Oil everywhere!

[watermellon]

I need help. I was driving my '93 festiva and it stalled after driving about a block. I restarted it and it stalled again. I then noticed some oil streaking up the hood from the front of the car. I lifted the hood and there was oil everywhere. It was more concentrated on the driver's side but there was also oil on the drive belt, spark plugs, on top of the engine, and even on the grille and from there dripping onto the bumper.

I dunno, does all that oil mean my car is kaput? Or does it mean a ring is gone, or the oil pump broken, or gasket shot? I dunno. Does anyone out there have an idea what's wrong with it? I'm not a mechanic, but I do like trying to fix my car if I can. Thanks.

[drddan]

Umm, that does not sound good. Did it make any noise, at start up, or during the drive at stall?
Sounds like something cracked. Head gasket? Piston ring?

Check the oil filter, to see if its screwed on tight?
Is the oil fill cap on tight?

[BigElCat]

Could be as simple as the O-ring on the distributer. Oil could havwe gone into the distributer and caused the stall.

No mechanical clunks is a good sign. Pull the dip stick. How much did you lose?

Valve cover gasket, or rear main seal?

[jjk1224]

Have you recently done an oil change? Maybe the filter double gasketed?

[WmWatt]

I got oil all over after a mechanic forgot to reinsert the dip stick. Found it stuck under the air filtre where he had left it.

[Larry Hampton]

I'm betting the filter or filter gasket also.

Have someone else start it while you look with the hood open, but tell them to quickly turn it off. Might wash the engine bay down first.

[Christ]

Oil shouldn't be coming out of the dipstick unless the block is under pressure, which points to a faulty evac system (PCV and crankcase vent) or cracked, loose, broken or worn piston compression rings, even if the dipstick is not present, at least not to any "holy crap that's a lot of oil" extent. Sometimes extremely worn valve guides or seals can also do this, but not as likely.

For oil to have been all over near the top of the engine, I would suspect distributor O-ring, valve cover gasket, or possibly a head gasket, although not likely in such a short time. An oil pan gasket could potentially also do it, but it isn't likely.

If the oil filter gasket is not seated properly, or is doubled, there is a chance it blew by at the top of the o-ring forcing oil upward under pressure. This being the case, it will be extremely obvious when someone starts the car and gives the engine any kind of throttle to increase the oil pressure at the filter.

[FeistyFesti]

Sounds like you forgot to put the oil fill cap back on.

[BigElCat]

'fess up Watermelon! Was it the cap?

Take your razzin' :p, and be done with it.

All subsequent correspondence here will be about the oil spout, until you finish this story. We will accept supernatural explanations; witchcraft...hyperspace vortexes...etc. Spread it on thick, (or tell the truth).

[nitrofarm]

'fess up Watermelon! Was it the cap?

Take your razzin' :p, and be done with it.

All subsequent correspondence here will be about the oil spout, until you finish this story. We will accept supernatural explanations; witchcraft...hyperspace vortexes...etc. Spread it on thick, (or tell the truth).

LOL I had a friend co worker who forgot to put the cap back on a JT8 powered DC-9. We taxi'd it to the flight line.Got out and someone was like ew that dont look good. We've all done it.Just sucks when its me.drool

[iceracerdude]

Obviously, you've checked the oil fill cap, make sure the hose coming from the pvc valve is still intact and running unbroken to the intake manifold.
I bought a car from a guy that the top seal on the end of the camshaft (passenger side of head) had simply popped out of it's seat, almost as if it was not pushed all the way into place originally. It was rolling around on the end of the cam shaft right behind the belt cog, and the oil was just a flowing out right behind it.
Just a $5 seal is all

[BigElCat]

I was riding with my cousin 'cross country when he did it. The misplaced cap thing.

I was like, 'what's that smell'? We even had a flame shooting out of the oil hole. We covered the hole to put the fire out, sourced a new cap, added oil and off we went.

The old Toyota didn't even complain.

[Christ]

When I worked at Sears, I accidentally did that once. I left the cap off a customer's car because he was in there bugging me while I was working on it. He drove it all the way home (admittedly knowing that I hadn't put the cap back on), then called and tried to get Sears to pay for a new engine, driveway cleaning, etc.

His mistake was admitting that he knew I hadn't put it back on before leaving the store. They gave me a verbal for it, that was the extent.

[FestYboy]

no response??

[BigElCat]

FF.com to Watermelon...are you receiving?...over.

Don't make me tell the story about the time I drove off with a gas pump nozzle still in the tank!