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The Official Oil Leak Guide

266K views 163 replies 82 participants last post by  BOOSTED NZ 
#1 · (Edited)
This is going to be the mother of all "oil issues" responses, mainly because I've seen entirely too many of these in the 5th gen thread.


H22's like to consume oil, and it is a well-known fact in the H-series community. From leaky seals, to FRM cylinder walls wicking oil into the combustion chamber, to bad valve seals- you are going to have to do a LOT of work if you want to cut down on your oil consumption. I've been in the position that many new 'Luders are in (not making much money and trying to repair my car), so I thought I would compile a list of things to do- from easiest/cheapest, to hardest/most expensive. Here is a link to the Helms manual download to help you along the way.


  • Seal it: If your car leaks oil, do something about it- replace the seals on the motor. Staring at them intently and wishing they would go away will not solve your problem.
    • VTEC Solenoid Gasket: This is perhaps the biggest culprit for stock H22's. The VTEC Solenoid is located just behind your distributor, with the small cylinder sticking out of the top of it. It will require you to remove a few 10mm bolts. Oil will drain out of it, so get ready with some rags or a catch can.
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: There will be oil/black gunk on the top of your transmission casing, and along the passenger side of the block.
      • COST: Gaskets are usually ~$20.. from your local dealer.
      • Part #15825-P13-005

        Shown as #13 & #15 on the diagram:

    • Distributor O-Ring: Like that creepy old guy that hangs out around schools, this little number is well-hidden. Often times, what happens is the O-ring will dry out after sitting for a while, crack, and then leak oil. To get to the seal, you need to remove the distributor from the cylinder head. Remove the three 8mm bolts from the distributor cap, remove the rotor by taking the setscrew out of the shaft (you may need to click the motor over until you can see this set screw), and unbolt the distributor from the shaft.
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: There will be oil leaking on the passenger side of the block, typically black gunk will be pooled on top of your transmission.
      • COST: Typically ~$2.
      • Part #30110-PA1-732

        Shown as #6 in the diagram:
    • Valve Cover Gaskets: Not quite as likely as the VTEC solenoid gasket, valve covers do in fact leak. This is the giant cover over the top of your engine, and is quite easy to remove. There are a few 10mm crown nuts you'll have to remove, then lift off of the top of the cylinder head. You can use a wide flat-blade screwdriver to help start pry it off. It's also advised to put a little high-temp silicone (Hondabond) in the sharp corners of the valve cover gasket, as they don't like to seal very well by itself. It's also a good idea to replace the spark plug well seals, too- they're the funny little guys that look like small rubber donuts. (NOTE- if you are mechanically inclined and your engine has many miles on it, you can also do a Valve Adjustment while you have the cover off. Link to writeup on HondaTech)
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: There will be oil/black gunk around the base of the valve cover, usually on the back or sides of the block.
      • COST: Valve cover gaskets are usually ~$15, the small rubber seals for the sparkplug wells are ~$3 each.
      • Part #12341-P13-000 (cover gasket)
        ......#12342-PT2-000 (rubber seals for s.p.w.)

        Shown as #3 & #4 on the diagram.
    • Oil Cooler O-Ring: This guy is in a different area code in comparison to the last few seals mentioned, but is still a pain in the ass. This seal goes between the oil cooler and the block on an H22, and sometimes goes bad from heat cycles or age and cracks. This will cause you to dump all of that nice 10w-30 oil that you just changed all over your driveway, your exhaust, and everything south of the boarder. It will require that you use a 30mm deep-well socket to remove the oil cooler, and a torque wrench to torque it down to 54lbs-ft.
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: Your mom will be screaming at you for dumping your oil on her driveway, and oil will be leaking from behind the oil filter and the block. Typically can be seen dripping into your axles and flex pipe.
      • COST: This little guy will run you about $4.
      • Part #91316-PE7-730
      • WRITEUP LINK: http://www.preludepower.com/forums/showthread.php?t=324248 (props to xxfallacyxx)

        Shown as #32 in the diagram:

    • Cam Cap Seals: A close relative to the VTEC solenoid gasket & valve cover gasket, this little black plug is a pain in your ass in more ways than you can count. There are multiple O-ring replacements for these little guys (BLOX, Golden Eagle, Skunk2, ect), personally I think the billet seals with O-rings is a better idea. However, following the OEM ideology of this thread, you can buy OEM replacements. It's a wise idea to use Hondabond sealing agent (although any high-temp sealer will work). You need to remove the valve cover, then remove the cam cap on top of it. Once the cam cap is off, you can replace the leaky bastard with a new one. BE SURE TO TORQUE THE CAP TO 7lbs-ft USING A TORQUE WRENCH!
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: There will be black gunk/oil on the passenger side of the block, behind/next to the VTEC solenoid
      • COST: ~$7 from your dealership, ~$20 for an aftermarket replacement
      • Part #12513-P30-000

