Nissan Titan Forum banner

Where is the leak coming from?

17K views 38 replies 9 participants last post by  GOVols 
#1 · (Edited)




Any help would be great. Iv checked all my fluids. the only thing thats low is my motor oil! And its way low!!
 
See less See more
2
#2 ·
Pretty crazy u posted this, just got my truck back from shop, from what your pic shows was exactly how mine looked. Dealer found a block plug that was loose, had to be one of the plugs that would have oil behind it cause that's what leaked, same place, same look as yours:)
 
#5 ·
Bottom of the Timing chain cover?? That is the only thing higher than the alternator on the front of the block that could leak oil. Not sure about a block plug for draining oil, I guess it is a possibility. Freeze Plugs better not have oil behind them!
 
#7 · (Edited)
look up this NTB10-104, it is the right side ball block plug that is leaking. TSB out on it already, just found it. If they fixed it, then degrease that area so you can see if it still is going to leak.
 

Attachments

#8 · (Edited)
That's not it I don't think. The leak is coming from the front. From what I can tell the leak is coming from above the alternator on the front of the engine. Take a look at the 2nd pic. You can see the oil coming down from the top right near the header. That's the best I can tell.
 
#11 · (Edited)
Degrease it and you will find it, remember that fan is right there, and a fan will blow **** everywhere, all kinds of air vortexes blowing around there. I bet money that is the spot, look how dark the oil is around there, typically the spot. The picture in the TSB shows clearly where that plug is, and to me, that is the culprit. I could be wrong but all that oil right there around that spot and the coloration I think that is the deal. It is apparent enough that this is an issue for them to warrant a TSB.
 
#13 · (Edited)
Ok here is the verdict. I took the truck to my trusted mechanic about the oil issue. He said its coming from the valve cover gasket. He also said he checked the spark plugs and they had a tad bit of oil on them. They were not covered he said. He also said to replace the gaskets it would cost $3,000 bucks, but he also said that since their was only a tad bit of oil on the spark plugs he would just watch it and add a little bit of of oil every time it needs it if I cant afford to replace the gaskets just yet. Any thoughts? Kinda bummed if it needs head gaskets replaced. :( Also is $3,000 high to have the head gaskets replaced?
 
#14 ·
You can get a low mileage engine for 1200.00 if that tells you anything.
 
#16 ·
Valve cover gasket.....$80 plus parts.
 
#17 · (Edited)
Valve cover gasket or Head Gasket?? You mention both in the post.

$3000 for a valve cover gasket!! You sure he didn't say head gasket for that price? If that is the correct price take a vacation to Florida, stop by the house with cold beer and some steaks and I will change the beotch out. Steaks and beer so at least you can eat good while the engine cools down.

I haven't looked real close but I bet there is a section of the valve cover that rounded out for Cams, it is usually filled with rubber valve gasket. Common on OHV engines. Can not be too hard to change out.
 
#19 ·
Valve cover gaskets shouldn't cost that much. Are you sure the decimal point wasn't shifted to the right by one place? I had them replaced on my '91 Ranger (V6) and it wasn't more than $450 at the dealer. Mine were so bad that it was a fire hazard.
 
#20 ·
It take about an hour.
 
#22 ·
He is making sure his kids have a very nice xmas. I don't think the Nissan dealership would charge 3000 for a head gasket job. I would change mechanics. You could have a low mileage engine installed for cheaper than that.
 
#24 ·
Cam seal/cam cover gasket. I don't trust anyone in Smyrna. A good shop close to you is Accurate in LaVergne.
 
#26 ·
Well My mechanic didn't tell me much really. I'm going to get a second opinion. While snooping around I think I found 2 more leaks. One is the power steering hose and the other you can see in this picture. Its the hose right in the middle underneath the main pulley. Toward the end it has oil/coolant on it it near the clamp that you cant see. Its kinda hard to tell but its deff darker in the picture. So which hose is this?



Uploaded with ImageShack.us
 
#27 ·
I would look for another mechanic! If oil was coming from your head gaskets I will guarantee you would be having all kinds of issues with the engine. You would have severe compression issues and you would be seeing oil in your coolant or coolant in your oil. I can believe the valve covers though. I would also check the timing chain cover, the plug mentioned. The reason the heads are so expensive is all the interference that needs to be removed to get them off. You may be able to get an engine for $1200, but the install would drive it to around $6000 I bet.
 
#28 ·
Maybe you guys could help me with this one. How hard of a fix is this leak. Thank you all in advance.
 
#31 ·
GOVols is your truck burning a lot of oil??? Maybe I missed it but how miles you got on her??

I have two issues with this being a HG. 1) HG that fails and is blowing oil past it would most likely get in to the coolant as well, are you seeing milk in your oil or coolant?? 2)Blown HG that leaks oil like this can usually be heard, sounds like an exhaust leak.

If this is a head gasket problem you need to clean the oil off the block and look at it daily to how fast it is leaking. If it is leaking at the HG then you can try and save yourself some money for time being by pulling the valve cover and re-torquing the head bolts. In the off chance a bolts worked loose this would help but the problem is that there is all ready some burn thru of the HG. At least you would get a valve cover gasket out the deal that hopefully would fix the problem anyways.
 
#33 · (Edited)
Yes it does seem to be burning oil. They said they also found some oil on my spark plugs. If thats the case then one or two of the spark plug seals are leaking and that can be fixed I assume. I have 104,000 miles on it. As far as I can tell the oil and coolant are not mixing. I have not seen any loss in coolant and it sure isnt over heating on me.
 
#35 ·
GOVols I have the same exact location of oil on my truck and on both sides. I see a little seepage from the outside lower corner of the VC's and on the passenger side Timing Chain cover has a few areas that are seeping. My block is not as wet as yours. Take a closer look at your VC. It just does not look like a head gasket failure.
 
#37 ·
Thanks guys for the help and sorry for hijacking your thread. If you want I will delete my post.
 
  • Like
Reactions: alby
#38 ·
So any updates on this vols??? If you want, whenever i get some free time i'll swing by and take a look/help ya replace whatever the problem is. My guess is its most likely VC gasket leaking
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top