I've known I had an oil leak for some time.

Car sat in the driveway for 10 days while out of town. Came back and saw a tiny circular puddle on the ground, about one inch in diameter.

1998 Grand Prix, 110,000 miles. Is this kind of leak rate par for the course?

12/26/2007 11:16:48 PM

Nothing at all to worry about.

12/26/2007 11:26:54 PM

That is exceptional for any Pontiac product except the GTO. How much coolant does it drink?

12/26/2007 11:53:44 PM

I've always done full synthetic every 5000.

I've only had to fill up the coolant once in the three years (30k miles) that I've owned it.

12/27/2007 12:03:16 AM

the way i see it.. when my car leaks oil.. practically changing that shit itself. as long as i remem/care to fill it

12/27/2007 12:09:47 AM

.not surprising, i'd say 7 out of 10 i saw with over 100k when i worked for pontiac had either rear main or valve cover leaks.

it's really not that bad though. any car that's almost 10 years old with over 100k miles is very likely to have a small leak. a 1" diameter spot after 10 days is like 3-4 drops or something. could just be the oil pan plug.

^^^actually, the ls1 motors can be little oil pigs. even when new they were known to burn as much as 1-1.5 quarts every 3-5k miles. supposedly the ls2's (and the other gen IV motors in general) are better.

[Edited on December 27, 2007 at 12:34 AM. Reason : .]

12/27/2007 12:33:19 AM

I do believe the puddle was where the plug would have been. And if memory serves, the plug is missing its gasket.

Anyways, thanks all.

12/27/2007 12:37:13 AM

that's probably the source of your leak then. either way, sounds very minor.

12/27/2007 12:45:04 AM

^^^ Yeah, but burning oil and leaking oil are two different beasts. I usually don't mind an engine that uses a little oil when you stomp on the skinny pedal.

I wouldn't sweat the leak though. Just buy an extra quart with each oil change and pour a little in each month. If it is just a crush washer on the oil drain plug just go ahead and replace it at the next oil change. Either way it doesn't sound like anything to really worry about.

[Edited on December 27, 2007 at 12:53 AM. Reason : l]

12/27/2007 12:51:12 AM

true

12/27/2007 1:11:20 AM

^ merrry x mas! we going to utah this spring or what ill pay for the fuel!

12/27/2007 1:12:11 AM

get a new crush washer and see if it goes away

12/27/2007 1:50:14 AM