't remember reading about pulling the valve cover to get to it.

Al

 

robb.... that would be awesome! i can swing by tonight if you are available, should be there about 7:30.

Al

 

Overtightening that bolt is super common if they have replaced the timing chain, and removed the forward section of the head gasket. Often times people reinstall the timing cover wrong, which bunches up the head gasket. The only correct way to fix it is replace the entire head gasket but that takes a bit of time, so what most idiots do is goop the hell out of it. Problem is, goop squishes out the sides, and the timing cover cracks before you even reach torque spec.

Check that as well, make sure they didn't just goop between the bottom of the head and the top of the timing cover. If they did, you have to replace the head gasket or it will just leak like a sieve again when you crack your new timing cover.

 

so at this point, i might as well pull the head? it wouldn't surprise me in the least to find that head gasket all messed up like you describe. if i pull it i need to run a tap from the inside of #3 spark plug anyway. for such a simple engine, these mechanic hacks have sure fouled this one up pretty good.

Al

 

With all the trouble that engine is having I would say that is your best option at this point.

take the head off and either replace it, or get it fixed. Freshen the motor up, new timing cover, new chain and gear set, etc. Fix all the stupid crap the previous owner messed up, and have a relialbe truck for years to come!

 

Subscribed.

If you have the money, do the head and timing cover all at once.

ENGNBLDR sells the timing cover, water pump, oil pump, gaskets, and timing chain/sprockets/guides for $150 for the whole set! Search eBay for "ENGBLDR FEK" (front end kit). He also sells heads on that site, for a few hundrew bucks I think, with cams (depending on what you want). For about $500, you could likely take care of the head, cam, and whole front of engine....I'll likely do that when my head goes.

Good luck - take lots of photos and document progress to help others later on

Also, if you do end up going after that hidden bolt, be careful not to dislodge the cam gear if you don't want to....you'll have to pull it all apart in that case, since you'll likely slip a timing chain tooth or two or three....

Good luck!