Gearhead117

well this is what happend i drove my jeep to the gas station this morning so my brother could fill the gas jug for his truck. then drove back home the jeep was fine no smoke nothing later this after noon i wne to see my son at his mothers i had stayed for a few hours then left to go home. as im driving i notice a smell of burt oil then i get a text from my sons mother stating there is a puddle of oil on the ground where i was parked. i get home and the jeep is smoking i lay on the groung and see there is oil driping of the oil pan and the under side of the jeep is pretty coated in oil. i pop the hood and let the jeep cool down i co out to check the oil and its bone dry... i cant seem to find the leak any where.. has this happened to any one else before? what would cause it to just start leaking like that i dont beet on the it, i never lake it above 2.5k rpms i dont go off roading with it nothing i babe this jeep

lookin2wheel

Check your oil filter adapter. There is an o ring that can crack and will spill oil. I was putting more oil in my '91 on a weekly basis than the Exxon Valdez spilled. I replaced the adapter o rings and now no leak. Do a search on here for it. There are write ups on the topic.

Gearhead117

thanks man i realy apreciate it. and i was just doing research and found out that could be a posible issue along with the valve cover gasket and the rear main seal. i think it is the oil fillter adaptor bc there was alot of fresh oil around and on the oil filter

Radi

Check the oil pressure sender too as long as you're in the neighborhood. Sometimes they can produce quite an oil leak when they fail.
Also backside of the valve cover..

Gearhead117

When the o rings go bad does it realy leak bad enought where it allows most if not all the oil out of the engine?

Radi

If they leak badly enough, sure. Not much different than running it with the oil filter screwed halfway off. There's pressure behind those o-rings.

cruiser54

Here's how to do your own oil leak diagnosis, without any certifications or credentials. All that's required is decent eyesight:

I'd be looking up above first, and VERIFYING the source of the oil leak yourself. Many mechanics, friends, and good old Uncle Bob love to tell you it’s the rear main seal. Has a catastrophic ring to it, doesn’t it? A simple leak at the back of the valve cover or other source could produce the same symptoms. You don’t need to be a mechanic to figure this out. If you have good eyesight, you’re good to go on your own. Don't jump on the RMS/oil pan gasket bandwagon just yet.

Almost any oil leak on your 4.0 is gonna drip from the RMS area for two simple reasons.
First off, the engine sits nose-up and any oil will run back to the RMS area. Secondly, the RMS area is also the lowest point on the engine. Simple physics and the old plumber's adage apply here. "$hit flows downhill".

Valve cover gasket, oil pressure sending unit, oil filter adapter seals and distributor gasket, in that order, have to be eliminated as possibilities first.
Revised 8-15-2012

Gearhead117

finaly got my jeep fixed the oil pressure sneding unit failed but its all good now thanks to all the guys that gave me info on what the issue was

cruiser54

Congrats. Good thing you didn't ask Uncle Bob or he woulda directed right to the rear main seal!! LOL.

Roler

Gotta love this forum....

Irishpunk1

i have a 95 cherokee sport and god i love my jeep..i had an oil leak and foud out it was my oil pan gasket..replaced the gasket and man it was a fun job.but now its leaking from the oil filter..im guessing its the O rings or thats what im told.i went to a delership payed 5.87 for all 3 rings..How hard is it to change these rings ?? is it something that can be done easly from home or is it more of a pain then that? if i did my oil pan gasket from home how hard in comparison is the o rings ?..Plz Help and fill me in on the info..Thnks

cruiser54

Not bad except for the Torx headed bolt holding the oil filter adapter on. Search and you'll find a write-up or hundred.

Gearhead117

the o rings where not that bad your best bet is to buy a t60 tox L key wrench like i did then you dont have to worry about trying to fit a socket and wrench in there. it just takes some time and be pacient with it. i reaplaced the o rings and my oil pressure sending unit but im still leaking a little oil i thinnk its from the distributor seal its not a major leak but I still would like to get it fixed. and i think they auto parts store gave me a faulty pressure sending unit becuase after my jeep gets to oporating temp the oil pressure drops to about 20lbs and when im at a stop ligh it drops to almost 0lbs so im not sure what else would cause that besides the sending unit

restoring

We're currently experiencing an oil leak with an unconfirmed source. Had a friend look at it and he figured it's either the RMS or the pan gasket because it's wet and dripping from that location.

I didn't think to check the rear of the valve cover area- will do that today! I looked in the service manual for our XJ and replacing the oil pan gasket AND/OR the RMS looks like an all day nightmare. Just replacing the oil pan gasket requires disconnecting the exhaust, the engine mounts, various covers and sensors, jacking the engine up, and working the pan out of place.

I haven't even looked at the instructions for the RMS yet.

This is one of the reasons I love this forum!

cruiser54

All you need is a good pair of eyes and you'll be able to diagnose it yourself. Let us know what you find.