Hot Rods Oil leak. What a mess!

So yesterday here in Shitty Missouri it was pretty nice, for Missouri in January anyway. I decided to go for a ride in the Roadster. I didn't go very far, maybe 20 miles. When I pulled it back into the shop and walked back behind it, I saw a trail of oil. This is what I found when I went to see where it was coming from. There's so much oil that I have no clue where it's coming from yet. It never lost oil pressure, and I never smelled it. I went out later that day to run some errands that took me on a reverse course of the way I went in the Roadster, and I could see an oil trail on the road for about half of the trip. I hadn't driven it, or even started it for probably 3 months prior to this. These picture where taken today after it sat all night.

 

fun! not

I wonder if the oil pressure was high because of the cold...might have popped something loose...

 

Looking at the pictures, it looks like oil on the underside of your hood and firewall but it doesn't look soaked... I don't know your car (it's a fine looking ride though) but could it be a pinhole in your oil pressure gauge line? I had a problem like that with an old Plymouth and a plastic tube, spraying a fine water gun like stream straight onto my exhaust manifold... That was a day.

 

^^^^^Oil line. First place I would look!^^^^^^

 

If it isn't the oil line and you have a plastic line replace it with copper. Those plastic lines are destined for failure sooner or later.

 

What was the problem?

 

Yep , gotta watch out for those plastic oil lines , been watching the one in my '73 chevy pickup since it was new , from the factory, gonna fail soon ..LOL
dave

 

But sitting overnight without the oil gauge line being under running pressure, would it leave a pool of oil like that? and I'm not sure that a pin hole would leave a trail of oil. Gotta be something bigger than that.

 

generally clean motor, fill with oil and start it up - be good to have a couple of more sets of eyes around when you do this to help find leak and shut it off.

 

Notice the oil on the firewall, inside the hood, and everywhere else. The puddle can be from all that oil running off onto the floor.

Cold also affects plastic oil lines, if that's what the problem is.

I think I woulda seen the smoke in the rear view mirror before I got too far?

 

One in every crowd.

 

Valve cover gasket OK? moon breather would not do the oil leak in the front by the belt, but I always ran an old sox around the breather to reduce "oil vapors" would clean under the hood, tape some paper towels directly over the area and run the engine for a short (5 minute period at road speed RPM) and see if that gives a spray pattern) as far as an oil pressure line leak is the line anywhere near the front of the engine? like stated above clean it and then stat it with an extra pair of eyes, plain brown card board under the engine will help exactly where the oil is coming from by the spots on the cardboard. ask me how I know.... I use -4 AN SS braided lines for all non electric oil pressure gages less chance of failure by puncture.. if you want " traditional ten get a piece of rubber hose to slip over, or have one made with Black heat shrink polyolefin/PVC

 

As above. With that much oil the leak should be obvious and easy to find rather than speculating on what it could be

 

I had one of those plastic lines for my old pressure in a old dodge van and the line got a small pin hole and I lost a engine before I realized what had happened.

Not knowing what the problem is make sure you figure out where it's coming from before you take the car out again,but you already know that,let us know what you find. HRP

 

Thanks guys. The oil pressure gauge isn't a gauge, it's an idiot light, so no plastic line. It could be the sender though. It could be the oil filter, the breathers, or I even thought the dip stick might have fallen out, but it's still in place, and tight. There's so much oil that I'm sure the source is under pressure, so I can probably rule out the oil pan, and even if the valve cover is lose, which I don't think it is, I don't think that much oil would come out. I haven't cleaned it yet. It's to cold to hose it off, so I'll start with a rag and some simple green. If it warms up a little I'll use the hose on it. No smoke, the exhaust is on the passenger side, and the pipe is outside of the car. Almost all the oil is on the drivers side. The oil is pretty thick, as I run Valvoline 50 wt racing oil in it. It was in the mid 50's outside when I was driving it.

 

Welch plug failed or gone, from an oil passage ?

 

Fram? I had that happen in cold weather 20/50 VR-1. Blew the gasket loose.

 

Yes it is a FRAM. Used to be the best oil filter you could buy. Not so much anymore. This one has been on here a while, so it's time for a change. Not sure what brand I'll get now. I still haven't cleaned it up. I need to do that soon. I hate the weather here, it was 61 today but super windy, tomorrow a low of 24 with a high of 34, and the possibility of snow. Man this place sucks!

 

Is it British?

 

Not British, it's a 2000CC Ford Pinto, German ford.

 

Why the 50w oil ?

 

Old habit. I'm from CA. and ran 50wt in all my cars. I don't run them here when it's cold. The temp on Saturday when this happened was in the 50's, and I let it sit and run for awhile before I drove it.

 

I like Mobile1 filters. I used to use Fram.

 

I was kidding. British engines were notorious for oil leaks.

 

I'd check the oil filter, looks like a blown seal, fram's are junk. If the oil filter has had a rest, the gasket may have been overcome, otherwise the oil pressure sending unit is in the head under the intake manifold, that's all there is on the drivers side. Stop using 50 wt, go to 10-30.

 

I have all the faith you'll find it next warm day. BTW, remember why you moved out here to the great Midwest? You don't really want to go back to 3/4 million dollar bungalows in town again, do ya? I love your 'estate' outside of Sedalia...very soothing, especially after surviving the hectic Bay area.
It'll be warm in a month or so.

 

Rocky, the reason we moved here is now 14. Her Daddy wants to take her to Florida. I want Texas, or Arizona, or? Hell I'll go to Florida too. I'll sell you this place, and I'll even throw in the mower, that gets the most seat time of anything.

 

trollst, I need to get out to the shop and look it over, I'm go stir crazy in the house. I hope it is the filter, and I might just have to try a different weight oil. What about that 15w-40 stuff they call diesel oil?

 

I used to use 20w50 also here in Ohio. Couple years ago I switched all the old cars to 15w40 Shell Rotella mainly for the zinc for the cars with flat tappets. Works real well and dropped operating temps about 10 degrees also. As for your oil leak I had a Ford 4cyl blow the oil filter seal three times in one day(slow learner) turned out to be the bypass valve stuck in the pump causing the oil pressure to go sky high and blow the gasket. Something to check is what I'm saying. Joe

 

15/40 is good use it.