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My car has developed an oil leak whilst in Northern France and I'm having trouble finding a garage to fix it, this being August many businesses are shutting for the annual August holiday.
Can anyone advise me on the pros and cons of returning to the the UK (150 miles) to get this fixed ? Or am I risking damaging the engine ?
Thanks in advance.
What vehicle and how severe is the leak.
When did you last check the level and where is it now?
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How bad is the leak?
If it's just the occasional drop, then get yourself a 5ltre pack, and top up as and when required.
As long as you keep oil levels more or less right, you'll be ok.
How much is it losing? (per mile when running.)
Where is it leaking from?
What car is it?
Guess it depends on the cause of the leak and how significant it is but too little oil in the engine will basically wreck it (and obviously having your engine expire when you are driving is potentially dangerous).
As above, where is the leak??
head gasket, no driving, leak from the sump, yes just top up.
Assuming it isn`t pissing out somewhere you'll be OK provided the oil level is topped up and remains near to maximum. If you can see the oil coming out when the engines running (a steady drip) I`d be concerned, otherwise just ensure you top it up. Keep a close eye on it, don't let the level go below minimum on the dipstick (or whatever device it has instead). If you can`t get exactly the right oil use the closest, any oil's better than no oil.
Thanks all
It’s a Skoda Yeti 1.2 petrol.
It’s lost about half a litre in a week of local running around. No oil Stains visible under the car when parked.
I Can’t see where the leak is coming from as there’s a fixed drip tray in the way but it seems to be low down on the R side of the engine under about where the battery sits.
Oil leaks are always difficult because you don’t really know if it’s a slight leak which is been happening for a while or a more serious leak which has just a happened.
As others have said, if it’s peeing out then don’t chance it but if it’s losing losing x amount gradually over x amount of miles then you should be ok. Just check every now and again and monitor the situation. Pretty certain Skodas have engine under trays which mask oil leaks and sometimes are no real help so it might be a reason you’re not seeing a lot.
Edit....under where the battery sits? Are you sure it’s engine oil and not a gearbox oil leak?
The engine under tray makes it very hard to see the leak location but it is losing engine oil ( I’m topping it up )
half a liter in a week is nothing to worry. buy a 5L can and top it up.Quote:
Originally Posted by eddie1
Keep a close eye on it - you don’t want it to become a hazard on bends/roundabouts to bikes.
Any chance it is the oil filter slightly slack? Usually where the drip is, is not where it emanates from.
This thread takes me back to my first car, an ageing 850 Mini bought in 1975 after passing my test as a 17 year old. The car leaked oil and burnt oil at a rate of approx 1 pint in 300 miles. This deteriorated to 1 pint in around 150 miles, my youthfully exuberant driving style didn’t help. I bought a gallon can every 2 months, then it got to every 6 weeks.......then every 5 weeks! The gallon can accompanied me on long journeys, topping up was a routine habit. I bought the cheapest I could find from the local supermarket.
Hopefully, the OPs car hasn’t developed a serious problem and there will be a cheap easy fix, follow the advice offered and don’t worry too much about it.
I had a small to moderate oil leak in my 1963 Karmann Ghia driving it 1,500 miles from Iowa to California in 1967. I thought I was keeping close tabs on it at each fuel fill-up, usually adding a quart of oil. On Route 66 in a desolate part of Arizona in 110-degree F heat, the engine seized up, a black cloud of smoke filled my rear mirror, and the rear tires stopped spinning!
Oil leaks are not good!
With my mom standing beside it:
https://i.imgur.com/lTrVOny.jpg
I’ve checked the oil filter & it’s solidly fixed and dry around it
Chances are you’re burning it if it doesn’t mark its territory.
Years ago everyone ran cars that were rust buckets after 5 or 6 years, hose pipes for the cooling system leaked regularly and everyone had oil leaks. Every second or third house had oil stains on the drive and regular topping up of water and oil was par for the course.
