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oil splattering all over the place


roxtar
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took a long trip on the interstate (perhaps too long in hindsight), after 120 miles at 75-85, i made a stop and noticed smoke from under the hood. Opened it up and to my disgust i saw oil spattered all over the right side of the engine compartment (smoke from it burning off of the cat). what appears to have happened is that oil from somewhere got on the drive axle/inner CV joint boot and was being spun off in all directions. the confusing thing is that i lost no power (car ran like crap anyway), plus the oil level is right where i expected it to be after such a drive. no coolant/oil mixing occurred, and I made it another 100 miles before i stopped driving (granted at 55-60 instead of 75-85). i'm going to degrease the whole area tonight after work and maybe try to track it all down.

 

any ideas on this one?

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took a long trip on the interstate (perhaps too long in hindsight), after 120 miles at 75-85, i made a stop and noticed smoke from under the hood. Opened it up and to my disgust i saw oil spattered all over the right side of the engine compartment (smoke from it burning off of the cat). what appears to have happened is that oil from somewhere got on the drive axle/inner CV joint boot and was being spun off in all directions. the confusing thing is that i lost no power (car ran like crap anyway), plus the oil level is right where i expected it to be after such a drive. no coolant/oil mixing occurred, and I made it another 100 miles before i stopped driving (granted at 55-60 instead of 75-85). i'm going to degrease the whole area tonight after work and maybe try to track it all down.

 

any ideas on this one?

 

Sounds like the actual grease from inside the CV...Another thing to check is the dipstick - my friggen Loyale notoriously decides to pop the dipstick up now and then, letting loose a quart of oil all over everything. The O-Ring is worn to hell and just needs to be replaced for that one...

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Sounds like the actual grease from inside the CV...Another thing to check is the dipstick - my friggen Loyale notoriously decides to pop the dipstick up now and then, letting loose a quart of oil all over everything. The O-Ring is worn to hell and just needs to be replaced for that one...

nope, the CV boot is fine.. and i'm 99% sure that it is motor oil, not grease. as for the dipstick, the front of the engine is clean, just the area on the right side of the engine compartment is covered in oil.

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Check to make sure that the differential oil is not going down and out through the seal on the side.....

 

 

Have a 91 loyale wagon (p/b 4x4 with 294k on it):)

 

Hush

i thought the diff used gear oil just like the tranny? this doesn't smell anything like gear oil.

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It does, Same filler hose feeds both.

 

Just a thought based on your comment about the engine oil not dropping any.

Other things it could be are the head to cam holder sealing area, (was leaking bad on the 86 I have now) and the rear main seal.

To renew the cam holder seal is easier with the engine out, as the rocker arms are a pain to keep in place.

 

Hush

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My 92 Loyale does the same exact thing..only on long trips it will shoot oil everywhere...when you stop you sware the thing is on fire. I thought the same thing about the CV at first till I had to replace that axle.I found most of mine was a leaky drain plug pinch ring.I still have to do the valve covers and oil pan gasket and then I will be able to see if that stops it. But then again a friend of mine always told me...a leaky subaru is NOT a rusty subaru :).

 

If I had a second car I wouldnt hesitate pulling my motor and replacing all the gaskets and clutch.

 

Connie

92 Loyale Wagon (Bucky) 5 spd, pwr everything,2wd, and only 185,000 miles...just starting to get broke in.

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yeah, about that "if i had another car" thing, now that i'm out of college, it might just be time for that.

 

I hear ya...I think my Loyale has lots of life left to him.I get lots of compliments on his condition and when others take a ride in it they always say they are impressed on how well he still runs.I have a nice spot in my living room right now perfect for working on the motor..wont be the first time ..I rebuilt my dirtbike in my living room and keep it in my bedroom. Glad to hear that it looks like the CV boot.My goal is to get over 300,000 out of Bucky...want to keep him till there is nothing left of it.

 

Connie

92 Loyale Wagon (Bucky) 5 spd, pwr everything,2wd, and only 185,000 miles...just starting to get broke in.

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upon closer inspection, it might well be the cv joint grease (that damned 1%)

 

so..... not i gotta get that fixed. but i can hold off on the new car for a bit

cvs are no problem, you can reboot/regrease it soon and have nothing to worry about, or you can take the slacker approach like me and drive on it till it clicks in a straight line. axles are cheap enough and need to be replaced at least every 2 yrs on older soobs anyway.

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Yeah, I know this is not directly related, but I still think it's worth mentioning. As brought up by hush777, the rockers can be difficult to keep in place when mounting the cam carrier. I've found it works fantabulously to "glue" them in place with a healthy dab of assembly lube in the little cup that contacts the HVLA. I've never had one fall out of place using that method.

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