OK, so my "bonus" 914 is a stock 2.0 engine. I drove it to work once. Parked it on the street and covered it. It rained a couple days past and I was out of town over the weekend. I took out the trash last night and noticed a dark puddle coming from under the car (rear right side) seeping to the curb. I was warned there were leaky seals but told it was drivable.

So my question is, how much of a leak is too much?
Do I just put some 20/50 in every time I go for a drive?

I assume the 4-cyl 2.0 engine oil also needs to be checked while the engine is running

Gwen .... oil is checked, car sitting level, not running. There is no oil tank, just a sump.

What's to much? A drop of oil spreads out pretty far. Leaking seals may be the pushrod tube seals or valve cover gaskets.

Put oil in it when it's low and drive it till those items can be replaced.

So sayeth Shitzzz.

> A drop of oil spreads out pretty far.

OK. I'll go with that story

> oil is checked, car sitting level, not running.

Ah! Not running....not like the 6-cyl. Thanks!
20/50 oil OK?

>Leaking seals may be the pushrod tube seals or valve cover gaskets.
> Put oil in it when it's low and drive it till those items can be replaced.

Approx. how $$ is this kind of repair on average?

20-50 is perfect. If anything but the "approved by World Members" oil, I add sufficient Lucas Oil Additive to get the "good wear additives".

One member had a cut seal on the oil return tube at an event. Everytime she parked it, it would drain about 1/8 quart on the ground. Bought a case of oil from the return home.

Just watch your oil level.

Understood.

Rich Towle determined that one pizza box per week's worth of dripping or less was an appropriate amount. He was unclear about what size of pizza or what toppings were included.

Pushrod tube seals and valve cover gaskets wouldn't amount to much ... I forget ... maybe $15.00 total.

What the mechanic charges is another story. Valve cover gaskets are a snap to change. Push rod tubes are a bit time consuming because the rockers have to be removed. Not a hard job at all.

Also check your oil sending unit!

Go ahead and me but..
My car leaked about 10 drops every time I parked it, so i put some of that high mileage synthetic blend in it. Said it has seal softener in it, i believe them. Down to one drop now, no oil burning to speak of. Worth a shot IMO.

And i do recommend doing the valve cover gaskets. Super easy. I silicon the gasket to the cover then put them on.

Joke away big guy....

If you put a pizza box under it and it does not last a week without turning into a wet mess that you need a shovel to pick up...you need to fix the leak.

Look it up, its in the original italian owners manual

Rich

Curious on the 20/50 weight? I just read the manual and it states 30weight over 32 deg. F 20weight from 5deg.-32deg. and 10 weight under 5deg...

I have been running 30 weight for 2 years, so. cal. w/ no leaks..

is the 50 weight for when you can't fix the leaks?

Love the Pizza Box evalution, actually amkes alot of sense in estmation..

Multigrade oils supposedly are easier on the engine on a cold start and change viscosity as heat is added.

Do whatever turns your crank ...

Is the car usually parked on a road with a big crown? The original pic looks like it does. If the engine has a leak then parking on a slant may make it leak even more. Maybe the leak is only on the passenger side. Park the other way and it might not leak as much...

That would be the manual written 40 years ago for new cars...
If you have a new car and a supply of 40-year-old 30-weight oil - go for it.

Today's oil is different, and (probably) your engine has a few miles on it.
We must adapt...

I guess I should correct myself, I have been using 10/30 w/ no leaks for 2 years daily driver.. You can get straight 30 wt. Brad Penn but I have never used it.. pretty much been using synthetic 10/30 Lucas but have some Brad Penn 10/30 in my garage for the next change. I understand that Oil is debate able subject but did not want to start off over again. Also agree w/ pizza box and "whatever turns your crank", just was trying to make sure I was not causing my self a problem, in addtion I will be in Montana not So. Cal. by winter time and know I should make some changes for the freezing temps.. Thanks for your input.

I have a question on the size of pizza box. I always buy extra large pizzas. So is this the right size or are you talking about the personal pizza size

I need to plan these things for when I have a four

Seal softener is usually bad. Yes, while you are running the oil it softens the seals. After it wears for a while the seals get hard again, and most times harder than before.

Think of the seal softener as kerosene or thinner- it does not last as long in the engine as the base stock of the oil.

I would not recommend running a bunch of oil additives or oil with additives already put into it.

So that's what I've been doing wrong. This whole time I've been using a regular cardboard box folded up.

Pizza box it is.

I see no crown. But no. This is not a picture of where the car is currently parked.

Just got recycled yesterday morning. I'll try a different box flattened.

Cars that have sat awhile can leak pretty good. Synthetic oils are thinner and leak more too... you just want to see what the leaks are, where they are coming from and reduce the seepage if possible...

The 2056 I just installed has rouughly 5K miles, hasn't dripped anything yet, but its got a good layer of oil underneath...

It really wont matter on your minvan

The box always comes primed from the pizza shop...so its ready for more oil.

Rich

Yeh Rich ... squeeze the pizza for a full 12 quart oil change on a six.

Minivan? Oh nooo... not me

Google maps: 8926 Whitechuck Dr, Seattle Hill-Silver Firs, WA, United States
Address is approximate

Now would someone with those cars and a 914-6gt go to a minivan?

That looks like about three tablespoons probably whats in the valve cover when you stop it. First stick your finger tip in the oil and smell it. Then smell the oil on the dip stick. If they smell the same it is motor oil, if not it is trannsmission lube. I think the pass side valve cover possibly is really bad. It needs attention now but check the oil on a level surface after you make sure the oil is on the stick before you start it up the next time. Also the oil sender is a good place to check and the oil cooler area.

Now that's a puddle!

Is all that from one time parking it or a few times?

Most likely not as much oil there as you may think but still disconcerting I'm sure.

One time driving. It's been sitting on the curb since because it was raining a bit and I've been too busy the rest of the time needing my wagon.

That would be to much did it leave a trail as you pulled in?

Time to figure it out before you drive it again, check oil before you run it again, top off oil and start it up, you should be able to SEE that leak as it happens.

Ferg

Too much! Even if it was a week.

Taco plate and push rod tube seals, cheap and pretty quick to do. Also oil sending unit. Cheap.

Then see how things are. All those are cheap enough and could use replacing anyway. So even if it only fixed 20% of the leaking oil, no harm done. I bet those three items would fix most of the oil leaks though.

Harder stuff would be the rear main, oil cooler and filter console seals.

Were's that oil slick smiley?

Way too much! You can actually get a big fine here for that much. No oil down the storm drain. That needs to be fixed.

Ya. I figured it needed to be fixed at some point. Seems like sooner than I hoped. So glad to hear that they should be cheap and easy fixes (for a change).

Stupid me didn't think to ask the PO when he said "There are some minor oil leaks but it's a solid daily driver" to elaborate on what exactly those minor oil leaks entailed. He didn't care about this engine because he was going to put a V8 in it. But then he lost interest with so many other cars and projects.

Yeah, I feel for people like that

Wish I could come down and help. I like projects . A few of the local guys are going to keep me busy here for a while though

Tom Amon did me the favor of looking under the car and assessing what is leaking. He says the "taco plate" is fine. Transmission is dry. He says the valve gaskets need replacing & a lot of brake cleaner to clean up the current mess.

That's a lot of oil. Valve cover gaskets are easy though. With that much, the oil leak should be easy to find...

914s that sit and then run... leak..