        Shown as #8 in the diagram:




        ________________________________________

  • All Other Major Seals: Most other seals beyond this point require major disassembly on your motor. If you are going this far, it is advised to do a full timing belt service while you have it apart. So, ask your mom if you can borrow the minivan for the weekend, or fire up your winter beater- because this is gonna get bumpy. Link to writeup for timing belt job/disassembly for jobs from here on out. Courtesy of JLUDE.
    • Cam Shaft Seals: UNLIKE cam cap seals, these hard plastic pipsqueaks are located under the valve cover, behind the cam gears, on the cylinder head. This will require that you remove the cam gears- meaning you need to remove the timing belt. Once the cam gears are removed, you can remove the seals with a small, flat-blade screwdriver and a little work. You can insert the new seals by sliding them over the cam shafts, and pushing them gently on with the cam gears. (NOTE- MAKE SURE THERE IS GREASE ON THE INSIDE OF THE SEAL. All OEM Honda seals come with grease pre-loaded in the seal, to prevent a dry start and premature wear of the seal)
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: There will be oil leaking down the front of the block, coming from the seals behind the cam gears.
      • COST: Typically ~$7 each from your Honda Dealership.
      • Part #91213-PR3-004

        Shown as #38 on the diagram:
    • Balance Shaft Seal: Like the cam seals, you will need to remove your timing belt and front engine cover to do these. These typically don't leak as much, but it is a good idea to get fresh seals while you are this far in. To remove these guys, you need to break the bolt loose on the end of the balance shaft (good idea to leave the belt on the shaft wheel before doing this) and remove the retainer. Once they are out of the way, it's the same as doing the cam shaft seals.
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: Oil will be leaking from the seal, typically black and dirty underneath seal.
      • COST: About $5.
      • Part #91233-PT0-003


    • Front/Rear Main Seals: The biggest bastards of them all, the front and rear main seals. The front main seal is located behind the crank pulley, while the rear main seal is buried behind the flywheel on the back of the motor. If you're going this far, you might as well plan on investing in a new clutch too!
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: Oil will be leaking between the transmission case and the engine block, or out of the bottom of the timing cover and onto the oil pan
      • COST: $15 for the rear, $15 for the front.
      • Part #91214-PAA-A01 (rear)
      • ......#91214-PLE-003 (front)

        Shown as #45 in the diagram:


______________________________________________________________

This concludes the "Seals" section. Any rep will be greatly appreciated, I will write more concerning other forms of oil consumption and repairs a little later. :emthup:
 
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#139 ·
I just noticed that my 95 Prelude SE has a puddle of oil leaked out, on the driver's side. Not sure what it could be. The oil, transmission fluid have oil on the dip sticks. I wonder if the extreme cold weather we has this week had something to do with it. It's been sitting in the garage all week. I only used it once.
 
#142 ·
Done! And the car actually works after all that!

Sticking points:
• Removing the axle from the hub. Mine were stuck on both sides. I managed to tie them up semi out of the way and got the transmission out anyway. Later I was able to pound one out with my newly arrived 4lb orange rubber mallet.
• Physically removing the transmission. I was afraid it would drop on the floor…so I built an adaptor for my jack. :crazy: I just wasn’t expecting having to solve an 80lb rubik’s cube.
• Removing the rear main seal…that did not want to come out. I had to take the plate off and use a chisel on the seal
• Physically installing the transmission… double the effort!
• Getting the passenger side drive shaft back in the transmission… used the orange mallet on it
• Getting the three bolts back in the bearing support…there are two types of bolts (Dowel and Flange) and I didn’t recognize that until I had stripped part of the threads out of one.
• Bleeding a defective set of master and slave cylinders. I wore a path on the garage floor walking between the clutch pedal and the slave cylinder trying to bleed air out of the system. :-x I fixed it finally after buying and installing a different set. Note the master cylinder has a not so obvious Allen wrench socket…tighten that before installing or you’ll have a leak.

Right or wrong I didn’t drain the oil or remove the oil pan. Also I put the seal on the plate and then installed the plate a seal together.

