Low Oil light

[Jersey Mike]

While doing some work underneath the car recently, I noticed some light oil around the oil pan. I've never noticed a puddle or stains in my driveway or anything.
I just got to school yesterday and was driving the car last night & noticed the Low Oil light came on. The oil & filter were changed ~800 miles ago.
I pulled the dipstick & sure enough the oil was extremely low.
(Luckily, I have a 1/2 quart of Mobil1 left over from my last change that I just happened to throw in the trunk of the car!)

Since I'm at school, I have no access to a jack or lift or anything, so I can't really get underneath there and inspect too well.

Someone said that the Rear Main Seal is a common problem on these cars. I'd like to know what other possibilities are and a rough idea of how much this repair is going to cost...


*EDIT*
I just went outside to grab something from the trunk & thought I'd look under the car. From what I could see, there is a big round oil stain on the ground, located between the headers. I could see the front of the oil pan, and that too had oil on it. There was some oil on the bottom of the Y-pipe as well. I looked around and saw that there was a trail of oil that lead to my parking spot, outlining how I had entered the parking lot.
I just pulled the dipstick and there is *zero* oil on it. :(

**Edit**
I just checked & the leak is not coming from the oil filter, and the drain plug is tight. Following the trail, it seems to be from the top-side of the oil pan, and slightly more on the passenger-side than the driver's side.

Any help at all is appreciated. Thanks guys

[sweetbmxrider]

i would make sure the filter is tight, even take it off and make sure the old filter's o ring didn't get stuck. what motor are we dealing with?

[Jersey Mike]

It's a K&N oil filter; one of those that you can tighten/loosen by hand.


The car is a 2000 LS1

[LTb1ow]

It's a K&N oil filter; one of those that you can tighten/loosen by hand.


The car is a 2000 LS1

I would check that, and make sure its nice and snug.

Do LS1s have oil coolers?

[creeper]

did you damage/pull out the dipstick tube when you bent it to get it in the fuel rail cover hole?

you have always had a leak though, there was oil all over when we did headers

from what i saw it looked like it was coming from everywhere above the oil pan. oil pan gasket maybe?

[sweetbmxrider]

for there to be a puddle somewhat near where the oil filter is, an almost empty pan, and a recent oil change, i would pull the filter off to make sure there isn't an old o-ring hung up in there. easiest thing to do and worth the look IMO

[Jersey Mike]

I will check the oil filter.
But as Creeper said, there was a small leak even before I did the oil change--it wasn't NEARLY this bad, but it was still leaking from somewhere.


If it's the filter, why would I start seeing these big stains now, and not at all in the last 800 miles?

[LTb1ow]

Well with the car running, there is no jet of oil right?

[sweetbmxrider]

oh kinda over looked the 800 mile thing. if you bent the dipstick tube or did anything recently, i would look there first. otherwise, its best to just get under it and look for it yourself. how many miles on the motor?

[Jersey Mike]

Well with the car running, there is no jet of oil right?
I'm afraid to start the car now that I saw that there is no oil in the motor.

oh kinda over looked the 800 mile thing. if you bent the dipstick tube or did anything recently, i would look there first. otherwise, its best to just get under it and look for it yourself. how many miles on the motor?

I had bent the dipstick tube a little last week so I could line the hole up through the FRC.
I checked the dipstick last night when I saw the Low Oil light & there was still oil in there. However, I checked again today & there was *none.*

Motor has 91,xxx on it.

[Tru2Chevy]

Your best bet right now is to find someone with a jack and ramps or jackstands and get under there and just look over everything very carefully. Don't pass over anything based on mileage since oil change or anything like that.

- Justin

[Jersey Mike]

Thanks, Justin.

I guess the hard part now is finding someone at Rutgers who brought a jack with them..

[Tru2Chevy]

I'm sure there are members in the area who can help you out. Are you in a school lot, or private parking?

- Justin

[Jersey Mike]

The car's parked outside my dorm; the school owns the parking lot, to the best of my knowledge.

[Tru2Chevy]

The car's parked outside my dorm; the school owns the parking lot, to the best of my knowledge.

Might wanna check on their policies....I used to get yelled at routinely by campus security for even having the hood up on my car, not working on anything. Dunno what the deal at Rutgers is though.

- Justin

[NJ Torque]

Which Rutgers campus?

The dipstick on these cars come loose... and you had changed that sensor right? cuase my broke and i didnt change it, and it started leaking bad...

[Jersey Mike]

Which Rutgers campus?

The dipstick on these cars come loose... and you had changed that sensor right? cuase my broke and i didnt change it, and it started leaking bad...

New Brunswick/Piscataway.

