help: leaking oil like a mofo [2mb of images]

[wafflesburger]

I'm unsure what these circled areas are, but they seem to be leaking. Does anyone have an idea? Getting ridiculous.

Thanks you experts.

[Oversteer]

Drivers side of motor is possibly valve cover gasket or the blockoff plate for the distributor, although I've never seen that leak. I'd start with valve cover gasket and make sure you replace the half moon gaskets...

No idea why you have oil on the brake booster.

There's another shot in there showing the pass side front of motor showing the oil filter. It looks like you've got a leaky camshaft seal. This is a bit more involved than the valve cover. If you do this seal, you might as well replace your timing belt/water pump at the same time.

[wafflesburger]

Drivers side of motor is possibly valve cover gasket or the blockoff plate for the distributor, although I've never seen that leak. I'd start with valve cover gasket and make sure you replace the half moon gaskets...

No idea why you have oil on the brake booster.

There's another shot in there showing the pass side front of motor showing the oil filter. It looks like you've got a leaky camshaft seal. This is a bit more involved than the valve cover. If you do this seal, you might as well replace your timing belt/water pump at the same time.

its not the valve cover gasket that has been replaced and is dry around it. what half moon gaskets are you referring to? do you know what the circled area on the left is?

near the oil filter looks kind of cruddy but relatively clean / old compared to the wetness in other areas. i've taken it to a mechanic twice in the past month and a half about this each time he thought he had figured it out (last time he said it was "rocker arm plugs" that i hadn't replaced when i myself did head work).

[accident]

i think the half-moons he's referring to are the rocker arm shaft plugs. it also looks like your oil pan gasket may be shot.

[wafflesburger]

i think the half-moons he's referring to are the rocker arm shaft plugs. it also looks like your oil pan gasket may be shot.

last time the mechanic said he replaced the rocker arm plugs.
why do you think the oil pan gasket is shot when the leak seems obviously higher than that?

[Vtec?lol]

Might be the metal oil tube under the intake. Mine leaked pretty bad. Theres little or no pressure so it drips down the block and looks like wind carries it to the b.booster hose.

[wafflesburger]

Might be the metal oil tube under the intake. Mine leaked pretty bad. Theres little or no pressure so it drips down the block and looks like wind carries it to the b.booster hose.

Guess I'll check that when its light out again before I take it back to the mechanic. I'm really curious what the thing I circled is though...

[Vtec?lol]

Thats a plate that seals the hole under it. Thats where the older m20's had distributors.

[wafflesburger]

Thats a plate that seals the hole under it. Thats where the older m20's had distributors.

Could it leak oil?

[wafflesburger]

Dipstick o ring, cam seal, block off plate (323s had dist there) valve cover

Any easy way of narrowing it down? Clean it off and add dye maybe? It's not valve cover.

[gearheadE30]

Just clean it off and run the engine, then figure out the highest point where there is fresh oil. Remember that oil will also have a tendency to blow towards the back of the engine.

[NeoMishMoo]

From the looks of it, it is leaking from your dipstick, I guess it could be the o ring on there but I don't know if it would leak that much, check the metal tube that your dipstick goes down into, almost looks like it is leaking from a little lower than the actual dipstick.

Just clean the area and keep checking. The area you circled looks like where the oil is collecting, not the source, but that is just how it looks to me.

[hotballs]

That's what my motor looked like after what was most likely 10+years of the power steering pump and rack leaking everywhere.