axeld20

I recently purchased a 1995 Cherokee Sport with 150,000 miles, it is in great shape and I love it. There were no leaks when I bought it and I noticed about after driving for a month that the oil filter was leaking, after the oil was changed a leak developed and drips from the bottom of the oil pan, from reading the forums it is probably the rear seal. I bought if privately so I suspect that the seller put something in the oil that concealed the leak. My question is, how much should it cost to fix it? It seems to leak more
at times than at other times, I am not mechanically inclined and will hire somebody to do it. Please advise.

Kyle

The rear main is a very common problem, I can get you a good writeup to change it yourself it you want but my guess is that if you had somebody do it for you it would be on the upwards end of 300$.

BlueXJ

That seems to be a low mileage for that rear main to begin leaking. What weight oil did you use? Kyle is in the right ball park for the price. I had to have my daughters rear main seal done as it started leaking and we lived 500 miles apart and I think it was around $375 with parts.
The other thing that is common on 4.0L engines is the O rings behind the oil filter mount. They ofter develop a leak and are much cheaper to replace. When they begin to leak the oil runs down the side of the pan and drips off the bottom. Cleaning everything and then observing the location of your leak will help pinpoint it. A third less likely possibility is the valve cover will leak down the back of the engine and drip at the same spot as a rear main seal, but again clean it up and observe to pinpoint the leak.
Blue

dabeast727

its abotu $600 for a shop to do it.

BlueXJ

Can you be more specific? For a shop to do all the things I listed or what? $600 sounds quite high if you are talking about only the rear main. I listed what I paid a shop close to her house to replace her rear main seal on a '92 XJ. The shop that did hers was in N.C. too, close to Jacksonville.

COSXJFAN

I would start with the oil filter housing o rings. I'd bet that is where your leak is coming from. Like Blue said, you need to wash the engine with Engine Brite or an equivalent to really see where the leak is coming from. Keep us posted on your progress!! Later!

okcjeeper

If the rear main is leaking you can trace the leak and it's not from the oil pan..If you look at where the motor and trany meets up you can see the area where the rear main seal would be just at the round rear hump of the oil pan and it will leak back there down the metal lower dust cover on the trany...If you see a trail on the oil pan going towards the front of the engine it's something else..

muddeprived

make sure it's not leaking from the valve cover gasket. Run your hand along the edge of the valve cover and check for oil. Mine's leaking in the back where you can't see it and it looks like it's coming from the rear main, but it's not.

ssweat

i have heard and experienced it leaking through the plug in the oil sending unit and also the filter adapter on my 93...

BlueXJ

That is part of the oil filter adapter O ring fix. Easy to do but tight for the T60 torks bolt but doable at home.

Howler_GT

With that mileage, I am willing to bet it is either the valve cover or the oil filter adapter.

Run your hand along the backside of the valvecover, between the motor and the firewall if there isn't any visible oil leaks anywhere esle around the valvecover.

As for the oil filter adapter o-ring. After 125,000 miles the rubber o-ring that seals the adapter hardens BADLY and no-longer seals to the block.
Early 4.0L used a hexhead bolt, but sometime after 93 (?) they used a T-60 Torx.(female).

There is a "kit" made by HELP. But I found this only works with the earlier models.

IF your oil filter points UP you have the older style. If it points to the rear (horizontal) you have the newer style.
(Please correct me if I am wrong here).

Wish I would have snapped some pics when I did our 91 and 94, this would make a nice technical article.


As asked before...what weight oil did you have put in? Dino or Synthetic?
And for godsake, if there is a FRAM filter on there....get rid of it.

Thought I was doing right by my 94 by using a FRAM truckGaurd filter and High Mileage Synthetic....BOY was I ever WRONG


Ok...I'll get down off my soapbox. The air up here is thin...making me very light-headed.

Howler_GT

BlueXJ

Here is a good site to bookmark. If you check his Technical articles he has the oil filter conversion which can also be used to show the o ring renewal. I did the conversion on my '90 and it has more capacity and make a lot less mess at oil changes.
http://www.madxj.com/

okcjeeper

yeah I remember replacing all my o-rings for the oil filter adapter and I can see doing it with the engine in would be a major pita...especially if ya got larger hands uhg..

Howler_GT

If you are lucky enough to get the "good" T-60 Torx...its not a problem.

("GOOD"-one where you can use a punch and knock out the Torx driver and use it with a wrench)

The early-style, you just need a wrench you dont mind putting a slight bend in.

Howler_GT

BlueXJ

I used a torx socket and vice grips to get mine in and out.