4A-GE MK1 Engine HELP ...oil leak

fasteddie · 02-19-2009, 08:53 PM

i've got an oil leak in my 87 mk1 i recently purchased; it starts to smoke from the leak when the engine warms up after about 10 minutes of running; from the top, i see a dark color stain on top of the exhaust manifold heat shield close to the distributor; from the bottom, i see a small oil bead about to drop from the distributor; and the area below the distributor is pretty black from old oil;

could the leak be coming from the distributor gasket? if not, what other possible place could the leak be coming from? anyone ever had something like this?

thanks in advance for your inputs.

Papo J · 02-19-2009, 08:57 PM

The distributor seals are known to be a source of leaks when they get old. KBox on the other board sells a repair kit for those.

fasteddie · 02-20-2009, 05:26 AM

Papo J ... would you happen to have the contact info for KBox? thanks.

muffinman · 02-20-2009, 10:10 AM

you can get them from Aaron at Lithia Lithia Toyota of Springfield - Toyota MR2 Message Board

toy-driver · 02-20-2009, 10:53 AM

kbox

These motors tend to leak oil out the distributor, valve covers, oil cooler adapter plate and the oil pan. I would replace all those.

fasteddie · 02-20-2009, 08:30 PM

Papo J: got your message - thanks for the info; i ordered the distributor seal kit today from kbox

guys thanks for all your info - just getting familiar with my motor

fasteddie · 03-17-2009, 05:06 PM

i replaced just the large o-ring on the base of the distributor and that fixed the leak! thanks for all your input on this problem

scottohno · 11-10-2009, 10:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by toy-driver

kbox

These motors tend to leak oil out the distributor, valve covers, oil cooler adapter plate and the oil pan. I would replace all those.

mine leaks oil below the dipstick in 1000 miles. its the distributor gasket, now tht i look at it, but im going to replace all these. no sense in doing one, and saving the 15 dollars until the others go and then you do all them too. i may even do a head gasket... why not?

PPiechocki · 11-15-2009, 03:31 AM

wow... i hope that doesn't start with mine... the timing belt jumped a cog and blew a hole in the side of my #4 piston. the last thing i'd want afer dropping 2 grand for the rebuild is an oil leak

espguitarist33 · 11-15-2009, 03:34 AM

10-20 year old seals almost definatly would leak...but if you put new ones in they'll prolly last just as long as the old ones! also switching to synthetic can cause this kind of leak because as they move, the minor bits of sludge and junk from the conventinal oil clogs them up and acutaly holds the seal. the synthetic dissolves this and then the seals leak.

02-19-2009, 08:53 PM	#1 (permalink)
fasteddie No Skills Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 11 Thanks: 0 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post iTrader Rating: (0/0% )	HELP ...oil leak i've got an oil leak in my 87 mk1 i recently purchased; it starts to smoke from the leak when the engine warms up after about 10 minutes of running; from the top, i see a dark color stain on top of the exhaust manifold heat shield close to the distributor; from the bottom, i see a small oil bead about to drop from the distributor; and the area below the distributor is pretty black from old oil; could the leak be coming from the distributor gasket? if not, what other possible place could the leak be coming from? anyone ever had something like this? thanks in advance for your inputs.

02-20-2009, 05:26 AM	#3 (permalink)
fasteddie No Skills Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 11 Thanks: 0 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post iTrader Rating: (0/0% )	contact info for KBox Papo J ... would you happen to have the contact info for KBox? thanks.

03-17-2009, 05:06 PM	#7 (permalink)
fasteddie No Skills Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 11 Thanks: 0 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post iTrader Rating: (0/0% )	leak fixed i replaced just the large o-ring on the base of the distributor and that fixed the leak! thanks for all your input on this problem

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02-19-2009, 08:57 PM	#2 (permalink)
Papo J 6SPD GTE Join Date: Sep 2006 Posts: 588 Thanks: 2 Thanked 50 Times in 49 Posts iTrader Rating: (0/0% )	The distributor seals are known to be a source of leaks when they get old. KBox on the other board sells a repair kit for those.

02-20-2009, 10:10 AM	#4 (permalink)
muffinman U-P-G-R-A-Y-E-D-D Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Sunny South Florida Posts: 5,877 Thanks: 52 Thanked 282 Times in 271 Posts Blog Entries: 1 My Google Map iTrader Rating: (2/100% )	you can get them from Aaron at Lithia Lithia Toyota of Springfield - Toyota MR2 Message Board

02-20-2009, 10:53 AM	#5 (permalink)
toy-driver Getting there Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Dallas, TX Posts: 282 Thanks: 3 Thanked 11 Times in 11 Posts iTrader Rating: (3/100% )	kbox These motors tend to leak oil out the distributor, valve covers, oil cooler adapter plate and the oil pan. I would replace all those.

02-20-2009, 08:30 PM	#6 (permalink)
fasteddie No Skills Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 11 Thanks: 0 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post iTrader Rating: (0/0% )	Papo J: got your message - thanks for the info; i ordered the distributor seal kit today from kbox guys thanks for all your info - just getting familiar with my motor

11-15-2009, 03:31 AM	#9 (permalink)
PPiechocki Cage Fighter Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Granby, CO Posts: 118 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts iTrader Rating: (2/100% )	wow... i hope that doesn't start with mine... the timing belt jumped a cog and blew a hole in the side of my #4 piston. the last thing i'd want afer dropping 2 grand for the rebuild is an oil leak

11-15-2009, 03:34 AM	#10 (permalink)
espguitarist33 Cage Fighter Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: west chester PA Posts: 528 Thanks: 4 Thanked 7 Times in 7 Posts iTrader Rating: (2/100% )	10-20 year old seals almost definatly would leak...but if you put new ones in they'll prolly last just as long as the old ones! also switching to synthetic can cause this kind of leak because as they move, the minor bits of sludge and junk from the conventinal oil clogs them up and acutaly holds the seal. the synthetic dissolves this and then the seals leak.