Oil Leak

[Seblos 0 1 Cars]

The last few days my oil pressure gauge has been swaying a bit and I have been noticing a drop in oil. I've tried to locate the leak and I think it's somewhere around the mounting for the rotor.

The little clip that holds the dizzy-cap is really oily I noticed today (with fresh oil) so it's probably somewhere right over it. I read somewhere else that a guy had a similiar leak and people suggested the dizzy O-ring or the seal between the thermostat housing and the head. Is that probably where the oil weeps?

Just the dizzy-cap removed and it's right under the rotor most of the oil gets: http://imgur.com/HPAwysg
If that's so, how hard is it to change that seal and is it difficult to get? And can I do it without draining a lot of oil?

Thankful for replies!

Edited May 21, 2015 by Seblos

[DamirGTI 323]

Could be the dizzy seal , but if you're loosing bigger amounts of oil me thinks it'll be crankshaft seal (an big one on the gearbox side) or even leaky oil return gallery core plug - both will shift the oil via flywheel all around the sides and that includes up top to the dizzy (trough an gap between the gearbox and the engine)

As for the dizzy seal , really easy to replace - mark the dizzy position , undo the two nuts and pull it out from the head .. the O-ring is on the outer base of the dizzy where it joins the head , discard the old one fit new and fit the dizzy back but taking care to align it to the markings which you've made prior to removing .
The dimension of the O-ring is a bit odd one , so try at well equipped car spares shop .

Out of curiosity , is the engine oily from the bottom as well (sump , subframe etc,) ?

D

Edited May 21, 2015 by DamirGTI

[PhilNW 40]

Check the crankcase is not getting pressurised and forcing the oil out on mine the breather was blocked on the throttle body

Edited May 22, 2015 by PhilNW

[Seblos 0 1 Cars]

Could be the dizzy seal , but if you're loosing bigger amounts of oil me thinks it'll be crankshaft seal (an big one on the gearbox side) or even leaky oil return gallery core plug - both will shift the oil via flywheel all around the sides and that includes up top to the dizzy (trough an gap between the gearbox and the engine)

 

As for the dizzy seal , really easy to replace - mark the dizzy position , undo the two nuts and pull it out from the head .. the O-ring is on the outer base of the dizzy where it joins the head , discard the old one fit new and fit the dizzy back but taking care to align it to the markings which you've made prior to removing .

The dimension of the O-ring is a bit odd one , so try at well equipped car spares shop .

 

Out of curiosity , is the engine oily from the bottom as well (sump , subframe etc,) ?

 

D

Thanks for your answer!

 

I took another look at the dizzy and could find some oil inside the cylinder to which the rotor is attached (that's is the thing to pull from the head right?). As far as I know that oil shouldn't be there so I'd guess it's the O-ring. It's not huge amounts of oil but maybe 1dl per 10-15km, (0,35 cups per 6-9 miles).

 

The engine is oily at the bottom as well but it can be traced up to the dizzy via the inside of the motor block.

 

If I were to dismantle the dizzy and fit a new O-ring, would it leak a lot of oil so I'd need an oil deflector (don't know if that's the English word for it) or if I could to it on my driveway?

[Seblos 0 1 Cars]

Check the crankcase is not getting pressurised and forcing the oil out on mine the breather was blocked on the throttle body

I'm not really sure how to check that, but the engine runs really well otherwise with no hint of it being blocked

[Tom Fenton 1,524]

The o ring goes hard with heat and age. Only a small amount of oil will come out when you remove the distributor. A large cloth under the opening will catch and absorb it ok.

[Seblos 0 1 Cars]

Awesome, thanks! Will fix it today and hope that fixes everything

[Seblos 0 1 Cars]

I replaced the old ring with the new. The old was really stiff, almost like hard plastic. Thanks for all the help with that!

Though my oil pressure is still swaying and drops really low (sometimes lights the oil warning light) when turning. Is it possible that I need to drive a few miles to get the oil to get everywhere or is there probably another leak somewhere?

[DamirGTI 323]

Did it stop leaking now ?

 

If you have oil inside the distributor casing/housing , then you'll need to replace the internal shaft seal .. but if it's fine now suppose it was just the outer O-ring , anyways clean of the distributor insides throughly with carb cleaner or brake cleaner free from oily deposits .

 

The dash instrument gauges aren't really much accurate , especially fuel level oil pressure and oil temperature gauges , but still it certainly shouldn't swing around .. bad connection me thinks - check the wiring on the two senders on the front of the engine block (just near the alternator position , one smaller socket size sender and one bigger mushroom like both with just single terminal/connector) these are for the oil pressure gauge and gauge warning light , clean both sender terminals and cut some of the old sender wiring off and make fresh/new spade connectors and connect back to the senders .

Also , very common problem is on the 'brown multiplug' through which these two wires are connected on the rest of the loom - these connections on the brown plug oxidize really badly so i'd check that first , cut the brown plug off and connect wires directly .

 

http://forum.205gtidrivers.com/index.php?showtopic=116440

 

If the gauge still acts 'funny' afterwards - check/measure oil pressure with an proper oil press. testing gauge .

 

Almost forgotten ! - you can test the instrument gauge by earthing said spade connectors , turn the ignition ON and earth both wires on the engine block or body as you wish - if the wiring is good the gauge needle will read maxi and the press. warning light will lit on when you earth those wires .

 

 

D

Edited May 27, 2015 by DamirGTI

[Seblos 0 1 Cars]

The leak seems to be fixed now. Haven't had time to check the connections thoroughly yet, but the spade connectors are pretty dirty.

[Seblos 0 1 Cars]

The other connections looked clean when I opened them up so I just cleaned them right now, but the problem is exactly like before. The gouges sway as in the same pattern all the time, sways a bit when accelerating and braking, drops to zero when turning hard and keeps level when going straight so I don't know if it really is the connectors.

Can it be some other type of leak, like air so it doesn't leak oil but lose pressure?

I'll see if I can get hold of a real oil press and test that.

 

Thankful for all your help so far!

[Seblos 0 1 Cars]

Been searching a bit on other forums with the same issue (slow day at the office) and a lot seem to think that the oil pickup tube has fallen off. I have no idea how it looks inside a 205 oil pan, but can that be possible?
It seems logical to drop in pressure if the oil level isn't above the hole where the pickup tube should be.

[mrfirepro 127 1 Cars]

assuming it's a standard 8v the oil pump looks like this

 

 

[Seblos 0 1 Cars]

Ok, that looks really solid... Nice looking engine btw!

[jackherer 543]

It's probably an electrical problem with the wiring between the oil pressure sender and the gauge. Do a search for those terms or the term 'brown multiplug' and you'll find a lot of info on the subject.

 

If you're still concerned about oil pressure you should buy a mechanical oil pressure gauge to test it with, something like this one that I just found via google - http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/271368212650

[Seblos 0 1 Cars]

Sorry for not answering in such a long time, but I was away. But now I can see some new oil dripping on the back of the engine block. It's not much but enough to be a concern.

I can't find where it originates from, but I will rent a lift this week to be able to look underneath properly. It looks like it's coming from the left side of the engine when standing in front of it, somewhere under my coolant expansion vessel. Is it some seal that usually gets old and worn there as well?