Persistent oil leak

[Ado Sigal]

Run the engine without covers (clean and dry first) and observe where 
the oil comes from. If you haven't changed to one piece rubber cam cover 
gasket, now is time to do it. When is off, check that all the studs are 
all the way in tight

Good luck,  Ado



Matt Suffern wrote:

>Hi all:
>
>Many of you know my '86 4kq has been plagued by a consistent oil leak from
>the front of the engine (~1 quart/week).  Today I replaced the front main
>seal for the second time and it didn't cure the problem.  The leak
>definitely seems to be coming from that region--there is quite a bit of oil
>in the timing belt area (a lot seems to be flung up onto the idler pulley).
>I can't find any "missing bolts" or anything else that has been suggested.
>
>What am I doing wrong that I can't fix this leak?  I coated the seal with
>oil and installed it with the flat section of the "U" (as it looks in cross
>section) toward the front of the engine.  I used the old seal to drive in
>the new and torqued down the main pulley bolt.
>
>One thing:  When I removed the seal the very first time (it didn't
>leak--replaced it as a matter of course while changing water pump), I
>drilled screws into the seal and pulled on them to remove it (it worked).
>However, the screws may have scratched the surface around the oil seal
>area.  Would a slight scratch of the metal be enough to cause this leak?
>
>Thanks for all the great advice, guys.
>
>Best,
>Matt
>Winston-Salem, NC
>'86 4kq
>
>  
>