savage

i was on my way to work and just as i take the exit the check engine light comes on, sound of the engine also changes so i dont even let it rev past 1500-1800 at this point...i am right next to my work so i pull in the parking lot and i open the hood...i see some white smoke around the engine when i open the hood and i look under the car to see it leaking oil....

i just called AAA and dealership to have the car towed in...damn dealership says they dont have any rentals available either..WTF!!!

this is annoying me because the car was perfectly fine all day sat, i didnt drive it on sunday, and my drive to work this morning was only 5-10 min and i warmed the car up for 2-3 minutes...this is a damn acura, this isnt supposed to happen right?

Viking

That suxors

Were you able tell where it was leaking? Did you have the oil changed recently?

Jim Holloman

Let us know what is the determination. It sounds like a new engine may be in order. Did you check the dip stick to see how much oil was left?

savage

it looked like it was coming from the back end of the engine, when they are going to tow it i am going take a better look...

i had my 5000mile oil service done back in dec...i have about 6600 miles now...i heard something about bad oil filters with hondas recently...

savage

i am going to check the dip stick when i head out in a few...

Viking

Keep us updated and good luck with the repairs.

savage

i am still in shock by the whole situation...its a honda engine in there right?

but thanks for the support guys...

bigwilliestyle

I'm confused... you had virtually no oil in the engine before the check engine light came on? What about the oil dummy light?

Good luck with it man.

dom

Sorry to hear it savage. At this point nothing that breaks on the TSX will surprise me but having Engine fail is a huge dissapointment.

savage

well i went to the dealership with the tow truck driver and they are checking it out...when i checked the oil after it sat in the parking lot, leaking, the oil was pretty low...

the tow truck driver said it seemed to be isolated around the filter and thinks that might be the problem...maybe some ice or rock hit it when i was driving through the city this weekend...the couple feet of snow and crap we got these past two weeks hasnt helped....

hopefully thats all thats wrong...i will keep you guys posted as i find out more details...

moda_way

The entire front underside is covered by a plastic tray and NOTHING can get up in there. It is a PIA to change the oil on one, so I doubt anything hit it. Sounds more like a failure with the filter, drain plug or a hose.

supraken

iTrader: (1)

It sounds like they probably left the old rubber gasket of the old oil filter there. It happened to me once too after an oil change. The guy didn't see the old rubber gasket that's stuck to the engine and screwed in the new one with the new rubber gasket, therefore having TWO rubber gaskets screwed between the filter and the engine. Since that doesn't create proper seal, it was causing a leak.

savage

hmm they changed the oil in mid dec...the weather finnally warmed up from 4 degrees to 32, i wonder if the change in temp did something to the gaskets...we'll see....

savage

interesting...does that plastic tray also cover the oil pan?

moda_way

Yes, it extends just beyond the half-axles.

I think the multiple oil gaskets is honestly the most plausible explanation. If the tech doesn't wipe a little fresh oil on the seal, they are VERY prone to sticking to the block. Most techs don't check for it because they are just removing the filter and putting another one on. Wouldn't know unless they looked right at the filter they just took off.

savage

they checked out the car, it was a bad oil gasket on the oil filter...it was worn down, defect from honda, so it should all be covered under warrenty...

i told them to check it out and do their diagnostics, they said they performed all those/are still performing them....they said the car should be perfectly fine...hopefully it will be fine...they will call me once its done and they wash it...

Viking

Glad it's under warranty. Make sure they write defect from Honda in their invoice for your maintenance records.

TSXDude

Was the bad gasket on the new oil filter? Are you sure the old gasket was removed before installing the new filter??

Reason i'm asking is because when i changed my oil two weeks ago, i noticed the old gasket was stuck to the block when i removed the old filter. This had never happened before in my previous ride (5th gen Prelude)! I was shock to see that because i could've easily install the new filter over the old gasket... i believe some of the engine fire reported by owners of CRV was a result of that same matter...

bigwilliestyle

Hey Savage,

I'm curious, did the oil light go on before the check engine? You should've had some warning when it dropped a quart or so. Or am I mistaken?

