Car leaking oil?

ash777

Hey,

The past few days I've noticed a small puddle under my car when I've moved it. Well, more like a stain that shows that there was a puddle. It's not water, because the stain stays ages. Plus, I've checked the water level in the engine, and there was loads/didn't seem to be leaking. I thought it might be an oil leak, but I checked the oil level - took out the stick, wiped it, checked the level again - and there was loads of oil there.

I'm just wondering what this could be? Does anyone have any idea? I'd love if I could figure out what it was myself.

Thanks very much.

arleitiss

ash777 wrote: »

Hey,

The past few days I've noticed a small puddle under my car when I've moved it. Well, more like a stain that shows that there was a puddle. It's not water, because the stain stays ages. Plus, I've checked the water level in the engine, and there was loads/didn't seem to be leaking. I thought it might be an oil leak, but I checked the oil level - took out the stick, wiped it, checked the level again - and there was loads of oil there.

I'm just wondering what this could be? Does anyone have any idea? I'd love if I could figure out what it was myself.

Thanks very much.

What car? I've recently learned about oil leakage a lot from my car.

Leaking oil doesn't mean an instant drainage of whole oil reserve from car. I am getting huge oil puddles and spillages every morning and everywhere I perk, even though every morning I check oil level and it seems to be staying the same. Did you check your engine bay? any oily/greasy parts?

darragh o meara

Could be a seep from somewhere on the engine. Usually a small leak will take a while to bring up a noticable difference on the dipstick. Best to have a nose around the engine and look for some wet spots ( a sign of where the oil is coming from ) Also a look under the the engine may give you an idea of the source of the leak.

Or of course if your not comfortable looking around the engine and some people are, you could ask your mechanic to take a look. Cant imagine an mechanic would charge a fortune to take a look. At least they can advise if its a major leak or just something small. I have had people bring cars in for an oil leak and it turns out they were topping up the oil and spilt some around the rocker cover which will eventually make it all the way to the ground. Was the car serviced recently??

ash777

Thanks for the reply. The car hasn't been serviced recently. I put in a bit of oil a few weeks ago, and there was definitely none spilled.

I know you couldn't say, not having looked at the car yourself, but what is likely to leak, apart from the oil/water?

darragh o meara

Without seeing it, its hard to say to be honest. Oil and water are the usual culprits, however there is a lot of oil in a car so determining if its from the engine or the gearbox etc isn't the easiest of jobs. Usually gear oil will have a really strong smell to it whereas engine oil tends to be a bit sweeter smelling so if you can get a bit on your finger it would be an idea to have a sniff.

ash777

Thanks!

Okay, so if it's a small leak, is is possible (probably?) to have something repaired? And if not, (I know there's lots of variables here) would it cost a lot of money to have the part that was leaking replaced?

I know you couldn't say for definite, but thanks anyway!

keithclancy

ash777 wrote: »

Hey,

The past few days I've noticed a small puddle under my car when I've moved it. Well, more like a stain that shows that there was a puddle. It's not water, because the stain stays ages. Plus, I've checked the water level in the engine, and there was loads/didn't seem to be leaking. I thought it might be an oil leak, but I checked the oil level - took out the stick, wiped it, checked the level again - and there was loads of oil there.

I'm just wondering what this could be? Does anyone have any idea? I'd love if I could figure out what it was myself.

Thanks very much.

Did you get it services recently ? If they didn't replace the copper ring then it can leak a small bit.

I couldn't get one for my last oil change and now have a small leak, which i'll keep an eye on and change on the next service, actually I think i'll just get a new sump plug altogether.

Henry Ford III

arleitiss wrote: »

What car? I've recently learned about oil leakage a lot from my car.

Leaking oil doesn't mean an instant drainage of whole oil reserve from car. I am getting huge oil puddles and spillages every morning and everywhere I perk, even though every morning I check oil level and it seems to be staying the same. Did you check your engine bay? any oily/greasy parts?

Maybe it's not engine oil that's leaking?

Could be gearbox, diff etc.

darragh o meara

ash777 wrote: »

Thanks!

Okay, so if it's a small leak, is is possible (probably?) to have something repaired? And if not, (I know there's lots of variables here) would it cost a lot of money to have the part that was leaking replaced?

I know you couldn't say for definite, but thanks anyway!

Very hard to say tbh. All leaks can be fixed but depending where it is it could cost a little or a lot to fix it. Best to get someone to take a look for you.

ash777

arleitiss wrote: »

What car? I've recently learned about oil leakage a lot from my car.

Leaking oil doesn't mean an instant drainage of whole oil reserve from car. I am getting huge oil puddles and spillages every morning and everywhere I perk, even though every morning I check oil level and it seems to be staying the same. Did you check your engine bay? any oily/greasy parts?

It's a Ford Fiesta. I didn't see any oily parts in the engine, but I'd say I'll have another look there. Thanks

ash777

keithclancy wrote: »

Did you get it services recently ? If they didn't replace the copper ring then it can leak a small bit.

I couldn't get one for my last oil change and now have a small leak, which i'll keep an eye on and change on the next service, actually I think i'll just get a new sump plug altogether.

I haven't had it serviced recently. I didn't know about the copper ring. Thanks.

ash777

Henry Ford III wrote: »

Maybe it's not engine oil that's leaking?

Could be gearbox, diff etc.

Thanks.

ash777

darragh o meara wrote: »

Very hard to say tbh. All leaks can be fixed but depending where it is it could cost a little or a lot to fix it. Best to get someone to take a look for you.

Thanks very much.