Hi everyone, I have a question about an oil leak on my car.
So I work at a tire and auto shop, and one of my coworkers pointed out that there was a huge gas leak on my car. It turned out to be the fuel pump leaking. While we had the car up in the air on a lift, one of the guys said there was an oil leak from the oil pan. I was aware of the leak, but it was pretty slow at the time, so I wasn't in a hurry to get it fixed. Over time, the leak started getting drastically worse. It got so bad that - when you open the hood - you could see the oil spraying out from the engine bay. I tried to look for the leak myself, but I couldn't really find it. So I had to stop driving the car until I could get someone to fix it for me.
I let the car sit there for about a month. When I went to start it again, I check under the car and I don't see anything leaking! I let the engine run for a while. Not a drop of oil! It appears the leak has disappeared. Should I still take it to my mechanic? I don't understand why this would happen
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you could see the oil spraying out from the engine bay.
That doesn't sound like a pan gasket leak. Those don't really "spray" oil everywhere, the oil in the pan returns to the pump via gravity, it's not really under pressure enough to spray out. They tend to drip, or weep fluid. A leak at the rear main seal will spray oil, it's pretty much right by the outlet for the oil pump in most engines, and it can appear to be coming from the oil pan if it's leaking from the rear of the motor. Tye rear main is above the pan. Throw UV leak dye for engine oil in the engine and top off the oil level with the correct weight and volume, then run the engine, keep an eye on the oil level to not cause damage. After 10-15 minutes or so, check underneath for the dye. It will reveal the source of the leak.
I've actually had a similar experience with my Chrysler, where it had an oil leak that was pretty noticeable, and one day it just stopped and didn't come back. What I've heard can happen is sometimes a gasket can bulge up from a leak so much that it actually stops the leak entirely, thought I'm not sure how true this is that would be my best guess. Like if the rear main seal got so inflated that it was no longer able to leak oil.
Still, I would take it to your mechanic just to be sure.
