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2000 Accord EX v6, 150k mil
Within the past month, our stalwart and well maintained Accord is suddenly dripping oil. My cursory inspection reveals:
oil pooling behind the EGR; no seepage from valve cover gasket in this area
oil pooling behind the EGR; oil seepage covers camshaft thrust cover assembly; no seepage from oil cap or valve cover gasket in this area
wet oil coats oil pan; fresh drips form on the oil pan and frame arm; apparent stress fractures on oil pan
wet oil coats the oil pan bottom and frame arm; no seepage from crankshaft front oil seal
oil seepage around oil pan; fresh oil coats pan bolts
wet oil splash on exhaust A-pipe; oil drips from near oil drain plug (not a source of seepage)
My plan to diagnose the source(s) of seeping oil beings with thoroughly cleaning the surfaces in these images, drive the car under normal conditions, then reinspect. My hope is to find an oil run, which presumably will lead me to its source.
My initial speculation, I need to replace:
– the o-ring (91301-P8A-A00) behind the camshaft thrust cover assembly (12230-P8A-A00); and,
– the oil pan (11200-P8A-A00).Thoughts, opinions, experienced anecdotes, and t’shooting procedures for diagnosing this sort of filthy problem will be appreciated.
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The second picture looks like it’s the cam block off plate leaking, there should be an o-ring behind the plate on the head. The first picture is the same thing although it looks like there might be a bit of a coolant leak there also. If you do have very small cracks in the oil pan, you should be able to simply wipe it off and wait to see if oil seeps out again. On the back side of the engine above the oil filter is the oil pressure switch, they are common leakers and could be one of the things leaking.
Thanks for your helpful reply.
“…looks like the…o-ring behind the [camshaft thrust cover might be] leaking…”
I also suspect the o-ring is the source of the leak in this area. I’ve not worked on this part before; hopefully it’s a straightforward change-out and I don’t misalign the camshaft in the process.“…looks like there might be a bit of a coolant leak there also.”
The coolant residue is likely from when I purged air from the engine coolant temp sensor (far to the right in the image).“If you do have very small cracks in the oil pan, you should be able to simply wipe it off and wait to see if oil seeps out again”
I’ve gotten a few corroborative responses about this image. The consensus is that the “cracks” are not cracks at all but superficial surface fractures formed during manufacture, and a fairly common phenomenon with this part. I remain suspicious: the fresh oil that coats the entire bottom of the pan has no obvious source (gravity notwithstanding) AND there is apparent “frothing” that follows the fracture lines (see image). I plan on dropping the oil pan to replace the seal (with a fresh bead of RTV). With oil pan in hand, I’ll thoroughly clean and inspect the innards (though an OEM replacement is $50). Prior to doing that nasty job, however, I’ll blast the thing with engine degreaser, drive the car a bit, then inspect.“…the oil pressure switch…are common leakers and could be one of the things leaking.”
Do I really need to replace the part, or just its gasket?99% of the time the oil pressure switches leak through the switch itself, so yes it has to be replaced. It is a very common issue and it should be very easy to find one. If it is indeed what’s leaking.
The cam plate, or whatever the proper name is, is just covering a hole and doesn’t actually touch the cam or hold it in place. Just pay attention to the way it comes out and put it back in the same way.
I thoroughly cleaned the engine top to bottom with Purple Power and a garden hose prior to a two hour drive. Afterwards, I jacked up the car and reinspected the suspect areas.
Oil seepage appears camshaft thrust cover assembly; no seepage from oil cap or valve cover gasket in this area.
Oil seepage/leakage hasn’t appeared from the oil pressure switch… yet.
I’ll reinspect again after a few more miles/hours of driving.
UPDATE: Post-Engine Cleaning…
After cleaning the engine, I inspect above and below with a flashlight subsequent to each drive. I see no seepage around the vtec solenoid, oil pressure switch, or valve cover gaskets several days after cleaning the engine.
But then, after just four days and with a completely clean and dry engine, I see…
1) a thin line of shininess from the head gasket at the front left corner of the engine:
2) slight seepage reappears from the camshaft thrust cover:
3) significant wetness again at the front right corner of the oil pan where the A/C compressor bolts to the block:
I cannot tell if it’s coming from the oil pan seal in this vicinity, or if it’s coming from somewhere higher up.
Though at this corner of the engine, above and around front, I see…4) a smallish pool of wetness midway down that is in a nook near the water pump. The service manual says some seepage of coolant from the water pump is normal.
The image below provides some orientation. (Use x-ray vision to see through the P/S hose that obscures the area of pooling.)
5) and today (5/20/2016), I see this on the transmission-side of the oil pan:
Oil is dripping with such fluidity from this area it is as if a seal has blown.I’m fairly well convinced the entire seal around the oil pan has failed and worsening; no more procrastinating this nasty project. But first I’ll replace the camshaft thrust cover o-ring. And I’m genuinely unhappy about the seepage from the head, particularly as this engine has never overheated.
The oil leak on my 2000 Accord seemed to originate from two locations: the camshaft thrust cover, and the oil pan mating surface. I repaired both items which fixed both leaks.
I replaced the o-ring (91301-P8A-A00) behind the camshaft thrust cover assembly (12230-P8A-A00), a stupid-easy job that sealed that source of leakage.
I removed the oil pan–a slightly less easy job–cleaned off the original 16yo RTV and scoured the pan to a shiny finish. I inspected the pan and confirmed that the cracks were in fact superficial. I applied a bead of Permatex Ultra Grey RTV to the pan mating surface and immediately mounted it to a similarly clean block, torqued the 10mm fasteners to spec, then let the thing rest for 24hrs. Upon return, I added oil and drove it for an hour or so. Days later, and no leaks.
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