What sensor are you talking about, Chris? The Oil Pressure Sending Unit that broke? No, I have not changed that yet, it's unplugged, so no oil pressure guage.

[NJ Torque]

Yeah, its unpluged so it doesnt read oil pressure. but it still is screwed in the block... theres a rubber seal that will tear with the pressure...

[S.J.SLEEPER]

THE SIMPLEST THING...... everyone didn't mention.......
is the drain plug tight? is the gasket on the drain plug broken?

oil filter good thing to check (the old filter seal stuck to filter housing)
oil pans not a big leaker and wouldn't leak that bad( the pan is way taller compared to internal oil height.

i have seen oil pressure sensors go bad and leak profusly ( located behind intake next to cam sensor

front seal possibly blown out behind crank pulley(not likely on ls1 just on lt1 junkers !!!)

good luck hope you find the leak !!! wish i was closer i could help.

[NastyEllEssWon]

if your leaking a trail of oil i would check to make sure the oil filter isnt double gasketed.




just a good visual will tell you where your leaking really.

[Jersey Mike]

Thanks guys. Is there anyone in the New Brunswick/Piscataway area that would be willing to lend a hand a get under there?
The car's right outside with no jack, ramps or oil

[Jersey Mike]

The OPSU broke while doing an intake swap a few months ago, could that have caused this?

[sweetbmxrider]

i have heard they leak like hell. i would deem it possible

[LTb1ow]

Thanks guys. Is there anyone in the New Brunswick/Piscataway area that would be willing to lend a hand a get under there?
The car's right outside with no jack, ramps or oil

Where are you?

[WildBillyT]

The OPSU broke while doing an intake swap a few months ago, could that have caused this?

Well, did you fix it? Yes, the OPSU can leak as it "sees" oil pressure.

[Jersey Mike]

Where are you?

Rutgers New Brunswick/Piscataway


Well, did you fix it? Yes, the OPSU can leak as it "sees" oil pressure.

No, it has not been fixed yet.

[Tru2Chevy]

Since you have oil down the front of the oil pan, I would concentrate on possible leaks on the front of the engine. Keep in mind that there may be more than one.

- Justin

[Jersey Mike]

Thanks, Justin.
I still haven't been able to get my hands on a jack. Two Central guys from FBOA offered to help & arranged a time, but both seem to have fallen off the face of the earth & aren't returning anymore calls or texts.

:|

[LTb1ow]

How close are you to NJIT?

[Jersey Mike]

SSP- I'm in Piscataway.

[Jersey Mike]

So, I found someone who had a bottle-jack in his car & we jacked the car up enough to get under it.

Oil Filter was tight.
Drain Plug was tight.

The underside of the oil pan was coated slightly more to the passenger-side than the driver's-side. I had a 1/2quart in the trunk that I poured in & waited under the car for twenty-or-so minutes and did not see a single drop.


What does this sound like? Gasket? Rear Main Seal? Other?

[Tru2Chevy]

Pretty unlikely that oil from a rear main seal leak is gonna be found on the front and underside of the pan. I'd still give a hard look to the front of the engine.

Might be a good idea to clean up any oil residue, then buy a few quarts of cheap oil and toss in to fill it up, then start it up and watch it carefully to see where it leaks. If you don't see anything, shut it off, wait 5-10 mins, then check the oil and make sure you are still full. If so, drive around for a little while, then park it again and jack it up to check for leaks.

Disclaimer - I wouldn't spend much (if any) time under the car if all you have to hold it up is a bottle jack. You really want a pair of jackstands or a good set of ramps holding it up.

- Justin

[LTb1ow]

Bah, he is a college student, they usually have plenty of useless books, stick some of them under each wheel.

:)

[Jersey Mike]

Yeah, $400 worth of books per semester. I knew they'd come in handy for something!

[NJ Torque]

Mike my phone had broken... if the car is still down, I'd be around tomorrow... and could always do some poloticin by rutgers... or I could tow the car to my place if you want?

[Jersey Mike]

Mike my phone had broken... if the car is still down, I'd be around tomorrow... and could always do some poloticin by rutgers... or I could tow the car to my place if you want?

Ah, gotcha. Yeah, we could do that. PM me with details please

[NastyEllEssWon]

if it was the passenger side id check the oil dipstick tube

[camaro2you]

Quite possible you have a rear main seal leak and the oil pan gasket or timing chain cover gasket is starting to go in the front.

[Jersey Mike]

Mike my phone had broken... if the car is still down, I'd be around tomorrow... and could always do some poloticin by rutgers... or I could tow the car to my place if you want?

Hey Chris, were you serious about this offer?