Is there anything taht can cause a leak to get worse (1 Viewer)

[nyk438]

Is there anything that can cause a leak to get worse

What can cause my rear seal oil leak to get worse? I replaced the PCV valve and noticed today that it was leaking like crazy. It usd to be a few drops here and there now it's turned into a puddle . Can the PCV replacement cause this?

 

[DJForrestA]

Don't add any more oil and after a few thousand miles the leak will stop all together. Sorry I don't have anything constructive to add.

 

[nyk438]

Any chance my rear seal oil leak got worse when I replaced the distributor?

 

[psfpilot]

How much have you driven it since you fixed the distributor? The rear seal will start to increase its leakage rate in an exponential curve as it nears total destruction. Miles driven and hours of operation will continue to exacerbate the problem until it is fixed. As a desperate measure, you could try using oil and/or additives formulated for high-mileage vehicles, as these contain seal-swelling agents that help seal up little leaks around valve seals and perhaps even your big 'ole rear main seal. (no double entendre intended.) Valvoline Max-Life is one example of a "high-mileage" oil with swelling agents.

 

[Josh83]

I have seen switching brands of oil but sticking with the same viscosity cause a leak. When I had my 4Runner I put Pennzoil dino in it religiously. One change I switched to valvoline dino and boom, a few days later I had a weep at my rear main seal. Next change I went back to Pennzoil and it stopped. Now, I don't think the leak occured because I used Valvoline specifically, I think the truck had had Pennzoil in it for its entire life(~150 miles) and did not like the change for whatever reason.

 

[tucker74]

What can cause my rear seal oil leak to get worse? I replaced the PCV valve and noticed today that it was leaking like crazy. It usd to be a few drops here and there now it's turned into a puddle . Can the PCV replacement cause this?

PCV stands for "Positive Crankcase Ventilation" and is basically venting the tiny amount of exploded gas-air mixture that forces its way past the piston rings from blow-by back into the intake. This effectively lowers the pressure in the crankcase and a new one should theoretically cause your leak to get better, not worse.

Any chance my rear seal oil leak got worse when I replaced the distributor?

Not likely as long as the gear was fully inserted back into the oil pump and the o-ring is seated properly. If you're seeing this right away it could be from your engine's oil system being open during the repairs ... but should return to the way it was. Most likely it's just the seal giving out further from continued wear -

Good luck!

Tucker

 

[Beowulf]

He said "exacerbate."

He also said entendrè but I'm pretty sure that's not a nasty word.

-B-

 

[psfpilot]

I have seen switching brands of oil but sticking with the same viscosity cause a leak. When I had my 4Runner I put Pennzoil dino in it religiously. One change I switched to valvoline dino and boom, a few days later I had a weep at my rear main seal. Next change I went back to Pennzoil and it stopped. Now, I don't think the leak occured because I used Valvoline specifically, I think the truck had had Pennzoil in it for its entire life(~150 miles) and did not like the change for whatever reason.

Had this problem on some expensive farm equipment once upon a time, just due to the fact that different brands have different amounts of seal swelling agents in them. We replaced the hydraulic fluid in the shop, and we had not proceeded more than 2 miles down the road before we started leaking fluid like a sieve from numerous gasketed locations. Called our oil distributor and he said that the brand we had put in didn't have any seal-swelling additives to speak of. BTW, this was on brand new machinery. Imagine how bad it could be on something that already has wear and tear on the seal.

 

[Nomis]

He said "exacerbate."

He also said entendrè but I'm pretty sure that's not a nasty word.

-B-

LOL

 

[nyk438]

So after driving from San Antonio to Austin, it dropped a lot of oil. It was dark but it looked like there was motor oil coming off the back axle, I'm guessing that was the oil dripping off and the wind taking it to the back while driving? Sounds like it's an oil pan gasket to me but I don't know.

 

[cruiserdan]

He said "exacerbate."

He also said entendrè but I'm pretty sure that's not a nasty word.

-B-

There's two kinds of liars out there.....


Them that say they don't exacerbate and them that say they quit.......

 

[Tooth Fairy]

In answer to your title of this thread, yes, me.

 

[Beowulf]

There's 10 kinds of liars out there.....

Them that say they don't exacerbate and them that say they quit.......

Fixed it for ya.

-B-