where's the oil leaking from

[gsac132]

i own a 99 subaru forester 2.5 s.o.h.c ej25 its losing oil from somewhere other than the valve covers because i just replaced them i am a new suby owner and i bought one that was used hard,i knew it needed work when we bought it.also it has a new clutch in it but it has clutch judder problems i replaced the slave but that did not fix it i'm going to replace the master cylinder and the hose next figured it can,t hurt. it also has a rough idle but seems to have good power.check engine light code gives a misfire code on the passeger side cylinders.the rough idle started after the car stalled while my wife was driving.she was stopped at a light and it began to make a grinding noise and it shut off a quick inspection confirmed my suspicion that a timing pully bearing froze and the timing jumped some teeth and it shut off so a new belt and pullys where put on and valves where adjusted.it has been suggested that a valve may have been nicked and thus the rough idle. any other thoughts on this? also after the timing issue the brand new battery that was put in before the belt issue was toast after that.

[Caboobaroo]

Ok it sounds like you might have a few issues.

 

First off, the oil leak. Only way to know where it's coming from is to get underneath it up on some jacks to help pinpoint the source. Since its a '99, it probably still has a plastic separator plate on the back of the engine, which should be replaced with the updated steel one. The plastic warps and causes it to leak even after new silicone is applied. Or the head gaskets are leaking badly enough. Or the oil pan, or the oil pump, or or or....

 

The clutch judder is caused from uneven surfaces, like a warped brake rotor. So when the clutch was replaced, it's possible cheap parts were used which can cause a pretty bad judder. Other possibility is it wasn't broken in properly when it was replaced and it got hot.

 

Without seeing the vehicle and proper diagnosis, this is only my perspective. The check engine light with a cylinder misfire code could be caused by a dropping valve guide. Seems to be pretty common. Other issues could be oil in the spark plug tube, corroded coil pack ends where the plug wires click on and possibly more. Just a few places you could start.

[idosubaru]

cylinder misfires are typically spark plugs or wires and on these motors stock NGK plugs and subaru wires are best, aftermarkets sometimes cause cylinder misfire codes right out of the box.

 

but given that you said it's seen a hard life and skipped timing belt though anything is possible.

 

change the plugs and check the compression or do a leak down test while you're at it. leak down test is better if you can pull it off.

 

if valves are bent i have no experience about running a car with a bent valve, all the ones i've seen were too bad to even run. would prolonged driving ruin valve guides, burn (your already bent) valve...damage valve seats? i have no idea, someone else will have to comment there.

 

oil leak - just find the source, simply have to look. it will be very telling to note if it's coming from the front of hte engine or rear. front leaks tend to make all the engine covered in oil - rear leaks only really cover the back of the engine.

 

the front has cam seals, crank seal, oil pump seal that can all leak and are probably likely given the age and condition of this vehicle. so lots of stuff behind the timing belt that can leak and it all drips down below the engine and blows back on everything else so it tends to all look the same.

 

rear of the motor covered, reread last post.

[brycarp]

Regarding the oil leak, Caboobaroo mentioned the possibility of the oil separator plate being the leak-prone plastic design. I don't know what you have for sure on your '99 EJ-25, but thought I'd point out my thread about the oil separator plate fix I did. Of course you'd want to eliminate any other possibilities first, because in order to get at this plate, you have to separate the engine and transmission. (I pulled the engine and did new seals other places too.)

 

http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=118440