Oil leaks on '97 Camry 5SFE (pics)

[bcsbadboys]

This picture is from under the engine and the leak is dripping under the ignition coil area off the black plastic.

This picture is from under the passenger side of the engine and the leak is coming from above the power steering pulley.

I'm losing engine oil, not power steering fluid. Any gaskets/seals to look at?

[ghettosled]

since its coming from above the power steering, my educated guess would be the cam seal. i had a similar leak when mine went bad. to know for sure, pull off the timing timing belt cover and get a better look.

[Kep]

There is also an oil pump seal behind the timing cover. Might be that.

Check inside the distributor cap. If there is oil inside the cap the inner gasket is leaking. There is an aftermarket replacement if you want to try and rebuild it. Toyota suggests replacing the distributor body. If there isn't oil inside the cap it may be the exterior seal (between the distributor body and the engine). This is sold by Toyota and is easy to replace.

You might want to clean off the area with a paper towel and see if you can't get a better idea where the oil is originating from.

Kep

[djb2]

The o-ring around the distributor drive is about $5 at the dealer. Expensive for an o-ring, but cheaper and easier to try than most of the other fixes for leak points.

[ghettosled]

Originally Posted by Kep

There is also an oil pump seal behind the timing cover. Might be that.

Check inside the distributor cap. If there is oil inside the cap the inner gasket is leaking. There is an aftermarket replacement if you want to try and rebuild it. Toyota suggests replacing the distributor body. If there isn't oil inside the cap it may be the exterior seal (between the distributor body and the engine). This is sold by Toyota and is easy to replace.

You might want to clean off the area with a paper towel and see if you can't get a better idea where the oil is originating from.

Kep

a distributor leak would be on the drivers side of the motor and not the passenger, right? oh wait, do the gen4 models even have a distributor? i thought the '96 camry were the last of them.

[Kep]

No distributor? Sacrilege!!!!

Ghettosled, you're undoubtedly right. Disregard the distributor comments. My bad. Boy, I really liked distributors.

Kep

[bcsbadboys]

Originally Posted by ghettosled

since its coming from above the power steering, my educated guess would be the cam seal. i had a similar leak when mine went bad. to know for sure, pull off the timing timing belt cover and get a better look.

I will take a look at the cam seal. What about the leak on the drivers side by the ignition coils?