At the age of 19 I ran a 10 year old Austin A35 which was a total rust bucket and I used to top it up with one or two pints of oil every week. Oil was dirt cheap in those days, so weekly top ups were nothing unusual.
I ran a Jag 3.8MK2 that was in good nick for a few years and a weekly top up of oil was just the norm.
Most of us had a spare can of water and tin of oil in the boot, it just seemed normal and nothing to worry about. If the OP is losing a fixed amount of oil over a fixed time or distance, then his bet bet is to keep a small can of oil in the boot and get himself home with small top ups where he can do something about.
I think we all suffer from having good cars where you could drive from Cornwall to Scotland and back and not even think of checking anything because you don't need to thanks to modern reliability. I only check my oil levels once or twice in between servicing and I am not alone in that.
You’ve never ever had to stop checking your oil and water , modern cars are just as capable of dropping an oil seal than your old Mk2. It’s something I hear frequently that makes me grit my teeth.Quote:
Originally Posted by Mick P
Quote:
Originally Posted by Franky Four Fingers
* sarcasm alert *
Yes, but you work on Land Rovers :angel4:
That is very true, you only have to worry about an oil leak on a Land Rover when it stops leaking.Quote:
Originally Posted by Saint-Just
I remember in the 80s there was a "miracle" product that you added to the oil, that had "magical" lubricating properties... A French Moto journalist took them to their word, filled an airhead with water + the product and rode to Deauville I think.Quote:
Originally Posted by Franky Four Fingers
I know he made it but not sure he came back.
I was told very early on that British cars and bikes did not leak oil: they marked their territory.
Its a sad truth back in the 70s and 80s we couldn’t make anything that didn’t leak, Jags, BL, LR, all leaked like the Exxon ValdezQuote:
Originally Posted by Saint-Just
I remember the first Freelander 1s that came out with the old Rover L series lump. Their solution for the oil leak from the rear main seal was to jam a large piece of foam between the bell housing and engine ( factory fitted ) they knew they were going to leak it was just a question of when 😆
Yes it was called Slick 50, invented by a guy called Chris Williams, sold it through Halfords and he literally became a millionaire.Quote:
Originally Posted by Saint-Just
And it worked.Quote:
Originally Posted by Mick P
Yes it did, that is why he became a millionaire.Quote:
Originally Posted by oldoakknives
He also invented and patented those little transfers of bullet holes that you stuck on your windscreen making it look like someone had machine gunned your car, again he sold it through Halfords and did very well out of it. He got the idea after watching a James Bond movie.
I wish I could check the oil in my car. It doesn't have a dipstick, instead it has some electronic doodah that I can't fathom out.Quote:
Originally Posted by Franky Four Fingers
I worked in a main dealer on the parts desk until last year, we would get people in asking what did the light on their dash mean, a quick look would often require the oil level being checked and filled up, not topped up, filled up, rarely did anyone admit to checking the oil level, ‘Oh, it was serviced last year’ or something like that. Of course some people expect washer fluid to last between services too.
Lack of a conventional dipstick is a pain, my car has to be switched off for 10 minutes and parked on level ground to allow a check to be made, I then have to remember what to press or prod to get the oil level to show on the dashboard. Someone will tell me this is progress, it certainly doesn`t feel like it! Inevitably it doesn`t get checked often.
Briskoda would be a good place to ask, might this be it?
A former colleague of mine had an oil leak from the rocker box area on his Skoda Octavia which he intended to have fixed at the next service.
The "next service" included a replacement engine. He suffered intense contact between various valves and pistons said by the AD to have been caused by timing belt failure due to oil contamination. I recall him telling me the car was worth about £6K fixed but cost to fix was a mere £2.5K Ouch!
I had a rocker cover leak on my old focus it perished all 4 coil pack rubbers 4 new coil packs at £100 eachQuote:
Originally Posted by uptheaddicks