2001 GMC Yukon small oil leak that I got checked

[blueinkd]

They might be busy. Everyone is right now with people catching up on repairs they have been waiting to resolve due to insufficient funds. 100% in agreement with those estimates are high. Shop around and if nothing else, see if you can prolong the repair. Use a drip pan to keep it off your floor and regular oil level checks should be practiced. Mine leaked almost a year until I got it fixed

 

[OR VietVet]

Some may disagree with me but if the shop is very busy that usually indicates a shop with a good reputation. That can also mean they charge more than other shops. Quality costs. I ran shops so I know how all expenses get rolled in to fees for work. Sometimes people will say too much for a repair simply because they do not have the money for the repair unless it is half the stated price. Shops charging a price is what they think their work is worth, especially if they have a good warranty. A repair job is not too expensive just because someone cannot afford the quote. It does not mean it isn't over-priced either. Multiple estimates and compare apples to apples.

 

[latvius]

When you have the rear main done buy one of these and have them replace the plastic barbell. I have no idea how long that plastic barbell will last could be 60 years or 6 days after you put the trans back in. For $27 it's worth buying a piece of mind.

https://www.saccitycorvette.com/Billet-BarBell.html

 

[Rocket Man]

When you have the rear main done buy one of these and have them replace the plastic barbell. I have no idea how long that plastic barbell will last could be 60 years or 6 days after you put the trans back in. For $27 it's worth buying a piece of mind.

https://www.saccitycorvette.com/Billet-BarBell.html

Great idea. I didn’t replace mine and wish I would have.

 

[SUMTOY2]

My yukon has started leaking some drops when parked. I took it to a mechanic to get checked. I was told oil pan gasket 551.00, front diff seal 549.00, and rear main 1006.00. They would take off 200 -300 if I had all done at once.
Is this a decent price for the work? Do I need to have this work done soon for any reason? I plan on using this truck to pull a small camper 2000lb. this summer.
The truck has 130,000 miles on it.

I would get a second opinion and find out what exactly is leaking. I just had my avalanche done with a new rear main seal and was advised to do the oil pan gasket. My mechanic is an ex dealer mechanic and is highly trained and recommended. He did the rear main and pan for 700. The rear main alone is 10 to 11 hours for 4x4. Get underneath with a flashlight and inspect it. Also feel behind your valve covers to see if there's any oil there, they are notorious for leaking.

 

[Larryjb]

Having done the rear main on mine and know the work involved, I would be leery of anyone charging $400 for the rear main.

How careful will they be removing all the electrical connectors?
Will they clean gasket surfaces properly before installing the new gaskets?
4WD will be more expensive, BTW.
Will they replace the rear cover gasket as well? (probably a more common leak than the rear main seal)

A good tech will be worth more than $80/hr. In fact, that is probably a low number. That means the tech is completing the job in 5 hours. I suppose an experienced tech could do the job in 5 hours, but I suspect $80/hr is a low rate these days.

 

[JonnyTahoe]

Having done the rear main on mine and know the work involved, I would be leery of anyone charging $400 for the rear main.

How careful will they be removing all the electrical connectors?
Will they clean gasket surfaces properly before installing the new gaskets?
4WD will be more expensive, BTW.
Will they replace the rear cover gasket as well? (probably a more common leak than the rear main seal)

A good tech will be worth more than $80/hr. In fact, that is probably a low number. That means the tech is completing the job in 5 hours. I suppose an experienced tech could do the job in 5 hours, but I suspect $80/h Time is money. The quicker they can finish the job the better. If it starts to leak again are they going to warrantee it or just keep making up excuses why its not their fault.

 

[WickedGoat]

I just got done repairing some oil leaks on my 2004 Yukon 4x4, with the oil pan gasket being the last of the repairs being done last night.

I can tell you right now that I replaced the valve cover gaskets and the oil pressure switch first and that solved a lot of the leakage. You can see trails of oil all around the cylinder heads that will eventually leak down to the bottom of the engine. The oil pressure switch, which sits st the back of the intake, will leak down the back of the engine, imitating a rear main seal leak.

I have changed the oil myself on the truck since 2009 when I bought it so I noticed when leakage was appearing around the oil pan. So I decided it was time to fix all of this crap. 196,000 miles on it and no plans to get rid of it, so I ordered everything from Rock Auto. I even ordered a Dorman rear main seal kit and installation tool, but I don't need them now. When you pull the oil pan down, you can see the back of the flex plate and the immediate rear main seal area. Mine was pretty dry, so I am confident the valve covers, the oil pressure switch and the oil pan were the culprits.

So to sum up this novel I wrote... get a second opinion for sure. If you can spin your own wrenches, do this stuff yourself. It is not hard, just time consuming. You need to clean mating surfaces and you can replace other stuff while you are in there. Rock Auto has the best prices for this stuff. The only thing I bought locally was a new drain plug, just because, the oil pump pick up tube seal, which I read about after I placed my order with Rock Auto, 4 cans of brake cleaner and oil and a filter. I did the oil pan gasket last night and all I have left to do is spray some engine degreaser on the bottom end and hit the car wash. I sprayed a whole can of brake cleaner on it and let it run last night for 20 minutes and there were no leaks.