Help Needed Oil leak?

[psd4l]

Hi all I am new to this forum, I joined because I just recently purchased a 94 F350 with a 7.3 in it. When I got the truck it needed a water pump after replacing the pump the truck started right up (with a jump start of course) and it ran great... till i got home from the test run and let the truck sit. The next morning I noticed oil on the ground I could not really find the where it was coming from due to the fact that oil was everywhere, when I opend the hood to see what the oil level was i noticed that there was a pool of oil sitting between the heads.

My questions is where could the oil be coming from that it would pool up on top , I have talked to a few people and some have said that it is common for the o-rings on the oil lines to the turbo to leak. But could this cause the oil to get all over the bottom of the engine and trans? If this was to be the problem what would it take to fix?

 

[Patrick Feeley]

Welcome! Make sure yours is a Powerstroke (Direct Injection). 94's had 3 different 7.3L diesels. Your VIN should have an 8th digit of "F" for a PSD. It could be from a number of places. First, make sure it is oil and not fuel (which can look like oil after "cleaning" a dirty motor. If it is oil, check the oil lines that go to each head from the High Presure Oil Pump (HPOP). Check the connections at both ends of these lines. There will also be plugs for similar spots on the heads for the other cylinders. There are other spots to check, but you may need to clean things up as good as you can and get in there with a flashlight to see if you can see it leaking. Other spots that leak could be from plugs that are located on the ends of each head (both forward and rear ends), the turbo pedestal o-rings (between the turbo and pedestal and between the pedestal and block), the Exhaust Back Pressure Valve (EBPV) actuator cylinder rod and solenoid (but these generally don't really pool up in the valley). Cheers!

 

[psd4l]

The 8th letter of the vin was an F so it is a powerstrock. It is dark out now but I will give it a good look over tomorrow. Thanks for all the info.

 

[majek5]

It could be the "non-servicable" plug on the hpop. It is on the drivers-side of the pump towards the bottom of the pump. I put an Adrenaline pump on my 97 and that plug backed out. Lost a gallon before I stopped and saw the mess. If it leaks it will fill the valley, and rust proof the bottom of the truck.

 

[BJS]

there are numerous places that will leak oil and fill the valley the high pressure oil lines are one, the turbo pedestal o-rings are another common one along with the EBPV actuator.

The best means of diagnosis is to clean the valley out well with rags, then wash with simple green/dawn/etc. and a regular hose (not pressure washer) then when she's all good and dry start the engine up and see where the oil is appearing, you may not need to drive it anywhere if you do take it for a short trip around the block.

Keep in mind that the leak will be slower when the engine & oil are cold vs when they've warmed up.

 

[psd4l]

Well I took the truck for a two hour trip yesterday got home late last night and when I woke up this morning I found a big spot of oil...

So I decided it was time to clean everything off so I did so with some degreaser and a little time then I let the truck run for about half an hour then took a short trip around the block

When I got home only two or three drops hit the ground but I could see that the oil was coming around the passenger side of the trans and the back side of the motor, is there anything that could specifically cause that?

Thanks for all the help

 

[Crumm]

There are drain holes in the back of the valley that drain down the backside of the engine right where you describe. Many things that can leak in the valley but the first thing is to make positive sure that it is oil and not fuel. They both look the same when they hit the ground. Hpop seal and lines along with turbo pedestal is where the oil normally comes from as where fuel normally leaks out around the filter area. There are o-rings in the filter drain along with lines and sensors that spring leaks. If it is not coming out of the valley then the end plug orings on the back side of the head is a common leak spot.

 

[BIG JOE]

Ditto on what Crumm just said. And X2 on being sure it's Oil.. or Fuel.

Joe