Headgasket oil leak

[adamf123]

A friend of mine has a PT (not sure what year it is, I forgot to ask. non turbo) that is leaking oil at the head gasket onto the back of the block. At least thats what I assume, but I'm going to clean it up and verify tomorrow. Its a fairly new car I beleive. Its owned by a female, and the oil hasnt been changed in 16k miles before I got to it It was 3 quarts low.

Is it possible to pull the valve cover and rockers and re-torque the head bolts and maybe fix the problem? Or does it need a new headgasket?

Are there any updated torque specs/procedures for the headgasket?

[slartyblarfast]

If it's under warranty take it to the dealership.. There is a TSB to retorque the head bolts. They will have to do that first. Then they will have to replace the head gasket. I do these fairly often and the retorqueing does no good. The head gasket will have to be replaced. You may get lucky and the PT may have powertrain warranty. Check with the dealership before you go into the engine. If it's warranty and you go messing with it then you void warranty.

[adamf123]

The car is not under warranty. She said she got a call last week saying her warranty expired. Do you think she might be able to get this fixed under warranty since it is a preexisting condition and its just recently expired?


If not, I will do the headgasket for her. Do I need to have the head sent out for machining? I wouldnt think so, since its not leaking oil in the coolant or coolant in the oil, juist leaking oil externally. I will closely inspect it for cracks and a flat deck surface.

[slartyblarfast]

How many miles on the car? She may still have powertrain warranty. And typically no you won't need to machine the head. Check it for straightness but more than likely it's just the gasket. I see this fairly often.

[2004PTCruiser]

adamf123

When you say the headgasket is leaking oil what do you mean is it seeping oil or what i may have the same thing i was just wondering how much oil is leaking out of the headgasket

[slartyblarfast]

Yes. The head gasket is a multi layer steel job. Over time they tend to leak out weak spots in the gaskets. The newer gaskets are better.

[2004PTCruiser]

slartyblarfast is this a problem or just a seep of oil and nothing to worrie about ? did they upgrade the gasket at some point

[adamf123]

The back of the block is covered in oil. But not enough to leave puddles of oil on the driveway, just a few drips.

[slartyblarfast]

It's not really a problem that is engine threatening. It will make a mess and eventually get worse. The gaskets have been upgraded

[2004PTCruiser]

thanks everyone I guess i will have to wait till it gets worse because its just a seeping leak and I am sure the dealer wont do anything about this at this point untill it blow for sure or leaks worse I wonder if thats covered under the powertrain warranty which I paid to transfer car has 54000 miles on it now I just wonder how long it will take to get worse or will it blow for sure at some point or just leak oil?