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Oil Residue all around the oil pan??

Old Jan 28, 2011 | 01:48 PM
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Oil Residue all around the oil pan??

Hello everyone. I recently crawled under the car to install my AutoEXE chassis braces and change the motor oil. I noticed that there is an oil residue around the whole pan and some surrounding areas. Can anyone with some experience help me out with this issue. I am sure that it is not the oil drain plug or washer. I think the gasket to the pan might be going bad? I'm not sure. The oil could also be leaking from the oil filter possibly? Any advice is appreciated. The amount of oil loss is pretty low but it's still making a mess over the pan. No oil drips onto the ground if that is of any help. The oil could be leaking only when I'm at the track. Thanks
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Old Jan 28, 2011 | 04:13 PM
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I would first try and clean the oil pan/ anywhere else you see oil. And then see if it comes back. Some enigne degreaser will do the trick.
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Old Jan 31, 2011 | 12:47 PM
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Ok I will try that. Has anyone else had issues with the seal around the oil pan?
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Old Jan 31, 2011 | 01:12 PM
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a lot of people did.

the only solution (if thats the problem) is to take it down, clean it, re-seal it
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Old Feb 7, 2011 | 05:36 PM
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I've had the same issue before. Though mine was obvious since rust was eating away at my actual oil pan all over, and then it started to seep oil through the gasket. So I had to replace the oil pan and install a new gasket.
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Old Feb 7, 2011 | 09:25 PM
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Give me the old Cork and Rubber Oil Pan (Sump Pan) Gaskets or Grey Card one ANYDAY..these cheap **** sealing compounds don't appear to last any longer than a decade or even less.

All makers do it..

Mazda should offer a Parts 'alternative', I wonder if anyone has/is made a real gasket?
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Old Feb 7, 2011 | 09:29 PM
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Just use RTV, works fine and it seals a lot better.
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Old Feb 8, 2011 | 01:12 AM
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An often seen oil leak is the front seal....seems to happen track only with high rpms...and not leak on the street

If it is a small amount.....clean it up and don't worry about it...if it leaks a lot you will need to re-do the front seal

Might want to check your compression as well...blow by will make it worse
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Old Feb 8, 2011 | 12:55 PM
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Dannobre what do you mean by the front seal? Are you talking about the oil pan or another part of the engine. I will need to wipe everything down as clean as possible and then attempt to diagnose it again. Right now it's impossible to tell where the oil is coming from.
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Old Feb 8, 2011 | 01:16 PM
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Front eccentric shaft seal. (behind pulleys). Clean it up real nice with brakeclean or a steam gun or something and check to see where.the new oil comes from. Other spots that can leak down there are the OMP seal and the oil cooler lines
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Old Feb 8, 2011 | 04:04 PM
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I've had to reseal my oil pan due to leaking. I had Mazda reseal it and a few days later it started leaking all over again.
We thought it was the rear main oil seal, but after removing and resealing the oil pan myself it has never leaked again.
Barring that I suggest as others have to completely clean that and all surrounding areas and check for the source.
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Old Feb 8, 2011 | 06:28 PM
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I may be late in this thread, but the oil could have dripped from the oil filter when it was removed. I've always come across that problem once the filter's loosened, the oil seeps down and ends up around the oil pan
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Old Feb 9, 2011 | 08:40 AM
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I've taken the oil filter out of the equation. When I change oil filters, I punch a hole in the old one to allow the pressure to equalize. This drains almost all of the oil back into the stalk. I then wrap a rag around the base of the filter and remove it. Not a drop of oil falls through.
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Old Feb 9, 2011 | 12:19 PM
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Originally Posted by Gdawg522
I've taken the oil filter out of the equation. When I change oil filters, I punch a hole in the old one to allow the pressure to equalize. This drains almost all of the oil back into the stalk. I then wrap a rag around the base of the filter and remove it. Not a drop of oil falls through.
Ahhh, makes sense. I'll do that with my next oil change.
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Old Feb 9, 2011 | 12:55 PM
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Originally Posted by Gdawg522
I've taken the oil filter out of the equation. When I change oil filters, I punch a hole in the old one to allow the pressure to equalize. This drains almost all of the oil back into the stalk. I then wrap a rag around the base of the filter and remove it. Not a drop of oil falls through.
Just get a bottle of electric cleaner/spray.

take the oil filter out, wipe the area a bit. reinstall new oil filter. spray the **** out of it for a good 5-10 seconds. Done.
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Old Feb 18, 2011 | 01:04 PM
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I am having similar issues.

At high RMPs I am going through oil like crazy. On spirited drives oil splashes on the motor and actually causes it to smoke and I can see it spilling all over the oil pan. However, during normal street driving oil consumption is normal.

I am waiting on a new radiator and have a pretty good view of the drive pully and the OPM. can anyone help me out as to where exactley my problem is?

Thanks in advance,

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Old Feb 18, 2011 | 01:17 PM
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Kinda hard to tell....I would clean it up nice...and then check the MOP area....seems to be more on that side......the o-ring seal can be replaced if it is leaking there
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Old Feb 18, 2011 | 01:51 PM
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yea, concentration is defineatley around the OMP. you think the pump to engine O-ring should fix it?
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Old Feb 18, 2011 | 02:04 PM
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If thats where its leaking

Thats why you need to clean it up and see where the oil is voming from....
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Old Feb 18, 2011 | 02:32 PM
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The turbulence those spinning pulleys create will displace oil everywhere.
Clean it up good and check the area frequently.
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Old Feb 19, 2011 | 04:58 PM
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I bought a new OMP o-ring and we'll see if that works. Im also going to clean everything around it so that I can see if I am still leaking. thanks for all the help.
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Old Feb 21, 2011 | 08:30 AM
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Ok posting back on here regarding the oil residue. I cleaned up the whole oil pan area with brake cleaner and now it looks like new. I do believe the oil is coming from the pan seal because the freshest of oil was resting right on the suspension are that is directly near the oil drain plug. The driver side of the pan is not nearly as bad. So far, I've noticed the oil being down 1/4 quart in two fillups. I believe this is just normal consumption so I have no reason to rush this process. I will keep everyone updated once I check this area again in March.
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Old Mar 12, 2011 | 02:49 PM
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Originally Posted by 987HYS
I bought a new OMP o-ring and we'll see if that works. Im also going to clean everything around it so that I can see if I am still leaking. thanks for all the help.
Hey man, Was the OMP o-ring your problem? mine is leaking just like yours did in the pics. I think mine is the OMP but i always want to double check.
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Old Mar 15, 2011 | 03:02 PM
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^ I bought the o-ring, but never installed it. I didn't really want to mess with it. instead I just cleaned the whole area and from dirt/grime and am just going to keep an eye on it to see if i can find where its leaking from for sure
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Old Mar 15, 2011 | 03:20 PM
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It should be easier to replace once you do the radiator as well.
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