Oil leaks

[Bigbertha78]

First picture is below throttle body and I have oil that has started to collect. Cannot see anything while motor is running. Any ideas?



Second picture is the underside of the 5.3L motor, oil. There is nothing that looks as if it were draining down from the sides so I was thinking rear main seal but hoping I'm wrong! Any ideas?

 

[iamdub]

They're obviously very slow weepage. Upper one is probably from the valley cover gasket. The lower ones could be from a rear main. Best thing to trace the source is to clean it all off, drive it for a little while and look really closely. You may not find anything after the first few drives, but be patient. You wanna find the shiny new oil trail(s) as early as possible before they have a chance to run and puddle anywhere. You have to clean it all off VERY well. For light stuff such as that, I'd use brake parts cleaner (the cheap SuperTech stuff at Walmart does great) and napkins/shop rags. Use a blow gun with an extension for the hard-to-reach areas up high. It looks like such a slow leak that the trails burn off, leaving just the puddled drip points. With all the turbulent air underneath the truck when driving, light oil runs can be blown anywhere, leading you away from their actual source. Oh- if you use the brake parts cleaner or any chemical cleaners for that matter, USE EYE PROTECTION.

PS: It is strongly suggested by many to avoid Fram oil filters for numerous valid reasons.

 

[Bigbertha78]

Thanks will do! What type of filter would you recommend?

 

[MrBalll]

Let me know what comes of this.
I have the exact same look on your second photo. Curious what is actually going on.

 

[01ssreda4]

Lower one is oil pan which is common, wont hurt anything but also not hard to replace.

 

[iamdub]

^^^ Agreed.

As far as filters, Wix is always a safe bet (Napa Gold is the same). Some are fans of AC Delco, but I turned away from them when they switched to the "E core". Basically, avoid their part numbers that end with an "E".

 

[1_8TTony]

Upper one is probably from the valley cover gasket.

If you're gonna dig deep enough into the valley cover chasing oil leaks.......it'd be a good idea to inspect the oil pressure sensor. Remove the connector. If you have oil inside the connector socket, replace the entire sensor. If you have no oil inside the connector socket, replace the oil pressure O ring seal, and also the same goes for the camshaft position sensor (right next to the oil psi sensor).

 

[iamdub]

^^^ X2

 

[Bigbertha78]

Cleaned up area, and also around the oil pressure sensor. Yet I have not found any areas that are leaking, but keeping an eye on the spot where the transmission meets the motor, looks as if it might be coming from there. Taken cover off of transmission and no new fluid from what I can see.

 

[quest51210]

^^^ Agreed.

As far as filters, Wix is always a safe bet (Napa Gold is the same). Some are fans of AC Delco, but I turned away from them when they switched to the "E core". Basically, avoid their part numbers that end with an "E".

The Supertech at Walmart are now made by Wix