Hi all,

things are now getting exciting! My firs oil leak! I wonder if any of you experienced anything similar or can give me few directions about it.

Now, hopefully it'll be a minimal fix as my finances are extremely low

So, the car was fine when I bought it 4 weeks ago. Then, two days ago I parked it after 50 miles drive and this morning I noticed a 15'' puddle under the engine. Actually, I noticed it when coming home, after another 50miles (so the car run fine).

I parked on the concrete for the night so that this morning I could identify exactly where it was leaking. The spot this morning was just about 2'', and it was leaking from this point in the middle, just behind the wheels:



bigger resolution @:

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6167/...dbb90df2_o.jpg

I checked the engine oil and is half full. Transmission oil looks fine as well (but I didn't check it properly as engine was off).

I am not a mechanic and neither I have any mechanic experience - I just learn on the way, so apologies for any improper mistake I may have made with the car or about explaining the issue.

Thanks a lot guys, as usual!!

 

PS: Very likely the oil is coming from the black thing on top of the frame. The drop was on the frame though.

 

Ok, after cleaning everything, I rechecked after 5 hours and I saw this:



any idea what it may be? I guess it is the cable (speedometer?) connection? If so, is it an easy thing to fix and would I need to buy any spare parts?

 

If it's coming from the cable,then it should be an easy fix.Look at your last picture,there is a bolt right next to the cable,that bolt is holding a clip,that clip holds the speedometer gear housing in place,most people call it a bullet,if you pull that out there is an o-ring on it.I would say that o-ring is what is causing your leak,just get a new o-ring to put on it,then reinstall everything and it should be good.

 

That's be a dream and fantastic, thanks

This is the picture taken when it was leaking:



so hopefully an o-ring would do the job - thanks for the help.

The guy who sold the car to me told me that it's normal in American cars (even with rebuilt engine like mine) to have leaks here and there.

Now, I don't have a garage and I don't have any mechanic crane / lift. In your experience, did you find to have to use any pro mechanic tool like these to fix simple leaks or where you able to manage it all by yourself?

Just trying to plan my finances in advance

Thanks again!

 

You should unscrew the large knurled collar that holds the speedo cable and pull it out first. Be prepared when you undo the nut holding the speedo "bullet" and removing it, as you'll get a good flow of transmission fluid. Have a pan handy to catch it as you can.
The O ring is on the outside diameter of the bullet, but there's also an internal O ring that may be leaking. Should replace it also to be sure it's not part of the issue.

 

Thanks 1971BB427. Is the transmission fluid a standard one I can easily find in major car shops, or do you think I need to order it from some special supplier?

Thanks again.

 

Yeah, the trans fluid is available everywhere, just ask and they'll point you to the right one for a Chevy.

 

that's perfect, I'll open it straight away

 

Ok, so it looked like from the speedometer cable there was no seal ring whatsoever. From the black box, where the speedometer cable goes is, there was a weird semi-dense orange paste (old sealer paste)?

So what I did is to add a rubber ring from the speedometer cable (so that it's exactly between the female/male connection. Done that, it increased the space between the speedometer and the box of about 3 mms. It shouldn't be a problem, as the rubber should prevent any leak. Tomorrow I should know (raining now, so I'll wait for a bit of sun to take it for a test drive).

Also, I mistakenly used too much torque on the nut next to the speedometer and I think that it became loose - hopefully won't be a problem...

First job with the camaro - not extremely happy with the results, but it's the first job on a car I did by myself.