oil leak, between engine oil pan and transmisson pan

[reflection]

Hi,
today i noticed a oil leak between engine oil pan and transmisson pan. there are three bolts on the joint between them and it seems like it leaks from there.

i checked both engine oil and transmission oil and they both looks as they should.

where does thins leaking coming from. any ideas?

thanks

edit: new photo:
http://s14.postimg.org/r7g718sb5/20150629_173338.jpg

edit2: my kj is 04 crd export model

caner

 

[M38 Bob]

Could be either rear engine oil seal, or front ****** seal. That connection point contains both. Fixing either requires removal of either engine, or transmission, so it's a serious,expensive fix. In other words, you can buy a LOT of oil or ATF for what the repair would cost. First step will be to determine which fluid's leaking. I've seen limited success with transmission sealer such as K&W "Trans-X" and Lucas "Transmission Conditioner". Engine oil seals,,,not much helps.

Bob

 

[reflection]

"First step will be to determine which fluid's leaking"

ok i'll wait for the oil level to drop to determine which one is leaking.

thanks

 

[TwoBobsKJ]

That area you circled is the "structural cover" that is a major connection point between the engine and transmission. As M38 said above, both engine and trans seals are behind the cover; the rear main seal for the engine and the input shaft seal for the transmission.

There's a possibility the rear main seal is leaking in the engine but I would venture the front main seal is actually the one that is leaking - it is more prone to failure than the rear main seal. What looks to be a leak from the rear is actually coming from the front - the oil seeps out of the front seal, travels along the top ridge of the oil pan, then drips down the structural cover. It's easy to think the leak is around the rear of the engine when in fact the oil is blown back from the front while driving.

I've had a minor leak from my front seal for about 20,000 miles and at first I was sure it was from the rear. But after running my finger along the top of the oil pan on both sides I figured out the source was the front.

As Bob said, it takes a LOT of oil to equal the hassle of replacing a main seal in the back - not so much in the front. In my case the amount of oil leaking is so minor that I'm going to ignore it unless it begins to get worse. From my research the front seal replacement is about a 1 hour project with the right tools.

By the way... Good to see you're getting your transmission fluid and filter changed!

Bob

 

[libertybob]

oil leak

Get a drop of the oil on your finger. Trans oil is red to pink and engine oil is light brown to near black. If your trans fluid hasn't been changed in a very long time, the red color may fade into a light brown, so look at your ****** dip stick to compare its color to the oil on your finger. Either way, replace both the engine rear oil seal and trans input seal if you pull the ****** or engine to replace a seal. put a pan under your engine in your garage to catch the drips and keep a close watch on your oil levels and you can drive a long time with the leak.

 

[reflection]

ok, i took a high res photo and marked the joint. what do you think?
i will check the color in meantime

http://s14.postimg.org/r7g718sb5/20150629_173338.jpg

thanks

 

[renegade 04]

I noticed your starter is missing its heat shield to protect it and its wiring from the heat of the catalytic converter.

 

[ElCheapo]

The starter also appears to be wet from oil. You could have a simple valve cover leak, or as suggested, a front seal leak. Oil will "travel" and leak from the lowest point.
Again, if it's dark or black, motor oil, if reddish, trans oil.
My motto, "Fix the cheap easy stuff first!"

 

[CactusJacked]

I noticed your starter is missing its heat shield to protect it and its wiring from the heat of the catalytic converter.

Being he is in Istanbul (export model), and the absence of a crossover pipe as well as other exhaust looking stuff on the drivers side, would strongly suggest he has a 4 ****** with no exhaust near the starter.

 

[TwoBobsKJ]

I noticed your starter is missing its heat shield to protect it and its wiring from the heat of the catalytic converter.

The starter also appears to be wet from oil. You could have a simple valve cover leak, or as suggested, a front seal leak. Oil will "travel" and leak from the lowest point.
Again, if it's dark or black, motor oil, if reddish, trans oil.
My motto, "Fix the cheap easy stuff first!"

Being he is in Istanbul (export model), and the absence of a crossover pipe as well as other exhaust looking stuff on the drivers side, would strongly suggest he has a 4 ****** with no exhaust near the starter.

My bad for not noticing where you're from, reflection. You probably have the CRD diesel, right? If so that oil leak may be from the EGR - I think it is on the left side of the engine. Since the starter is wet with oil the leak is definitely NOT coming from the rear main seal its too high for that.

