Need some opinions on oil leak

[DannyW]

My wife's car is leaking oil. A shop mechanic looked at it and said the rear main seal is leaking. He could not give me a quote to repair it because his shop wouldn't do the repair as it required dropping the tranny. However, he did say it would probably cost somewhere in the vicinity of $1,200-$1,500. No way I'm going to pay that much for a repair on a car that has a book value of around $3,000. (He agreed.)

There is a product called Blue Devil Rear Main Sealer that claims to be very good for stopping leaks in the mail seal. Has anyone had success with it?

Any other suggestions for a fix?

TIA...

 

[ClemsonRangers]

Scotty Kilmer recommends AT-205 reseal

i looked and didnt see any bad words

 

[NE GA Pappy]

all of those products are a petro based solvent that softens the rubber in hopes that will slow or stop the leak for a short while. It will get on every gasket and seal that is wet by oil, and may cause leaks from other places.

The only way to do it correctly is to pull the tranny, put in a new seal (and maybe a speedi-sleeve) and reinstall the tranny. $1500 seems a bit high to do that to me, but you didn't say what kind of car it is, the engine or transmission.

Parts for the job probably aren't over $60 bucks. The big cost is the labor.

 

[ClemsonRangers]

all of those products are a petro based solvent that softens the rubber in hopes that will slow or stop the leak for a short while. It will get on every gasket and seal that is wet by oil, and may cause leaks from other places.

The only way to do it correctly is to pull the tranny, put in a new seal (and maybe a speedi-sleeve) and reinstall the tranny. $1500 seems a bit high to do that to me, but you didn't say what kind of car it is, the engine or transmission.

Parts for the job probably aren't over $60 bucks. The big cost is the labor.

you would not spend $1500 on a $3000 car

used car prices are so high, it might make sense right now

 

[2busy2work]

I feel your pain! I just got the motor back into my wifes car this past weekend after replacing the rear main seal. But the good thing is I corrected several other maintenance issues while the engine was out. It did take me about 15 hours so far. Now just waiting on a few parts to reinstall everything.

I keep telling myself that it will be worth it since we hope to get another 200K out of the car. Much cheaper than a new car for sure.

 

[Milkman]

Get some heavy/thick corrugated cardboard. Tie wrap a couple of sections thick directly under the leak. About 12x12 or so. It will absorb the leak for several weeks. Then replace the cardboard.

Won’t fix the leak but stops the mess.

Keep a check on your oil.

 

[Railroader]

The Blue Devil is worth a try...I have actually seen it work. Might buy you some time.

About $15 to find out.

 

[Hillbilly stalker]

A honest mechanic will tell you that alot…..but not all, repairs to a rear main will leak even worse after being replaced with a new seal. If it’s not really blowing oil, put some cardboard under it where you park. I would be car3ful about running it for hours on the interstate, might blow all the oil out. I don’t believe in snake oils.

 

[Railroader]

Also, you didn't say how bad the leak is.

 

[Lukikus2]

I believe in good products that are tested in actual situations. I can attest to Restore and putting brake fluid in a leaking power steering pump. Radiator Stop Leak worked in the day, before plastic. Never tried that product. Yet.

 

[georgiabound]

Do you have plans on purchasing a new(er) vehicle in the short term future? If not, then you should make plans to correctly repair the leak if it is presenting a problem.

 

[dslc6487]

AT seal has worked for me on a couple of vehicles. I think it is a great product. Used it in rear main seal of older Toyota FJ40. Was my hunting vehicle and I put it through some rough stuff for several years after adding the AT sealer. Never leaked another drop. Strong believer of the product

 

[normaldave]

My wife's car is leaking oil. A shop mechanic looked at it and said the rear main seal is leaking. He could not give me a quote to repair it because his shop wouldn't do the repair as it required dropping the tranny. However, he did say it would probably cost somewhere in the vicinity of $1,200-$1,500. No way I'm going to pay that much for a repair on a car that has a book value of around $3,000. (He agreed.)

There is a product called Blue Devil Rear Main Sealer that claims to be very good for stopping leaks in the mail seal. Has anyone had success with it?

Any other suggestions for a fix?

TIA...

Make, model, and year of car? Which engine?

For me, I'm always going to try to properly fix the daily driver, especially in this ridiculous used car market. (The devil you know, is often better than the one you don't).

If you plan to keep that car a year, then it's only $ 125.00 per month averaged cost in the worst cost scenario. Way less than a payment regardless of the book value of the car. If she likes the car, and no immediate need to replace it with another, I say throw down and fix it right.

