I've recently come across a good deal on a 1997 Accord LX. The only problem is is has an oil leak and the guy doesn't know where it's coming from, I'm trying to figure out if it's worth fixing. The oil is thickon top of the alternator and the surrounding area with a small oil spot under the block (it's been sitting for a month). The car runs and drives but goes through oil quickly. He took it to a shop and they told him a could continue to drive it without problems if he kept adding oil. And common places to check on these for bad seals? Purchase price is $500 vehicle has 140,000 miles. If I broke any posting rules I apologize, in relatively new to posting on forums.

 

Is this a V6 or 4-cylinder accord? How much oil does the previous owner need to add after X miles?

 

It's the 4 cylinder. As far as the amount of oil leaking he has no idea. The guy doesn't know anything about cars, he ran into the problem a few months a go and just parked it and bought a new car.

 

Since the alternator has oil on it, the leak has to be above it. Look where the distributor meets with the cylinder head. Pull off the distributor cap to see if there is oil inside. Also look around the valve cover. Those are the common leaks in that area.

 

Thanks for the info! I'll go take a look at it tomorrow. Hopefully it's an easy fix.

 

The distributor is over on the other side of the engine so it probably won't drip onto the alternator.

That end of the valve cover would be a likely suspect. But the power-steering pump is above the alternator, so maybe the leaking oil is PS fluid?? (if so I'd check the O-rings where the hoses attach)

Camshaft & balance shaft seals are up there, but I think they would leak inside the timing cover and the oil doesn't come out until it gets to the bottom where it's mistaken for a leaking oil pan.

 

I was thinking valve cover gasket or head gasket. I'll take some pics today when he gets back in town. Maybe that will help identify the problem.

 

I'd suspect the valve cover seal, as it's an easy fix. If it were a balance shaft seal, most times they come completely out, and dump quarts of oil at a time (btdt had to fix it). I can't really think of where engine oil would directly spray onto the alternator, as like Jim pointed out the timing cover kind of traps oil inside it. I suppose it's possible that oil could collect in the bottom of the cover and be lifted up, but the F-22 engine is a reverse rotation engine, which would throw the oil towards the firewall instead of toward the radiator. This basically means either a valve cover leak, or cam shaft seal leak. You could pull the spark plug wires out, and see if there's any oil in them. This would also kind of verify a gasket leak, as the "O" rings in the cover hadn't been changed, which means the valve cover gasket hasn't been changed in a while either.
If the engine is dirty, look for a clean streak as that would lead back to the source of the leak too. This is true if the PO has had to add a lot of oil over time.

 

Locating oil leaks is a difficult problem. What I do is clean the engine thoroughly with kerosene, brush and rag. A gentle pressure clean is also helpful but care not to damage any fragile parts. Run the car and then with good lighting (very important) inspect for any new drips visually and by touch, starting from the top down. Be methodical and there may be more than one site. The camshaft cover is one of the worst offenders as are the camshaft seals. An inspection mirror with its own light as well as a headlamp are useful tools for this job. Good luck and be patient.

 

Okay so now u know for sure that it's PS fluid. I believe its just burning oil and not actually leaking. I drove it home and by the time I got here ( 5 minute drive) power steering was completely gone. I filled it back up and ran the car and got an immediate puddle. However I don't see a leak coming from the pump or the line connections at the pump. Are there any common places for a PS leak on this particular car? Or methods for finding the leak? Thanks in advance.