2004 Explorer, slow oil leak

[RichC_111]

Hi all,

My wife's 2004 Explorer (Eddie Bauer w/V8) has developed a slow oil leak, starting about 6 months ago. I would estimate it's losing about 1 quart every 2 months. The vehicle is driven ~ 50 miles per day. Also, when adding oil, there's white frothy oil (looks like vanilla milkshake consistency) at the oil fill spout. The vehicle has ~251,000 miles on it. Is this the beginning of the end for this vehicle? Aside from that, it still runs strong and has no other known problems (have been the only owner of the vehicle, it's garaged, and pretty meticulously maintained). Should I be thinking about replacing the vehicle? Any thoughts on additives to stop the leak? Thanks in advance all, this forum rocks, always helpful!!!

-Rich

 

[LMHmedchem]

Have you noticed any oil drips on the floor of the garage or driveway?

Are you getting blue or white smoke from the tail pipe?

Are you losing coolant as well as oil?

If there are no external signs of a leak then the oil is either being burnt (probably leaking around the rings) or leaking into your coolant. If the leak is external than it is more likely that the fix might be minimal cost. An internal leak usually means more significant engine work (cracked cylinder head, cracked engine block, leaking gasket, etc.) which will come down to whether or not you can do it yourself.

Milky white oil usually means that coolant is mixing with the oil. The most likely cause for that is a bad head gasket. I don't know if that kind of repair is in your wheelhouse or not.

LMHmedchem

 

[RichC_111]

Have you noticed any oil drips on the floor of the garage or driveway?

Are you getting blue or white smoke from the tail pipe?

Are you losing coolant as well as oil?

If there are no external signs of a leak then the oil is either being burnt (probably leaking around the rings) or leaking into your coolant. If the leak is external than it is more likely that the fix might be minimal cost. An internal leak usually means more significant engine work (cracked cylinder head, cracked engine block, leaking gasket, etc.) which will come down to whether or not you can do it yourself.

Milky white oil usually means that coolant is mixing with the oil. The most likely cause for that is a bad head gasket. I don't know if that kind of repair is in your wheelhouse or not.

LMHmedchem

Hi LMH,

Yes, it is dripping a few drops a day under the engine. Attaching some pics as well. Coolent isn't going down very quickly (but it is slowly), but no blue or white smoke in exhaust and everything else seems to be normal. I'm not mechanically inclined at all, so I'd need to have repairs done by someone, or it may just be getting close to the time for a new vehicle.

 

[1991 sploder]

Yea that's all milkshake I don't think anything could save you now everything has already been compromised damage has been done. I don't recommend those head gasket sealer additives even if you do get it to seal... it wont be for long. When u drive like that it damages timing chain , rod bearings ... everything

 

[LMHmedchem]

If I was doing the work myself, I might change out the head gasket and run a couple of cans of Seafoam through the upper engine to clean out the fuel side. I might consider and engine flush to clean the oil side, though that is usually not recommended for high mileage engines. To do it yourself would only be a couple of hundred dollars in parts. For me, it would be worth it to give it a try and hope that the systemic damage has not been too bad. It's a v8, so it's not too hard to have a peek at the timing chain as well.

To pay for it, you are looking at $800-$900 for the head gasket repair (at lest around here) and it may need more than that if other components have been damaged. You would need reliable and honest mechanic to evaluate the damage before even considering that. You can probably get a used (not rebuilt) engine for about that (uninstalled), so you may want to investigate that if you are considering keeping the truck.

LMHmedchem