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Uh oh... Head Gasket Leaking


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I just did mine @ 84k. I had the same leak near the oil filter. It went from a minor looking wet spot to full blown gushing within a few days. Make sure you get replacement head bolts, intake/exhaust manifold/valve cover gaskets and good luck. I did the clutch while I was in there, but it didn't look too bad. Your results may vary.
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  • 3 months later...

My 08 legacy started with little seeping and is now a pretty significant leak. head gaskets actually commonly leak oil as well. not just coolant. they can actually but a number of different problems. they can mix oil and coolant, coolant into combustion chamber, pressure into cooling system, or the luckiest (if you can call it that) is just oil out the bottom...

 

Mine is just leaking oil (not valve cover gaskets, pretty east to tell...) but it could be well on its way to other problems if not fixed

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External oil leak is usually first symptom of HG problem. If that is all that is happening you can drive it for quite a while this way (as long as oil is regularly checked and added when low). If you have reason to believe power is down or yo get mis-fire codes, it would be a good idea to check for traces of exhaust gases in the coolant with a kit like this:

[ame=http://www.amazon.com/Lisle-75500-Combustion-Leak-Detector/dp/B0007ZDRUI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1386376450&sr=8-1&keywords=block+test]Amazon.com: Lisle 75500 Combustion Leak Detector: Automotive[/ame]

or get a cooling system pressure test.

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External oil leak is usually first symptom of HG problem. If that is all that is happening you can drive it for quite a while this way (as long as oil is regularly checked and added when low). If you have reason to believe power is down or yo get mis-fire codes, it would be a good idea to check for traces of exhaust gases in the coolant with a kit like this:

Amazon.com: Lisle 75500 Combustion Leak Detector: Automotive

or get a cooling system pressure test.

 

You just set a light bulb off in my head. My head gaskets have been damp for like over a year. Over the last few months, my car has been significantly down on power, but I can't figure out why. I've checked everything it seems. I logged some data, no misfires. Oil consumption is very minimal too. But is it possible that my head gaskets are the problem?

 

EDIT: Car has never overheated.

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A compression check will give you a good idea if problem is worn valves or piston rings (or possibly HG leak). A leak down test is better since the reason for high leak down (companion to low compression) can usually be isolated (i.e. leaking valve - listen for air escaping into intake or exhaust, worn rings - listen for air escaping into crank case (via PCV hose), an HG may result in bubbles coming up through radiator, etc. But if compression is low on one or more cylinder, you'll know why power is down...
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