burning oil, i think...head gasket?

[thomashanno]

Hey...
After a recent oil change (I put more than usual in, in the past I
underfill a little but I don't think I went over the 4.8 spec) my '97
legacy outback wagon smelled like burning oil anytime I stopped and got
out of the car. I drove the car fairly roughly today (stupid of me) and
for the first time smoke came up through the hood. It was "normal"
colored smoke, I would say, but it still smelled like oil. I looked
underneath, and toward the back of the engine something must have been
dripping onto the "Y" part of my exhaust pipe because quite a bit of
smoke was coming from there. I didn't look hard to see what exactly was
doing the dripping, but I was hoping to at least hear "you're not going
to have to spend an exorbitant sum on a head gasket...."

I think I'm taking to to a nearby shop tomorrow to at least get a
diagnosis.


Any tips would be appreciated...

Thanks,
Thomas

 

[Carl 1 Lucky Texan]

Hey...
After a recent oil change (I put more than usual in, in the past I
underfill a little but I don't think I went over the 4.8 spec) my '97
legacy outback wagon smelled like burning oil anytime I stopped and got
out of the car. I drove the car fairly roughly today (stupid of me) and
for the first time smoke came up through the hood. It was "normal"
colored smoke, I would say, but it still smelled like oil. I looked
underneath, and toward the back of the engine something must have been
dripping onto the "Y" part of my exhaust pipe because quite a bit of
smoke was coming from there. I didn't look hard to see what exactly was
doing the dripping, but I was hoping to at least hear "you're not going
to have to spend an exorbitant sum on a head gasket...."

I think I'm taking to to a nearby shop tomorrow to at least get a
diagnosis.


Any tips would be appreciated...

Thanks,
Thomas

Don't discount the slim possibility of a torn CV boot allowing grease to
sling onto the exhaust.

good luck

Carl

 

[BobN]

In my limited experience, with head gasket failure you would usually smell
coolant, not oil.

Other possible causes include:

torn CV boot leaking grease, which should be fixed right away before the
axle is damaged.

rear main seal

oil pump bolts backing out, a well-known problem with 2.5L motors. Seems
like it's from the rear but that's blowback onto the Y pipe while in motion.
Easy fix: new o-ring for oil pump and Loctite the bolts. Don't let the shop
give you a story about needing a new oil pump.

front seals (crankshaft, cams) leaking.

 

[daszkiew2000]

In my limited experience, with head gasket failure you would usually smell
coolant, not oil.

Other possible causes include:

torn CV boot leaking grease, which should be fixed right away before the
axle is damaged.

rear main seal

oil pump bolts backing out, a well-known problem with 2.5L motors. Seems
like it's from the rear but that's blowback onto the Y pipe while in motion.
Easy fix: new o-ring for oil pump and Loctite the bolts. Don't let the shop
give you a story about needing a new oil pump.

front seals (crankshaft, cams) leaking.

head may leak coolant as well as oil, due to the fact that oil and
coolant passages are adjacent and damaged gasket MAY case both to leak
; from my perdonal experience coolant has a tendency to seep out in the
winter, and oil does it in the summer - i own '00 outback, though so
the leak is minimal and - what's more important - EXTERNAL; as long as
i keep a keen eye on levels of both , oil and coolant, i'm fine.....

 

[thomashanno]

So I've got some news...I stopped by a mechanic and he said that my
rear main seal looks like it's leaking. He recommended another mechanic
who might be able to do it in his own shop for fairly cheap. The Subaru
dealer quotes the job at $550+, but they recommended that I get a
degreasing first (for $36) so they can make sure the leak isn't coming
from the valve covers. I haven't spoken to the other mechanic yet.

So I have a question:

How bad is it if I drive the car as-is and maintain my oil level? In
the 1200 or so miles since it started leaking, I haven't noticed a drop
in the oil level. It just smells a little when I get out of the car,
sometimes. I haven't noticed it lately though.

 

[Carl 1 Lucky Texan]

So I've got some news...I stopped by a mechanic and he said that my
rear main seal looks like it's leaking. He recommended another mechanic
who might be able to do it in his own shop for fairly cheap. The Subaru
dealer quotes the job at $550+, but they recommended that I get a
degreasing first (for $36) so they can make sure the leak isn't coming
from the valve covers. I haven't spoken to the other mechanic yet.

So I have a question:

How bad is it if I drive the car as-is and maintain my oil level? In
the 1200 or so miles since it started leaking, I haven't noticed a drop
in the oil level. It just smells a little when I get out of the car,
sometimes. I haven't noticed it lately though.

Keep it topped up - but DO NOT think you can skip proper scheduled oil
changes just because you are putting in fresh oil on occasion. The
crankcase can collect water and unburned fuel and combustion byproducts
all of which may be reduced/removed during oil changes.

Carl