 

[DannyW]

Thanks for the info. More info on the car.

It's a 2003 Infiniti G35 (RWD) with 198,000 miles. We bought it in 2010 with 70,000 miles. The body is in good shape, and the tires have at least a half life on them.

It has been a good car overall. Looking at my car logbook, over the last 130,000 miles the only repairs have been:

• wheel bearing
• starter (twice)
• cracked valve cover and both gaskets
• radio/cd repair

How to quantify the leak...it leaves a big spot on the garage floor but I know even a small amount of oil will flatten out and make a big mess. The best I can describe the seriousness is I have to add a quart of oil every 2-3 weeks (400-600 miles). So it's not a gusher, but it leaks enough that you're embarrassed to park it in a friend's driveway.

Right now it, besides the seal, it needs new front rotors (about $200 if I DIY) and windshield ($50 insurance deductible). We had been talking about replacing the car, then COVID hit and turned the used car market into a circus. That's still the plan if/when the market returns to normal, so we plan on driving it maybe another 12-18 months?

According to KBB the car is worth $2,500 in the present condition, and about $3,200 if the repair(s) are made.

Like Hillbilly Stalker, I'm not a believer in snake oils. But for the moment I'm inclined to put a $15 bottle of the sealer in it to see if slows it down some. But I wanted to hear real opinions, not internet reviews, on products like Blue Devil or AT Seal.

 

[Redbow]

Try putting a pint of STP in the engine that should slow the oil leak down but it might not stop it. I have used STP for years and even put about a cup full of the stuff in automatic transmissions that had oil leaks with good results.

 

[normaldave]

Sounds like a good car.

My opinion? I'd get a second opinion on the source of the leak. Taking a look through my usual sources, far and away the number one oil leak source on your engine is the oil cooler seal itself. You are pretty handy, I'd check that one out to verify before putting any leak seal product into an otherwise healthy and leak free engine.
Example:
03 Infiniti oil leak

I realize this isn't right near the rear main, but the oil will run to the lowest point before hitting the garage floor. Oil cooler seal failing. Search youtube drifting.com common nissan/Infinity oil leak. (language in comments section).

Good luck.

 

[Redbow]

My wife's car is leaking oil. A shop mechanic looked at it and said the rear main seal is leaking. He could not give me a quote to repair it because his shop wouldn't do the repair as it required dropping the tranny. However, he did say it would probably cost somewhere in the vicinity of $1,200-$1,500. No way I'm going to pay that much for a repair on a car that has a book value of around $3,000. (He agreed.)

There is a product called Blue Devil Rear Main Sealer that claims to be very good for stopping leaks in the mail seal. Has anyone had success with it?

Any other suggestions for a fix?

TIA...

A friend of mine had a rear seal oil leak in his Blazer nearly 30 years ago. It cost him $900 to get the seal replaced. So what the guy quoted you in getting your car repaired might not be too bad at all not with today's prices.

 

[Doboy Dawg]

A new seal is probably $30 or less. It’s not a hard job if you’re mechanically inclined. It’s labor intensive just to get to it.

Depending on how the seal is made and the possibility of wear on the crankshaft as to the success of replacement. If there is a significant wear ring into the crankshaft just replacing the seal without repairing the crankshaft with a speedi sleeve could result in another seal failure.

Most of the time just replacing the seal will work, if the crankshaft is not too worn where the seal rides.

I’ve done these repairs on the ground and using a lift. Having access to a lift and transmission jack makes the task somewhat easier.

Like a few stated above, in this car market, I’d fix it and keep rolling with no new car payment.

 

[treemanjohn]

Sounds like a good car.

My opinion? I'd get a second opinion on the source of the leak. Taking a look through my usual sources, far and away the number one oil leak source on your engine is the oil cooler seal itself. You are pretty handy, I'd check that one out to verify before putting any leak seal product into an otherwise healthy and leak free engine.
Example:
03 Infiniti oil leak

I realize this isn't right near the rear main, but the oil will run to the lowest point before hitting the garage floor. Oil cooler seal failing. Search youtube drifting.com common nissan/Infinity oil leak. (language in comments section).

Good luck.

Use a commercial degreaser and clean the engine as best as you can and the take a look

 

[Cwb19]

Had a 95 ford truck with a main seal leak pulled up to customers home noticed smoke between cab and bed looked under truck and it was on fire from the oil getting on exhaust luckily was able to put it out Took it to shop next day and happily paid the 1100 to get it fixed