3rd & 4th Generation (1992–1996 & 1997–2001)Toyota Camry Discussion for years: 1992-1996 & 1997-2001
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Oil leakage - rear main seal or valve cover gasket?
Hello,
I have a '99 camry, with 140,000 + miles. Runs great, just recently it was diagnosed with a defective rear main seal by the Toyota dealership. Never saw the oil leak until recently, at least 6 months had past since Toyota service first brought it up. Cost is ridiculous $1,500 by the dealership. I took it to an independent shop specializing in foreign European cars because of good reputation. The guy said it needs only a valve cover gasket for $200.... I'm confused... Should I request a 3rd opinion?... My fear is that I fix the valve cover gasket and later on I'm forced to replace the rear main seal...
Anybody has any suggestions how to approach this? Thanks in advance
I read about an UV dye kit to detect the oil leakage... Should I ask the mechanic if he used the UV dye kit to determine leakage comes from the valve cover gasket as opposed to the rear main seal?
Did he actually used the UV dye kit or something else?
Please advise, so that I can have a more intelligent conversation with the mechanic.
Thanks again!
Did the mechanic charge you anything for the inspection? If so, how much? This might give us an indication of whether he used a dye or just took a visual look. Even $200 sounds very high for a valve cover gasket, assuming it's the 4 cylinder engine.
Mike
Last edited by Mike Gerber; 09-16-2009 at 10:13 PM.
My camry is a 4 cylinder. The mechanic did not charge me anything for the inspection, which frankly surprised me. He said the oil leak is so small it's not worthwhile doing anything at this point, just to keep an eye on it. He did say he visually inspected the rear main seal, he did not use the UV dye. He acknowledged the rear main seal could be the problem. I have been checking the oil for the last 2-3 weeks and there's hardly been any change in the oil level. So for now I am going to leave it like this.
The rear main seal usually uses the better vitton rubber that will outlast other cheaper seals, like the ones used on cam and crank. Or if the crankcase is leaking and not holding vacuum the rear main seal (and others) can leak a bit. But should solve itself after leaks are fixed, if the seals aren't bad of course.
You should change out the ~$15 valve cover gasket set (w/ spark plug tube seals) and see how things go. Maybe the PCV valve and grommet too (~$10 at the dealer?). You can borrow the 30mm spark plug tube socket at Autozone maybe? You'll need dabs of RTV at the joints of the semi-circular plugs. Use a torque wrench and re-torque after 30 minutes.
No, this doesn't cost $200 or more than 10 minutes if you're mechanically inclined.
Quote:
Originally Posted by cellpex999
My camry is a 4 cylinder. The mechanic did not charge me anything for the inspection, which frankly surprised me. He said the oil leak is so small it's not worthwhile doing anything at this point, just to keep an eye on it. He did say he visually inspected the rear main seal, he did not use the UV dye. He acknowledged the rear main seal could be the problem. I have been checking the oil for the last 2-3 weeks and there's hardly been any change in the oil level. So for now I am going to leave it like this.
Rear main seal is about $20 from autozone and slightly cheaper at O'Reily auto. Same component.
I put one in from the dealer and it still leaked so the autozone part looks good. keeping fingers crossed.
As for the rear main seal, I have done it at a mechanic and they charged about $200 for it. It was a lot of work and the part is cheap, it's the labor that is exp
As for the rear main seal, I have done it at a mechanic and they charged about $200 for it. It was a lot of work and the part is cheap, it's the labor that is exp
$200 for replacing a rear main seal? Did I misunderstand what you wrote? Could that have been the cost to replace some other seal? Unless I have wasted a lot of time doing this, I am fairly certain that the transaxle and the engine must be separated to replace the rear seal. There is a LOT of work involved in doing this. Wiring harness, exhaust parts, drive plate/flywheel, linkages, drive axle removal - it takes a lot of time - according to my alldata subscription for the older Camry V6, about 6 hours - calculating dropping the trans for access. There is not a whole lot of difference for the 4 cylinder. A more typical price would be $600-$900 I would guess.
Mine has a small leak too. I have been quoted $350 by a Toyota mechanic who has a shop at home. It's about time to take him up on it. Not an easy job for a DIY but not too difficult if you have the right resources and experience doing it.
Rear main seal leak will show up at the botom of the bell housing. I see aobut a nickle size spot after driving.
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