oil filter adapter question

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10-14-2014, 07:34 AM

#46

cruiser54

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Year: 1990

Model: Cherokee (XJ)

Engine: 4.0

Quote:

Originally Posted by wickedwelder

I want to thank everyone for their responses. I got the o-ring fun finished last night. Took a bit to find the right ones. I had bought the dorman kit, but wasn't real happy with it. It had one to match the adapter to the block, but for the other two they were wither just under size or just over. So off to autozone I go. That was a waste of time there. After almost 20 min of watching father time and his twin stare at the computer like they never seen one, back down the road I go.
Pulled into O'Reilly parts and with in 5 minutes had a fel-pro o-ring and a box of various ones to compare to the two smaller ones. Which I was so thankful for since the jeep was torn apart in the garage.
So get it all put back together, top off the oil, fire her up and let it run for around 10min. Check for leaks, it all looks good. So I was happy that I would no longer smoke bomb the stop lights(lol). But I'm not that lucky I guess. Drove to work this morning(about 20min drive) get out and what do I see and smell.......smoke! So I get down and look under my Jeep and there is oil leaking. I checked the oil filter adapter and its dry no leaks. The oil is dripping off of the trans inspection plate and into rhw exhaust.
So now I'm at a total loss of where the oil is coming from.

Sorry for the novel, but does anyone have any ideas of where else it could be coming from?
Thanks again for all the help.

This should help:

I'd be looking up ABOVE first, and VERIFYING the source of the oil leak YOURSELF.

Everybody, who doesn't own or have to pay for or perform your vehicle repairs, loves to poke their noggin UNDER the Jeep and come out bearing the false bad news that your RMS is leaking.

Many mechanics, friends, people on Jeep forums who can’t see your Jeep from where they’re at, and good old Uncle Bob seem to enjoy telling you it’s the rear main seal. Has a catastrophic ring to it, doesn’t it?

A simple leak at the back of the valve cover or other source could produce the same symptoms. You don’t need to be a mechanic to figure this out. If you have good eyesight and a dim flashlight, you’re good to go on your own. Don't jump on the RMS/oil pan gasket bandwagon right off the bat.

Almost any oil leak on your 4.0 is gonna drip from the RMS area for two simple reasons.

First off, the engine sits nose-up and any oil will run back to the RMS area. Secondly, the RMS area is also the lowest point on the engine. Simple physics and the old plumber's adage apply here. "$hit flows downhill".

Valve cover gasket, oil pressure sending unit, oil filter adapter seals and distributor gasket, in that order, have to be eliminated as possibilities first.

Revised 02-26-2013

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10-14-2014, 10:28 AM

#47

wickedwelder

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Year: 1989

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Thanks Cruiser. I'll check the valve cover and distributer this weekend. I changed out the oil pressure switch when I did the adapter o-rings and I did the rear main two weeks ago. I had thought it was the RM not knowing about the adapter. Then when I still had the leak I started searching and found out about the o-rings. The po had said he replaced the valve cover gasket but I think he said he used the cork one.I will definitely check it this weekend along with the distributer.

Thanks again to everyone for the help.

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10-14-2014, 10:33 AM

#48

Rockfrog

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If he used the old reliably leaky cork gasket, that's the most likely cause. Ten to one says the back of the valve cover is seeping. Replace with the felpro permatex gasket. And remember the 15th bolt.

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10-14-2014, 01:39 PM

#49

DFlintstone

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Quote:

Originally Posted by wickedwelder

The oil is dripping off of the trans inspection plate and into rhw exhaust.

Do be sure the large vent tube on the valve cover is free to vent. No kinked hose, no plugged up aftermarket filter. If than can't vent freely, crankcase pressure from blowby will make it pis oil out the rear main seal.

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10-15-2014, 01:31 AM

#50

DigitalBman

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Year: 1999

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oil filter adapter question

This happened to me on my jeep.

A couple weeks after changing the oil and changing the adapter o-rings I was driving along the interstate pulling a trailer and all of a sudden I smell burning oil and the temp gage shoots up.

I pull over and oil is dripping from everything imaginable.

My immediate thought was the main seal blew.

But thankfully (thanks to this forum) I tried the valve cover gasket first.

And sure enough I could see right there on the gasket where it blew from.

Took me more time to eat my pizza than to change the gasket.

I chucked that one up under the close call list.

**** not saying this is your problem, this was my experience under similar circumstances ****