98 Camry - Oil leak, Need Help - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

bavula · 02-19-2007, 09:55 PM

1998 Toyota Camry LE, 4 cylinder. Mileage 95000 miles. For the past 3-4 weeks, whenever I pull the car out of the garage in the morning, I notice a small oil puddle under the engine area....more to the front right side (passenger side) of the engine. Any idea what this could be?

I regularly get oil changes done about 5000 miles. I even had a 90K service done about 6 months ago.

Nad1370 · 02-19-2007, 10:16 PM

When was the last oil change done?
Could be a leaking drain plug gasket.

alotawatts · 02-19-2007, 10:25 PM

Anybodys guess, You need to find the source. Clean as much as you can and then keep looking.
If it's comming from the bottom of the timing cover it could be a cam or crank seal.
If your lucky it's just the valve cover gasket.

hooRAH · 02-20-2007, 08:43 AM

I won't say what your problem is definitively, because it really could be anything without seeing the actual car, but if you're getting a leak on cold startup front the front side of the engine that goes away after the engine warms up, I'd bet on the oil pump O-ring, which is different from the oil pump shaft seal.

If you search my name, you'll find a handful of pictures and testing describing this leak. If it is leaking from anywhere on the front side of the engine that ISNT the valve cover, count on a timing belt job + all front engine seals. Water pump is up to you.

mandyfig · 02-20-2007, 01:45 PM

Put cleam white paper in the area of the leak, see if it looks like OIL or Transmission fluid....Tranny fluid will be pinkish versus typical brown oil.....then you can know where it is coming from........