Oil leak, cold start issues- lower intake gasket?

[EMG7895]

I've been losing oil for a while now and its getting worse. I do an oil change every 3k and at about 3k now the oil light comes on and sometime there is a slight burning oil smell coming from under the hood when it has been running for a while. There is no smoke, ping, noise or coolant leak at all and when its cold out it will not idle at all until its warm unless i turn the key to run for about 10 seconds before I start it the first time, If I do that the first time or if its warm it runs perfectly, about 650 rpm warm idle. Could this be the lower intake gasket or is it something else?

 

[Maniak]

The cold start problem sounds like a Bad IAC.. Thats the part that brings up the idle when cold, and also gives you the "no touch" start.

Its at the top of the intake plenum on the drivers side. There is a plethora of information on the site about cleaning and/or replacing the IAC.

~Mark

 

[EMG7895]

I have cleaned the iac before, but I'm going to try and replace it, very strange problem.
what are the common areas for oil leaks on the 4.0, I think its leaking on to the exhaust manifolds and burning.

 

[exploded99]

Sounds like you may have zeroed in on the oil leak-

If its leaking down onto the exhaust manifolds, you need to tighten the valve covers or replace the valve cover gaskets.

 

[EMG7895]

thanks I'll try that, It's hard to pinpoint it because the entire motor is so dirty and oily.

 

[EMG7895]

Also the Iac is easy enough to do, where should I get gaskets and is there any write ups on this.

 

[EMG7895]

I'm hoping to work on it this weekend. IAC has been replaced now I'm just getting the parts. What are the best gaskets to use and do I need to replce any bolts (tty?). Any special instructions? I also read somewhere that the valve covers may be rusted through, is this common enough that I should expect it, and where can I get new ones?

 

[Glacier991]

While I doubt this is your problem, the MAJOR oil leak problem which plagues the 4.0 engines is the rear crank oil seal. Especially in the 1st gens this leaked in a majority of them fairly early on. I have a leaker and just live with it.

If you have a 1st gen and find oil on the pan and/or trans you probably are a member of this club. It is something you can live with.... unhappily but without problem.

 

[EMG7895]

Theres oil everywhere under the motor so I cant easily pinpoint it and I cant wash it off since its about 10 degrees out. I believe that its the valve covers because it smells like burning oil under the hood and in front of the truck. Would a leak from the rear main seal burn?

 

[EMG7895]

I've done rear seals on vehicles before but I had access to a full shop then, Is this a possible home repair? The oil spots on my driveway are pretty bad.

 

[EMG7895]

Today it warmed up a lot so I decided to check it out a bit more. The drivers side valve cover is definitly leaking badly. I didnt get down under the truck today to investigate the rear seal but there is oil all over the pan and crossmember and the front axle, theres a little bit on the trans, and a bit on the pass. side near the oil filter. Is there any tell tale signs of the rear seal? Anything to look for?

 

[Glacier991]

Leaks can be very difficult. You need to really clean things and start fresh... leaks can get all over everything and you will never know from whence they came. The UV systems work well for finding leaks.... but of course you need to pay for the dyes, blacklights and goggles.

 

[EMG7895]

Since the explorer is coming off the road soon if anybody wants I'll do a write up with pictures for the intake and valve cover gaskets, and the oil pan gasket. I have pretty much ruled out the rear main and it appears that the pan is leaking all over the place. So if anyone wants any pictures or info on the following, I will hopefully be working on this in the next two weeks, time permitting.

 

[mikehawk]

Since the explorer is coming off the road soon if anybody wants I'll do a write up with pictures for the intake and valve cover gaskets, and the oil pan gasket. I have pretty much ruled out the rear main and it appears that the pan is leaking all over the place. So if anyone wants any pictures or info on the following, I will hopefully be working on this in the next two weeks, time permitting.

I just replaced my LIM gasket, fuel rail gasket, injector o-rings, UIM gasket, and valve cover gaskets last week.

Before you start this project I just want to highly recommend Fel Pro reusable plastic and silicone gaskets for the valve covers. They're way better than the POS cork gaskets I had to replace. And I think the only special tools you'll need to replace the LIM gasket is a torque wrench, a set of star sockets (E7) to remove the fuel rail studs so you can seperate the fuel rail from the LIM, and have some high temp RTV on hand for sealing up the water jackets. And if your valve covers and upper & lower manifolds looked anything like mine, you'll need a ****load of engine degreaser and some good scrub brushes.

 

[Glacier991]

EMG.. I'd love to see you do a photo illustrated thread. It would be a valuable addition to the board. Plus, you'll get a cool FORD mousepad if you do <g>.

 

[EMG7895]

Hopefully you should see one within a month or two, just got to order parts, and find some time when the weather cooperates.

 

[EMG7895]

I just replaced my LIM gasket, fuel rail gasket, injector o-rings, UIM gasket, and valve cover gaskets last week.

Before you start this project I just want to highly recommend Fel Pro reusable plastic and silicone gaskets for the valve covers. They're way better than the POS cork gaskets I had to replace. And I think the only special tools you'll need to replace the LIM gasket is a torque wrench, a set of star sockets (E7) to remove the fuel rail studs so you can seperate the fuel rail from the LIM, and have some high temp RTV on hand for sealing up the water jackets. And if your valve covers and upper & lower manifolds looked anything like mine, you'll need a ****load of engine degreaser and some good scrub brushes.

I'm planning on using the fel pros, just have to order them or find them locally. I have all the tools so no problem there. I also expect it to be extremely dirty, if my throttle body is any indication of what lies below. I will not be replacing the pan gasket, because in order to do that you have to pull the whole engine, I guess the days of rebuiling the bottom end with the motor still in the truck are long gone.
Edit: Why did you replace the injector o rings, would it be a good idea to do that also while i'm at it?

 

[mikehawk]

Well, I bought the truck used with a LOT of miles, so I wasn't sure of the o-rings condition. Also, there were pools of soupy sludge on the outside of the LIM, and I wasn't sure if it was because of the valve cover gaskets, or from bad o-rings, or both. To be honest, I'm glad I replaced the o-rings. When I pulled off the old ones, a few of them looked cracked, and one of them looked either burnt or like someone shaved off half of one side. They just weren't in that great of shape. And when I bought the LIM gasket it came with an UIM gasket and a fuel rail gasket. And I think the complete o-ring set (12 o-rings) was like $10. Cheap insurance if you ask me.

And if you decide to replace the o-rings, don't worry about the "noise insulators." A couple of mine fell off when I separated the fuel rail from the LIM, so I just pull all of them off, but I don't have any leaks. Here's my thread about the injector noise insulators. I couldn't figure out how to post pics in the thread, so I just linked it to my superford account. http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=154213

Also, when you go to the parts store and ask for fel-pro you have to specify that you don't want cork, because fel-pro has both cork and plastic valve cover gaskets. Mine were a special order, but definitely worth the wait. Oddly enough, the cork gasket set was $1 more than the plastic set.

 

[ld50]

Since the explorer is coming off the road soon if anybody wants I'll do a write up with pictures for the intake and valve cover gaskets, and the oil pan gasket.

I`d love to see the write up for oil pan gasket, since step 1 is to remove the engine.
:thumbdwn: