400i oil leak

Ferrari Message Board Archive 10/00-8/02
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400i oil leak

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Posted by andre

I have a miner oil leak coming from the head gasket . Can there be major damage  if I keep driving.
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Re: 400i oil leak

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Posted by John Ashburne

Driving with a blown head gasket is not a good thing, and it should be repaired immediately.  One possible problem could be coolant mixing with the oil which would not be good for lubrication of bearings.

Are you sure the oil leak really is from the head gasket?  You should do a compression test to be sure.  If compression is okay in all cylinders on that head, then the leak is from somewhere else, and you can have the leak fixed or not depending on how much and how fast the oil is coming out and your desire to have a leak-free car.
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Re: 400i oil leak

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Posted by Simon

Which head? Where abouts is the leak from?Has this just started or is it an old leak you are thinking about curing?
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Re: 400i oil leak

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Posted by Tom

Hi Andre,

It depends...(don't you love answers like that?)

Try to find out the source of the leak. Do a compression test as John suggested. Give the engine a good cleaning so you can see exactly where the oil is coming from. Often times oil will follow castings downward and fool you into thinking it is coming from somewhere else. I'm assuming it's a drip, and not a spray of oil? Obviously, if it's under pressure, I wouldn't drive the car any further!

Good luck, and let us know what you find.

Tom
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Re: 400i oil leak

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Posted by Peter Skudder

Andre,

Doing the compression test will only tell you if the cylinder head gasket has failed into one of the cylinders. It is quite possible for the cylinder head gasket to be responsible for the leak and for the compression part of the gasket to be fine.

Most cars have oil feed lines to the camshaft gear up through the cylinder head gaskets and this could be leaking only, especially if your oil and water have not mixed.

BUT this could cause your expensive camshaft and valve components to be running with slightly less oil (pressure) than designed if the leak is bad, but as Simon has said if it is a minor old leak then it might be okay.

Your call, but I would not want to increase the wear on a camshaft or the followers ...

Pete
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Re: 400i oil leak

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Posted by andre

what type of question should I ask when getting a compression test . I live in la were
scammers are plentiful. before I purcahse the
ferrari I had it check by two mehcanics , one suggested buy the seller and another recamened buy a freind which later I found out he knew the seller and the car personally , this sucks. but i still love the ferrari. I can hear my wife saying, I told you so.
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Re: 400i oil leak

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Posted by andre


sorry to pissed of to check my spelling.
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