Major oil leak on GS400
07-13-12, 04:07 PM
#1
Major oil leak on GS400
Hi All....I was driving on the highway and all of a sudden oil light came on, so i quickly pulled over on the side of the road and checked oil and leaks, Oil was very low, luckily i had a qt of oil in the trunk so i put some oil, started the car and oil light is off, 2 mins after taking off...oil light came back on, luckily there was an exit and mechanic shop close by, Long story short mechanic is telling me it's the upper oil pan that needs to be replaced where the oil is leaking from, its more of an oil stream that i saw coming from the bottom.
Any advice on how much will such a job run, mechanic did not put the car on the lift to exactly pin point the leak, he started the car and revved and saw the oil dripping from the bottom.
Any advice/suggestions are welcome, Any trust worthy mechanic shop where i could take the car.
Any advice on how much will such a job run, mechanic did not put the car on the lift to exactly pin point the leak, he started the car and revved and saw the oil dripping from the bottom.
Any advice/suggestions are welcome, Any trust worthy mechanic shop where i could take the car.
07-14-12, 01:18 PM
#3
Upper oil pan? If its coming from the top then its most likely either the valve cover gasket or the cam seal. Take off the front cover to get a better visual. Don't think the oil pan on the 1UZ would ever leak. If it is the cam seal then you're on borrowed time because you don't want any oil getting on the timing belt.
07-14-12, 09:22 PM
#6
Here's a hint. When I noticed oil all over the oil pan, I originally thought that the pan was leaking. But as I proceeded to look further up, I saw that the oil was actually TRICKLING down from the top. The pan wasn't leaking at all. Turned out to be the cam seal. It leaked past the cover, onto the alternator and then down to the oil pan. Took me two days to replace it because the camshafts had to be moved to get the seal out.
07-14-12, 09:27 PM
#7
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Here's a hint. When I noticed oil all over the oil pan, I originally thought that the pan was leaking. But as I proceeded to look further up, I saw that the oil was actually TRICKLING down from the top. The pan wasn't leaking at all. Turned out to be the cam seal. It leaked past the cover, onto the alternator and then down to the oil pan. Took me two days to replace it because the camshafts had to be moved to get the seal out.
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07-15-12, 09:13 AM
#9
The pan definitely looks like it is leaking. However, I would remove the timing belt cover to get a clearer picture. I could be wrong, but it appeared that the left side (driver side) cam shaft has a slight leak...
07-15-12, 09:48 AM
#10
i don't think this mechanic i took the car to has ever worked on this motor, since he told me it's the upper oil pan and according to some of you guys, this motor doesn't have upper oil pan.
Not sure where to take my car to get this fixed, how many hours of work does this seem?
07-15-12, 12:10 PM
#11
Oil pan should take about thirty minutes or so. Cam seal will take hours, maybe even a full day. Shop around for a competent mechanic. Preferably one who specializes in Lexus/Toyota motors. If you aren't comfortable doing the job yourself that is. Some may have a high asking price because as I mentioned, its a very tedious and meticulous job on the 1UZ. Took me two full days (weekend with a few breaks in between) to complete the job. I may add that I also replaced all seals during the process (cam seals, crank, valve cover, spark plug, grommets) since its all right there and the entire head is pretty much removed.
07-15-12, 06:52 PM
#12
Instructor
The 1uz motor does have two oil pans. Upper oil pan is aluminum and bolts to the block. The lower pan is steal and bolts to the upper pan.
From the video, the seam between the two pans has too much of a gap. The lip of the lower pan looks like it may be deformed..
How long has it been since the timing belt job?
The idler bearings sound loud and your front oil seal needs to be checked for leaking (hard to do with the timing cover on).
The lower oil pan just may only need a reseal.
Even though the car has 280k miles, this repair is well worth the cost. Especially if you do the work.
Good luck, hope that helped.
From the video, the seam between the two pans has too much of a gap. The lip of the lower pan looks like it may be deformed..
How long has it been since the timing belt job?
The idler bearings sound loud and your front oil seal needs to be checked for leaking (hard to do with the timing cover on).
The lower oil pan just may only need a reseal.
Even though the car has 280k miles, this repair is well worth the cost. Especially if you do the work.
Good luck, hope that helped.
07-15-12, 06:57 PM
#13
The 1uz motor does have two oil pans. Upper oil pan is aluminum and bolts to the block. The lower pan is steal and bolts to the upper pan.
From the video, the seam between the two pans has too much of a gap. The lip of the lower pan looks like it may be deformed..
How long has it been since the timing belt job?
The idler bearings sound loud and your front oil seal needs to be checked for leaking (hard to do with the timing cover on).
The lower oil pan just may only need a reseal.
Even though the car has 280k miles, this repair is well worth the cost. Especially if you do the work.
Good luck, hope that helped.
From the video, the seam between the two pans has too much of a gap. The lip of the lower pan looks like it may be deformed..
How long has it been since the timing belt job?
The idler bearings sound loud and your front oil seal needs to be checked for leaking (hard to do with the timing cover on).
The lower oil pan just may only need a reseal.
Even though the car has 280k miles, this repair is well worth the cost. Especially if you do the work.
Good luck, hope that helped.
i hope its just the lower pan gasket, not the upper as that will require extensive labor work.
07-17-12, 06:48 AM
#15
According to Jeff and many other members on here, the oil pan on these cars rarely, if ever leak. I carefully reviewed the pan on my car when I was trying to daignose my oil leak and that pan is sealed up very solidly. The only issues I have heard of are with those who are slammed on bags, or lowered more than two inches and end up scraping the pan. Odd for the seal to fail and then suddenly leak oil, especially on oil pans for these cars. I hope this is your only issue as you don't want to go through the expense and labor time of replacing a failed cam seal