MRduke Posted April 27, 2011 Share Posted April 27, 2011 1992 5spd manual Loyale non-turbo 4wd wagon with a recently smashed front left headlight, 1/4 panel and hood (hit a school bus full of children). (they're OK). For $700, with 148k, 10k ago new: clutch, HGs, ECU, fuel inj, front seals, TB, front end CVs, and more. Hmmm... Sure, there's some oil coming from somewhere and hitting the exhaust, and that's annoying when it gets sucked into the cabin and smells like death, but these other leaks have me...concerned. This is the underside of the tranny. Seems to be streaking with the rest of the leaking fluids...will be cleaning and tracing soon, but what is this red grease? Differential? sorry for the huge, upside down photos She got a pretty complete reseal about 10k ago, but... Here is a shot of the bottom, left side of the tb cover, sort of straight down from the AC pulley. Not much of a drip at all and no coolant loss really, but does it mean the h2o pump is slowly rebelling? The frothy creamy cream on the underside of the oil cap had me freaked for about an hour until i was able to scour the forums and find that this can be normal; mine was a very thick dollop of cream though. Maybe all the short trips the PO did 6 miles to work had it build up to some mountainous ready-whip. Still nervous about HG issues, gonna huff the exhaust tonight to see how sweet it is. Hoping i got a decent deal... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MilesFox Posted April 27, 2011 Share Posted April 27, 2011 try huffing the radiator and smell how exhausty it is. the red fluids can be coming from the power steering rack or lines that run through the crosmember Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MRduke Posted April 27, 2011 Author Share Posted April 27, 2011 Seriously? Huff the radiator? Like, from the cap? never heard o that one... I'll try to trace the red to a power steering component... thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MilesFox Posted April 27, 2011 Share Posted April 27, 2011 if you think you might get coolant out of the exhaust, did you think that you can get exhaust into the coolant? this would be the beginnings of a head gasket. Watch for bubbles in the radiator when the car is running, after it is warm and the thermostat is open Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deener Posted April 27, 2011 Share Posted April 27, 2011 (edited) +1 that it is probably Power Steering Fluid, just because of the location and color, the PS reservoir is right up in front of the engine, directly above that stuff. Notice any hard steering lately? Any whinning noises from your steering? I have had a leaky PS unit due to a stripped fitting right up front where the 19mm meets the 17mm (the two metal pipes that are directly off the reservoir, passenger side). Temp fix for me was some thread locker until I got a new pipe/fitting. Be aware that a prolonged PS leak can travel a path into your timing covers and assist in premature timing belt snappage (still had the belt covers on at that point). I spent last New Years morning on the side of the highway waiting for a tow because I didn't stop my leak before it degraded a belt. If it is indeed a PS fluid leak, fix the leak soon!!! The mayo under your cap could signal a HG issue, watch your coolant carefully - check the rad when it's cold. Wipe the mayo off and see how long it takes for it to come back, maybe it's a small leak if you aren't loosing much coolant. The oil stank could very well be an oil leak burning up on the exhaust. Tons of spots to look but the best way to start is by cleaning and observing where it could be coming from. Some people here take the skid plate off the bottom and take the car to the carwash/pressure wash to clean. The best oil leak I had was right at the filter, the others (like oil pump seals, oil pan gasket, crank and cam seals, valve covers, to name a few) took a lot more time to get at to fix. Edited April 27, 2011 by Deener More info Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caboobaroo Posted April 27, 2011 Share Posted April 27, 2011 The coolant drip is most indeed the waterpump area. Could be the pump, the O-ring on the pipe where it fits into the pump or maybe just the waterpump gasket. If you were having HG issues, it would be over heating, loss of coolant would be more AND you'll see more white smoke coming from the exhaust. The cream on the underside of the cap does mean there's water in the crankcase but its probably something like these. Cheap oil (can't tell you how many times I see it in newer Mercedes-Benz:rolleyes:) Short trips that aren't long enough to get the engine warmed up to help burn off some of the moisture from the cheap oil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MilesFox Posted April 27, 2011 Share Posted April 27, 2011 weep holes are leaking in the WP, a sign of a worn bearing, you will want to replace it as the WP wull lose efficiency and cause overheats. I bet the impeller is corroded. and you may have a pinhole leak in one of the metal steering rack lines where they clamp down the the crossmember, this has happened to me, and would be a result of a rusty environment. Inspect the hard lines where its mounting clip is on the crossmember. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MRduke Posted April 28, 2011 Author Share Posted April 28, 2011 Thanks everyone! I had thought PS fluid, but it was so far down there... I'll be huffing the radiator tonight...I want to only believe the advice from Caboobaroo, as it means I dont have HG issues...:-\ ...I'll just keep an eye on it. BUT, looks like the h2o pump does need replaced eventually though, since there's fluid there (but not really dripping). But after only 10k miles since replacement, that sucks! Just had a thought: there's no cap on the overflow reservoir, maybe the "drip" splashed outta there during a rally drive! (I wish...). Here's a pic of the little crash it got into: maybe this had something to do with said current issues? I don't know if the PS fluid or coolant had issues before the wreck... And any opinions on quarter panel replacement, and possibly hood too? Chain to a tree and pull it back out a little bit? Looks like the bumper didnt get hit at all, still straight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MRduke Posted May 3, 2011 Author Share Posted May 3, 2011 Okay! No mayo under the oil cap since wiping it off; its been sever hundred miles Also, coolant hasn't gone anywhere, so I think HGs aren't an issue...for now. The leak onto the exhaust? Think I'll live with it for now. Other than that, there's hardly ever a drop on the ground after a whole day parked. Still burns about a quart per 1000 miles... And the red stuff is from the Tranny! The manual trans oil is red...would this be some kind of synthetic special oil? Its bright red, and that's whats leaked underneath. The level on the dipstick is fine. Haven't found a source for the leakage...any usual suspects? Still waiting for the wash bay to free up where I work so I can rinse her down for free and trace leaks. Thanks again people! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MilesFox Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 You ight have bad intake gaskets. This explains the coolant out the tail, but not HG sypmtoms. The only other thing is a cracked head, but the intake gasket is more likely. intake gaskets are easy, the intake comes off as one unit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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