Possible Oil Pump Leak 2.5L?

[redeyss]

Hi all, :-\ I have oil leaking around the top of the left side of my engine ('99 EJ25) and some oil pooling on same side on top of the block. Looks like maybe the oil pump is leaking? Or could it be the valves? It's got about 89K and I want to try and hold out and do the timing belt, all the seals, water pump, HG, and clutch, etc., all at once at about 105K. Is an oil pump seal a quick, inexpensive, fix or should I just keep an eye on it for another 15K until I do everything? Thanks again.

[frag]

Hi all, :-\ I have oil leaking around the top of the left side of my engine ('99 EJ25) and some oil pooling on same side on top of the block. Looks like maybe the oil pump is leaking? Or could it be the valves? It's got about 89K and I want to try and hold out and do the timing belt, all the seals, water pump, HG, and clutch, etc., all at once at about 105K. Is an oil pump seal a quick, inexpensive, fix or should I just keep an eye on it for another 15K until I do everything? Thanks again.

 

If by "left" you mean the driver's side, then it's not the oil pump which is right smack in the middle of the engine (around the crankshaft front snout) and has a tendency to leak under the timing belt cover and not over.

The part of the engine you refer to is quite near the oil fill tube. Is it not possible that the leak comes from where this tube enters the left cam cover (there is an O ring there). I had to stop a leak there on my car a while back.

[a97obw]

The O rings at the junction between the oil filler pipe and the cylinder head do go bad after a while and can cause a leak.

 

But I'm thinking the original poster is meaning "left side" as he is standing in front of the car looking at the engine, and has possibly mistaken oil for power steering fluid, 'cause when the pump reservoir O ring or the rear seal on the power steering pump go bad you will have a pool of (ATF) fluid atop the engine case and the head....and it will run down onto and behind the plastic timing belt cover.

[JPX]

OIl fill tube where is meets with the valve cover. Easy o-ring change out.

 

Oil dipstick tube - two o-rings that fit on the end of it where it goes into the oil pan. This is a real challenge to pull out with the AC compressor bracket in the way.

 

And the others are right - a true oil pump leak would vomit oil out the bottom of the timing belt cover and them drip on your exhaust.

[nipper]

Hi all, :-\ I have oil leaking around the top of the left side of my engine ('99 EJ25) and some oil pooling on same side on top of the block. Looks like maybe the oil pump is leaking? Or could it be the valves? It's got about 89K and I want to try and hold out and do the timing belt, all the seals, water pump, HG, and clutch, etc., all at once at about 105K. Is an oil pump seal a quick, inexpensive, fix or should I just keep an eye on it for another 15K until I do everything? Thanks again.

 

for the record, the oilpump is low on the engine, and makes a real mess when it starts leaking.

 

nipper

[Gnuman]

I'm almost certain that he is refering to the Power Steering pump, as that is the most likely place to get oil like pooling on top of the engine. If the filler tube was the problem, then the oil would be going over the cam cover, and not likely get to the top of the engine. The oil is not pressurised in that tube, so it is not likely to go uphill to get past the injectors. . .

[redeyss]

Yes, a97OBW, I did mean left if i'm standing in front of the car. Sorry i wasn't clear. I'm getting pooling fluid of some kind on top of the passenger side engine block, which is making it's way down the engine and blowing back underneath. I get the smell of burning oil after the engine heats up and it's driven longer than 10 minutes. It does look a little wet around the top of the power steering fluid reservoir as well. Any other feedback would be appreciated, as always.

[a97obw]

Ok, if you can dip a paper towel onto the top of the engine where the "oil" is pooling and determine that the color of the "oil" is a shade of red, then more than certain it is your power steering pump assembly that is leaking.

 

You could check the fluid level first off, in case you've been to a jiffy lube kind of joint that "tops off" the fluids, and if thats the case, and the guys at the jiffy lube joint actually managed to pay enough attention to put the cap back on the fluid reservoir, well then, you've got a better jiffy lube joint than any around here.

 

Otherwise, chances are that it is leaking between the reservoir atop the pump and/or the rear gasket of the pump.

 

Call a Subaru OEM parts dealer and get the power steering pump gasket kit that has all the O rings,rear gasket,front seal etc.---less expensive at probably $25 or so than getting the parts a-la-carte.

 

You'll need a turkey baster. NOT the one from your Moms' kitchen. "Borrowing" that one tends to piss Mom off. And it IS Mothers Day weekend, ya dig? So use the turkey baster to suck the ATF fluid from the reservoir. You'll eventually find the lowest point and get it all out. After you've got all the fluid out of the reservoir, there will be one bolt on the back of the pump and one bolt inside the reservoir that hold the reservoir to the top of the pump. For the one on the inside you'll need a longish socket extension...and probably one of those magnetic looks like an antenna extended doo-dads to put the bolt back in when you put it back together. Anyway, there is going to be at least one O ring between the pump reservoir and the pump, and as for that bolt inside the reservoir, it uses a special washer that is metal with a rubber kind of sealing compound around it that seals up the connection with the bolt that you'll need the magnetic doo-dad to put back in.

 

The hose to the reservoir with the clamp is easy enough to remove from the reservoir. The hose to the pump with the metal banjo bolt fitting is torqued to infinitum. You'd probably screw it up before you get it loose!

 

I think you can figure the rest out, fill the reservoir back up when you're done and then you'll need to "bleed" the system...of which procedure I'll let somebody else elaborate upon....

 

Good Luck!