How to Repair a Car Oil Leak
The loss of oil in a car is a commonly encountered problem. It may be more or less severe depending on the amount of oil lost and where the leak is coming from, but in any case you should always take action to avoid further problems. If you detect that your vehicle has an oil leak, you must measure the engine oil level to see how much has been lost and diagnose the seriousness of the leak. In OneHowTo we explain what to do if my car loses oil.
Steps to follow:
First of all you must confirm that the leak is an oil leak. Sometimes the car can leave a puddle under the engine due to condensation or air conditioning, without this implying that there is a fault. By touching and smelling the patch you can determine whether the car loses oil.
Once you know for sure that your car is leaking oil you will have to assess the extent of the problem, which can be done by measuring how much oil is left in the oil tank. By checking you will know if the car has lost a lot of oil, which means you may also be facing a serious malfunction that could have severely damaged parts of the engine, or whether it is a small leak.
In this article, we explain in detail how to measure oil levels in a car. You will have to do this when the engine is cold by using the measuring stick and checking that the tank level is between the minimum and maximum markers.
If the car has lost a lot of oil it is best to have the vehicle towed to the garage for repair. Normally insurance policies cover this transport, so please contact your broker or your insurer to check and use this service if available.
Maybe your car can start and run, but it is a big risk to have the engine running with little oil in it because the parts will not be sufficiently lubricated and can be damaged.
However, if the oil level is still acceptable despite the leak you can drive it yourself to a garage to have the problem fixed. It is likely that the loss of oil is due to a loose seal in the engine or a screw in the crankcase not being tight enough. It is not a serious problem, but it must be resolved.
Maintaining a good oil supply in the car is essential for optimal functioning of the vehicle's engine. Read this article to learn how to top up the oil in my car.
If you want to read similar articles to How to Repair a Car Oil Leak, we recommend you visit our Car Maintenance and Repair category.
