Scooby-Doo98
03-20-2010, 10:34 PM
in January i bought a 98 Legacy 2.5GT. and then about a month and a half later it started smelling like burning oil. so i went to check my oil and i found out the dealership (J&M Automotive in Naugatuck, CT :smt013 ) had stripped the drain bolt and then used epoxy to keep it in there..it has 96,951 Miles on it and the oil should have been changed at 95,676. it basically got a new oil change due to a leak leaving it rather low on oil, but never got 100% changed because i simply NEED my car for transportation for work..so we didnt take out the oil plug.
then when looking around i realized that the car was leaking oil from the timing belt case along the bottom side. the rubber gasket is a little loose fitting, especially around the bolts it seems kind of blown out and it has about and 1/8th of an inch gap in between it and the case. and i can see where the two sides meet together and the oil is for the most part coming from around the bolts but still seeping through on the flat parts. there does not seem to be any oil leaking from the oil pan, or at least that i have seen so far. i also do not know if the timing belt case is due to the oil pans problem or if im just that lucky of a guy.
then 2 days later the Check Engine Light started coming on then turning off when it sat for a decent period of time.. so i let it sit for the night for the oil to settle and when i went to check it in the A.M. it was reading WAY past the 'F' on the dip-stick. it was pretty much to the top of the spiral on the dip-stick and correct me if im wrong but i thought it should not be up that far. so as far as i can see it just keeps saying that it is way over full every time that i check, yet its still leaking oil. and its not a very large amount leaking, its just a few decent drips on the ground when car sits there. i have added in a little bit of oil just simply based on what i have seen leaking and it is not going down at all.
i already know that i need to get my timing belt changed but does anybody have any insight as to what this may be? im not the most mechanically inclined so descriptions that are too in-depth will more than likely loose me. but from what i can assume based on my knowledge is that its a crappy oil pan obviously, and that it looks like i have a bad gasket on my timing belt case and that is where oil is leaking from.. i do not have any pictures of it as of right now but i may be able to get some tomorrow to help get a better idea of what i mean. the car is 100% other than the previous stated but does seem to lack a little bit of power when the CEL is on.
:smt013 For what its worth if you live in CT, or are looking for a car in the general area... id suggest do not go to J&M Automotive or be weary none the less because they turned out to be somewhat shady people. the car also has a little exhaust leak and the cat is starting to go on me and it started as a pin hole that they were supposed to fix and never did before they sold it to me. but it was okay because my fiance's father said he would weld it up for me but then when it got really loud all of a sudden i saw that it was cracked and welded poorly. and small things like the interior light does not turn on when the door is opened and the drivers door does not electronically lock. and they do not mention a thing about them.. which most dealerships wont. but they were not going to tell me that they did not fix the exhaust like they told me they would.. so i could only recommend that you should steer clear of them.
then when looking around i realized that the car was leaking oil from the timing belt case along the bottom side. the rubber gasket is a little loose fitting, especially around the bolts it seems kind of blown out and it has about and 1/8th of an inch gap in between it and the case. and i can see where the two sides meet together and the oil is for the most part coming from around the bolts but still seeping through on the flat parts. there does not seem to be any oil leaking from the oil pan, or at least that i have seen so far. i also do not know if the timing belt case is due to the oil pans problem or if im just that lucky of a guy.
then 2 days later the Check Engine Light started coming on then turning off when it sat for a decent period of time.. so i let it sit for the night for the oil to settle and when i went to check it in the A.M. it was reading WAY past the 'F' on the dip-stick. it was pretty much to the top of the spiral on the dip-stick and correct me if im wrong but i thought it should not be up that far. so as far as i can see it just keeps saying that it is way over full every time that i check, yet its still leaking oil. and its not a very large amount leaking, its just a few decent drips on the ground when car sits there. i have added in a little bit of oil just simply based on what i have seen leaking and it is not going down at all.
i already know that i need to get my timing belt changed but does anybody have any insight as to what this may be? im not the most mechanically inclined so descriptions that are too in-depth will more than likely loose me. but from what i can assume based on my knowledge is that its a crappy oil pan obviously, and that it looks like i have a bad gasket on my timing belt case and that is where oil is leaking from.. i do not have any pictures of it as of right now but i may be able to get some tomorrow to help get a better idea of what i mean. the car is 100% other than the previous stated but does seem to lack a little bit of power when the CEL is on.
:smt013 For what its worth if you live in CT, or are looking for a car in the general area... id suggest do not go to J&M Automotive or be weary none the less because they turned out to be somewhat shady people. the car also has a little exhaust leak and the cat is starting to go on me and it started as a pin hole that they were supposed to fix and never did before they sold it to me. but it was okay because my fiance's father said he would weld it up for me but then when it got really loud all of a sudden i saw that it was cracked and welded poorly. and small things like the interior light does not turn on when the door is opened and the drivers door does not electronically lock. and they do not mention a thing about them.. which most dealerships wont. but they were not going to tell me that they did not fix the exhaust like they told me they would.. so i could only recommend that you should steer clear of them.