hi,
looking for help diagnosing an oil leak on my 93 accord lx 4 cylinder automatic.
the leak is slow but steady, if i don't add oil i suppose it might be down to
one quart within a month of daily driving, maybe 6 weeks.

i've found that oil seems to be everywhere starting high up with oil leaking down
and covering the backside of the engine and dripping down to eventually cover
the bottom of the pan with oil. oil will also leak onto the exhaust while i am at
a stop causing a burning smell at times.

i recently replaced the valve cover gasket to fix oil leaking into the plug sockets
and this is not the source of my leak, as there is no oil around the cover.

there is oil under the distributor and that may be one problem, but i still don't
think that explains the amount of oil on the backside of the engine? i have seen
posts mentioning the oil pressure switch, anyway to check this with the engine running?
basically i don't want to go replacing seals without identifying the leak.

other than the leak the engine runs fine.

 

Pull back the rubber boot to the oil pressure switch. If it has a bunch oil in it, replace it. It is an inexpensive part that you can get from the dealership. Also repair the distributor oil leak by replacing the o-ring.

Tracing an oil leak can be a pain. Repair the leaks that you have found. Try to clean the block as best as you can. Drive the car a couple of days, then look for oil. Oil will only leak down, so try to find the highest point on the block to get an idea of the source. You can always have some dye added to the oil and have a mechanic look at it. It can't be too expensive to diagnose.

 

I agree with PAhonda. If you pick up some engine degreaser at your local auto parts store you should get a good look at where the leak(s) are. I have used Gunk brand and it worked well.
Good luck.

 

Dang Slusher, it's been almost a year since you posted. Where you been?

I also agree with the above 2 posts. You are probably going to have to clean the engine to find the exact source of the leak.

 

OK,
definite leak at the oil pressure switch, i'll replace that and distributor o-ring
and see if that helps the problem.

how much can the oil pressure switch leak? could it be responsible for the
majority of my leak?

 

It could be the major source of your oil leak. Fix the two leaks and monitor your oil loss.

 

so i need a little help with the distributor o-ring,
does it just get placed against the distributor body and then
squeezed between the distributor and head?

i pulled of the distributor and don't see any sign of an old o ring

 

Look at the pic on this link: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/90-91...spagenameZWDVW

The black o-ring is near the bottom of the pic.

 

oh ok,
i guess on mine that would be the part that is now so hard it
can't be recognized as rubber any longer, i'll have to scrape it out
to get the new one in that groove.

thanks

 

replaced both the distributor o-ring and the oil pressure switch, now i'll
just keep a close eye on the oil level the next few days to see if that
helped the problem. thanks to those who helped me out.

for anyone interested, the cost of parts from my local honda dealer:
oil pressure switch=$13.55
distributor o-ring=$4.45