Jim Holloman

I recommend that one check the oil level immediately after an oil change and then once a day, or about every 25-50 miles, for three occurrences. There has been more than one gasket mistake and more than one occurrence of a filter that was not sufficiently tight after being installed. I have seen a number of mechanics that did not lube the gasket with oil before installing a new filter.

Most of you are much too young to know about the days when the oil filter was separate from the block and was connected with rubber hoses. Naturally, the hoses carried hot oil under pressure -- and they would sometimes rupture. The consequence was a windshield covered with hot engine oil. And, the driver didn't always escape getting some of the spay on him.

But, it was easy to change filters. You raised the hood, took off the top of the filter canister and dropped in a new filter. The filter looked much different from today's filters. It was larger (about the size of a roll of toilet paper) and not encased in a metal sleeve -- more akin to a round type air filter today. Thank goodness for progress.

asenna88

To all TSX owners they just released a serv. bult. regading the first oil change the tech must save the filter gask. for warr. purposes . I think this pertains to the oil fire situation with the CRV but i'm not sure, so this is also a good reason to not take your TSX to a quick lube place as they may not be aware of this problem.

vger105

You're quite right Jim, we're all much too young to remember that. ;o)
Hey, I just found my dwell meter/tach and timing light in my garage as I was
straightening up this weekend. I think I'll go down to Pep Boys and get a set of points and a condenser for my TSX.

savage

hey bigwillie

what happened was as i was taking the exit for my work which is right around the corner from the off ramp the check oil light started blinking on and off and then it just went solid...i got off the throttle and rolled into the parking lot....the check engine light didnt come on, just the oil light...sorry if i wasnt more clear earlier....

weird thing is that there was no oil in my driveway when i got home tonight...so it must have started leaking on my 4 mile trip to work (wakefield to peabody on 128)...

Chompin

Damn.........are there any other issues that are going to arise with this car?????? As a potential buyer and the owner of an RSX-S I'm having real reservations. Please...
...................say it ain't so.

sauceman

I hope you don't buy a TSX, we'll be stuck with a big whiner!

Seriously, an issue like what savage has just experienced can happen to any car. It's not Honda who builds those filters, it just happenned on a filter built for a Honda.

Moving to Problems and Fixes.

JeffTSX

I'm sorry for what happened to you but it is not the car's or oil filter's fault. It's the mechanic's cause it's only obvious that someone didn't double check their work. I've changed a crap lot of oil filters on Hondas and Toyotas and they all have the same problem. I'm not saying it happens often...maybe 1 in every 10 cars?!?!? Anyhow you should bitch at the service manager and tell him/her how upset you are and you'll never go back again.

savage

yeah i have no other reason to complain about this car...i just plain love it...this was just a hassle and it wasnt the car's fault, it was either a faulty filter or the service dept who did my oil change....

jmathew34

i hope there aren't any long-term engine damage due to oil starvation, any thoughts?

sauceman

It looks as though the engine didn't completely run out of oil. Also, when the issue arose, savage quickly found a parking lot, and in between didn't rev it past 2000, so, there shouldn't be any damage sustained.

It would take a bit more IMO.

savage

it wansnt low on oil for all the long from what i can tell, it must have happened on my 5 minute ride to work and i was running the car really easy on the entire drive...also when the light came on i babied it into the parking lot...

they said they inspected the entire engine, replaced the oil and filter, cleaned off all the oil under the car and road tested it...

JeffTSX

Haha, sorry but that usually means they didn't do anything to it.

JeffTSX

Oh and ask them what do they mean by "inspected the entire engine". They did do a complete overhaul on your engine or just inspected with their own eyes and that's it?

savage

yeah i was afraid they might just change the oil and thats it but they said they ran their diagnotics (i am assuming checking the compression, sensors), checked for any damage (metal in the oil or physical damage to the engine) and that the car should be perfectly fine...it feels great so far....

also since i pulled over so quickly i think i prevented any serious damage...just as sauceman mentioned....

Eeyore

I once drove my Accord down 495 for about 10 miles with the lower balance shaft seal leaking oil all over the goddam place. On the exit ramp to work, the oil light finally went on. Pulled into the parking lot and it was literally flowing from the bottom of the engine. RPMs on the highway were about 3000, and I don't know how much oil was left when I shut down the engine, but the engine did not sustain any long term damage that I'm aware of. I still own and drive the car.