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oil leak

G Guest
As a recent new owner of a Pantera, the car I bought has had comprehensive engine work (400BHP)to which has been running like clockwork for the past few years. I know the engine has been regularly serviced by the previous owner to the point of being pampered. 2 oil changes a year regardless of mileage covered. However I have just noticed a small oil leak on my garage floor coming from under the car which I never noticed before in owning the car just 4 months. I am about to investigate further this weekend but as an owner of such a vehicle, should one expect traces of oil to fall from the engine as did my very healthy '911' or are these engine very tight and not prone to leak at all?
I know this question is not very technical, but it's interesting to hear of reputation which can sometimes answer these technical questions.
The engine is a cobra jet 351.
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rapidrapidMember
My garage floor is epoxy coated, so oil leaks show up pretty well. On my last Pantera, I was always repairing a leak somewhere. It seemed that when I fixed one, another would surface. On that Pantera it was mostly the ZF. I had it pulled and gone through and resealed and it seemed to leak worse.On the Pantera I have now, I currently have no leaks (knock on wood).
George PGeorge PAdmin.
Any cork gaskets will compress over time and eventually leak. You'll possibly find them between the front & back of the intake manifold and the block, between the valve covers & cylinder heads, and between the oil pan and block. The fix on the valve covers & oilpan is to simply cinch the bolts a little tighter, but don't over do it, or you'll split the cork and make things worse.

If I ever find the guy who thought of using cork for gasket material, he's a dead man!

The front & rear crank seals will also leak, if the balancer or crank journals weren't cleaned up during the overhaul. The rubber gaskets at the ends of the oil pan are also prone to leakage if not installed just perfectly. Cleaning the leaking gasket with spray solvent (electric parts cleaner) and applying RTV will be your best route to take for sealing many leaks.

This is no shame for the Cleveland motor, as all American V8s of the era leaked almost as bad as a Triumph or BSA motorcycle. (I worked on those too) The manufacturers just didn't put a lot of effort in making tight motors until the mid 1980s.

Spending lots of time preparing the gasket surfaces, judicious use of RTV (aka silicone sealant) and avoidance of cork gaskets during assembly can result in a nice leak free motor.

your friend on the DTBB
M micks74 (Guest)
One other place to check is the fuel pump. It has a weep hole that will leak oil if the diaphragm has ruptured. There are 2 diaphragm in the fuel pump, one for pumping fuel and the other for keep oil in the engine where it belongs. Hopefully this is your problem...easy fix.

Good luck!!
B bulldog (Guest)
quote:
Originally posted by george pence:
Any cork gaskets will compress over time and eventually leak. You'll possibly find them between the front & back of the intake manifold and the block, between the valve covers & cylinder heads, and between the oil pan and block. The fix on the valve covers & oilpan is to simply cinch the bolts a little tighter, but don't over do it, or you'll split the cork and make things worse.

If I ever find the guy who thought of using cork for gasket material, he's a dead man!

The front & rear crank seals will also leak, if the balancer or crank journals weren't cleaned up during the overhaul. The rubber gaskets at the ends of the oil pan are also prone to leakage if not installed just perfectly. Cleaning the leaking gasket with spray solvent (electric parts cleaner) and applying RTV will be your best route to take for sealing many leaks.

This is no shame for the Cleveland motor, as all American V8s of the era leaked almost as bad as a Triumph or BSA motorcycle. (I worked on those too) The manufacturers just didn't put a lot of effort in making tight motors until the mid 1980s.

Spending lots of time preparing the gasket surfaces, judicious use of RTV (aka silicone sealant) and avoidance of cork gaskets during assembly can result in a nice leak free motor.

your friend on the DTBB


That was exactly the kind of answer I was looking for. Thanks George.
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