[curtis]

My car is a 2005 elise with a 111,000 miles and going strong. I recently removed the front clam to perform maintenance and the nose of the car has been pointing up for about a month or so and I noticed a minor leak at the back rear most of the oil pan gasket but not anywhere else. This tells me that maybe that part of the gasket got a little overwhelmed or such if that makes any sense lol I mean the oil was sitting at a more severe angle than normal and maybe the gasket was slightly strained and leaked slightly. Anybody else experience this? And no I have never messed with the oil pan gasket at all. I have been wanting to upgrade to a baffled oil pan but have yet to do so Thanks in advance

 

[hvymtlmcn]

The factory does not use a gasket.
Make sure the bolts are tight on your oil pan.

 

[curtis]

even if i never have touched them at all? Do they become loose over time? I will try and tighten them anyway

 

[tommyc]

I bet a leaking dip stick tube o ring. Oil is just tracking there. Check that first if your pan is stock
Tommy

 

[Krule]

Assuming its the stock pan, the RTV can hold the pan to the block on its own. Installing an aftermarket pan usually involved lots of hammering and wedges... so I am in doubt that its form bolt torque. I would take some time and look around, higher up in the engine, and see what you can find. Common leak points are dipstick to block, and the breather port.

 

[curtis]

Thanks guys for the advise , i will follow up on those leads and update as to what i find. I here that another common failer point for oil leaks is the timing chain cover and the belt tensioner but I am not sure at what mileage they typically need to be changed out.

 

[curtis]

Well I finally figured it out. Its the timing chain tensioner gasket and its a PITA to get to and 3 or 4 step procedure to replace. Anyone have experience replacing this item?

 

[Krule]

I had a Toyota Matrix XRS, same engine (2zz) that had that part leaking. There are a handful of YouTube videos on how to replace it. Be glad it isn’t the timing chain cover...

 

[maxsava0303]

I would just use Permatex Black. Cleaning and prep is everything here. Scrub, scrub, scrub. It's also worth waiting for the car to be off for a while so all the oil drains into the pan and won't try to leak through while the RTV cures. I also wouldn't glob it on, just make sure there's a nice even bead around the edge. Also don't expect a perfect, permanent fix. But it should at least slow it down enough to be manageable.
snaptube vidmate

 

[curtis]

Do you mean just coat the outside of it without removing it?

 

[Motard]

Oh boy... I had that leak, but it wasn't enough to force me to take that timing cover off... A sheared intake cam was. It's is a "you deserve a t-shirt" type affair... Good news is you will learn a lot about your machine, and take that offending leak back to the hell it came from. I smile Everytime I take my drip free access panel off. The hardest part is removing the idle tensioner bolt. It is also one of those " while I am in this deep" moments. With oil pump gear accessable and inspect the tensioner and anything else showing wear. I also had oil dipstick leak awhile back. Second time on my vehicle. It also has not returned. If it is seeping with no actual drops, I would be tempted to botch some form of goop or another and see how that does, before taking it off. Maybe try to test torque on all those bolts holding cover in place. If your OCD like me, go for it, but like I said, if it's marginal leak, like mine was I would have lived with it. The dipstick leak was more significant and bothersome to me