Help identifying first leak

[Mark_Donohue]

‘04 manual transmission.

Stopped at a stoplight the other day and noticed a little smoke coming from the engine compartment. All my gauges were and still are in normal range, no issues with shifting, no lag/lack of power on acceleration, no *new* noises.

When I dive under the Jeep, there’s fluid on the exterior of the oil reservoir, the passenger frame, the inside of the rear skid plate, and the back of the transmission housing.

Checking fluids now. Any ideas?

 

[Tob]

Typical suspects are the rear main bearing seal and the valve cover gasket. Keep an eye on the oil level until you get it sealed. The smoke was probably from oil dripping onto the exhaust.

 

[TJ Jim]

Follow up from the pan and see if you have an oil slick down the side of the block. If you do you’ve probably got a valve cover leak.

 

[Mark_Donohue]

Typical suspects are the rear main bearing seal and the valve cover gasket. Keep an eye on the oil level until you get it sealed. The smoke was probably from oil dripping onto the exhaust.

Oil level right now is normal. Could it be coolant maybe?

 

[Mark_Donohue]

Follow up from the pan and see if you have an oil slick down the side of the block. If you do you’ve probably got a valve cover leak.

Looking from the top down, I don’t see oil. Seems like it is coming from below the oil filter level. Not from the oil filter itself, just that height of the engine.

 

[DWR]

I’ll give the advise that helped me, at this point I can’t remember who recommended this to me but hats off to them.

Go get some spray on body powder, they type in a aerosol can. Clean up the oil with break clean/paper towels as best you can, spray on the body power and then go for a drive… it will be 100% obvious where the leak is coming from

 

[TJ Jim]

I’ll give the advise that helped me, at this point I can’t remember who recommended this to me but hats off to them.

Go get some spray on body powder, they type in a aerosol can. Clean up the oil with break clean/paper towels as best you can, spray on the body power and then go for a drive… it will be 100% obvious where the leak is coming from

I read that also, but I guess I’m a bit thick cause I don’t understand how that would point to the leak? The white on dark contrast?

 

[IOwnCalculus]

Yeah, the idea is that it both provides more contrast and prevents the oil from smearing around as easily, so it should be a better-defined trail.

If it's coolant it should have a sweet smell to it and feel both sticky and slick between your fingers... but coolant doesn't usually cling and travel that well. My money is on engine oil, with a distant second choice being power steering fluid.

 

[TheBoogieman]

Ahh, you never forget your first leak.

 

[TheBoogieman]

and feel both sticky and slick between your fingers.

Are we still talking about the Jeep?

 

[DWR]

I read that also, but I guess I’m a bit thick cause I don’t understand how that would point to the leak? The white on dark contrast?

Basically you can see a wet trail in the spray on powder a lot easier, the powder will turn darker where the leak dribbles down