Give us details on what engine and other equipment your KJ is running to help us help you :waytogo:

Bob

 

[CalcityRenegade]

If there is no oil leaking from above onto that spot I would say rear main seal, You can replace the seal which is a bit labour intensive or put in a rear main seal stop leak additive, Not everyone likes them but I have personally never ever had an issue after using a rear main seal stop leak additive and see no harm, However with how saturated with oil everything is it does look like its a pretty good leak and I would recommend a new seal.

 

[reflection]

My bad for not noticing where you're from, reflection. You probably have the CRD diesel, right? If so that oil leak may be from the EGR - I think it is on the left side of the engine. Since the starter is wet with oil the leak is definitely NOT coming from the rear main seal its too high for that.

Give us details on what engine and other equipment your KJ is running to help us help you :waytogo:

Bob

hi,
i have a 04 crd and yes it is export model (sorry about not mentioning before, i forgot)
i have changed engine oil about 1500km before. i used mobil1 0w-40 (it was recomended in the mobil1's catolog) and changed the transfer case fluid about 500km before. i haven't changed transmission fluid yet since i bought the car 3 months ago and the transmission fluid level and color seems good.

i have never noticed any leaking before and i dont go offroad (no place near istanbul:/)
by the way they checked the car at the jeep service 3 weeks ago (while installing rear hatch about the recall) and they told me there is little leaking at the both ends (at tire connection joint) of the steering rack but i shouldnt be worry about that anytime soon. and everything else was looking good.
how can i identify if the leaking from egr, where should i check?

i added 2 more images of the engine from top maybe it helps with something
http://s14.postimg.org/5tlpf9zv5/IMG_20150612_111223.jpg
http://s8.postimg.org/p3yltgkrp/IMG_20150612_111052.jpg

thanks

 

[M38 Bob]

"Since the starter is wet with oil the leak is definitely NOT coming from the rear main seal its too high for that."

Yep.

Oil is not immune to gravity.

Bob

 

[TwoBobsKJ]

After looking at your new pictures I have an idea. The fuel head (the blue canister in the first new photo) is right above the leak in your previous pictures. Diesel - which is somewhat oily - is possibly leaking from one of the hoses or the fuel head itself and leaking down below where you can see it.

We want you to post here but there is a very active CRD section over at LOST Jeeps that has very knowledgeable members. Most of us here are running the 3.7 liter petrol engine and so don't have much experience with the CRD. But come back here with questions or ideas about other parts of your KJ!

Here is the CRD section over at LOST: LOST JEEPS • View forum - Liberty CRD...Love that Torque!!!

By the way, if your KJ has 160,000km or more be sure to change the timing belt. If it breaks bad things happen to the CRD motor :emotions34:

Bob

 

[reflection]

update:
today i went to jeep service. they checked the leak and told me my turbo hoses are fine and the leaking is from the rear main seal.
they asked 90$ for the part and 347$ for the labor cost
it is the 7th day of the leak and my oil level is still near max. so i cleaned all the oil under the car and i will wait some more time to see how does the oil level will change.

 

[TwoBobsKJ]

update:
today i went to jeep service. they checked the leak and told me my turbo hoses are fine and the leaking is from the rear main seal.
they asked 90$ for the part and 347$ for the labor cost
it is the 7th day of the leak and my oil level is still near max. so i cleaned all the oil under the car and i will wait some more time to see how does the oil level will change.

Glad you've confirmed the source of the leak (still seems too high for a rear main seal but your mechanic is in Istanbul and I'm not )

I don't know the exchange rate in Turkey but 437$ for a rear main seal repair seems like a pretty good deal to me.

Keep us posted!

Bob

 

[Hockeygoon]

Glad you've confirmed the source of the leak (still seems too high for a rear main seal but your mechanic is in Istanbul and I'm not )

I don't know the exchange rate in Turkey but 437$ for a rear main seal repair seems like a pretty good deal to me.

Keep us posted!

Bob

I don't know why you guys think a Dodge product will only leak oil from one spot at time.

 

[reflection]

update: after cleaning the oil under the car leak seems better than before (2 drip per day i think)
i am also considering using little more thicker oil next time instead of mobil1 0w-40 (wheater in istanbul never drops below 0 degree celsius, idk why i used 0w-40 in the first place )

i calculated in some site
leak of 1 drips per hour wastes:
Monthly waste in liters: 0,275
Yearly waste in liters: 3,345

doesn't seem much even for a 1 drip per hour