So far no oil leaks under the car. I did notice some oil under the distributor cap. Next task it to replace the inner shaft seal (BH3888-E0) to fix an internal distributor oil leak.

Thanks again for all the suggestions. I wouldn’t have attempted this without the wealth of information on this website.
 
#143 ·
Just a tiny bit of info for those who can't do something themselves due to time, money, inclement weather, etc.

Getting a garage to replace the oil cooler seals is approximately a $200 on average. I was hoping my seal would last until spring but I had to get it done at a shop since it burst the other day and I wasn't going to be doing any car work in 0° weather.
 
#146 ·
This is going to be the mother of all "oil issues" responses, mainly because I've seen entirely too many of these in the 5th gen thread.


H22's like to consume oil, and it is a well-known fact in the H-series community. From leaky seals, to FRM cylinder walls wicking oil into the combustion chamber, to bad valve seals- you are going to have to do a LOT of work if you want to cut down on your oil consumption. I've been in the position that many new 'Luders are in (not aking much money and trying to repair my car), so I thought I would compile a list of things to do- from easiest/cheapest, to hardest/most expensive. Here is a link to the Helms manual download to help you along the way.


  • Seal it: If your car leaks oil, do something about it- replace the seals on the motor. Staring at them intently and wishing they would go away will not solve your problem.
    • VTEC Solenoid Gasket: This is perhaps the biggest culprit for stock H22's. The VTEC Solenoid is located just behind your distributor, with the small cylinder sticking out of the top of it. It will require you to remove a few 10mm bolts. Oil will drain out of it, so get ready with some rags or a catch can.
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: There will be oil/black gunk on the top of your transmission casing, and along the passenger side of the block.
      • COST: Gaskets are usually ~$20.. from your local dealer.
      • Part #15825-P13-005

        Shown as #13 & #15 on the diagram:

    • Distributor O-Ring: Like that creepy old guy that hangs out around schools, this little number is well-hidden. Often times, what happens is the O-ring will dry out after sitting for a while, crack, and then leak oil. To get to the seal, you need to remove the distributor from the cylinder head. Remove the three 8mm bolts from the distributor cap, remove the rotor by taking the setscrew out of the shaft (you may need to click the motor over until you can see this set screw), and unbolt the distributor from the shaft.
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: There will be oil leaking on the passenger side of the block, typically black gunk will be pooled on top of your transmission.
      • COST: Typically ~$2.
      • Part #30110-PA1-732
        als
        Shown as #6 in the diagram:
    • Valve Cover Gaskets: Not quite as likely as the VTEC solenoid gasket, valve covers do in fact leak. This is the giant cover over the top of your engine, and is quite easy to remove. There are a few 10mm crown nuts you'll have to remove, then lift off of the top of the cylinder head. You can use a wide flat-blade screwdriver to help start pry it off. It's also advised to put a little high-temp silicone (Hondabond) in the sharp corners of the valve cover gasket, as they don't like to seal very well by itself. It's also a good idea to replace the spark plug well seals, too- they're the funny little guys that look like small rubber donuts. (NOTE- if you are mechanically inclined and your engine has many miles on it, you can also do a Valve Adjustment while you have the cover off. Link to writeup on HondaTech)
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: There will be oil/black gunk around the base of the valve cover, usually on the back or sides of the block.
      • COST: Valve cover gaskets are usually ~$15, the small rubber seals for the sparkplug wells are ~$3 each.
      • Part #12341-P13-000 (cover gasket)
        ......#12342-PT2-000 (rubber seals for s.p.w.)

        Shown as #3 & #4 on the diagram.
    • Oil Cooler O-Ring: This guy is in a different area code in comparison to the last few seals mentioned, but is still a pain in the ass. This seal goes between the oil cooler and the block on an H22, and sometimes goes bad from heat cycles or age and cracks. This will cause you to dump all of that nice 10w-30 oil that you just changed all over your driveway, your exhaust, and everything south of the boarder. It will require that you use a 30mm deep-well socket to remove the oil cooler, and a torque wrench to torque it down to 54lbs-ft.
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: Your mom will be screaming at you for dumping your oil on her driveway, and oil will be leaking from behind the oil filter and the block. Typically can be seen dripping into your axles and flex pipe.
      • COST: This little guy will run you about $4.
      • Part #91316-PE7-730
      • WRITEUP LINK: http://www.preludepower.com/forums/showthread.php?t=324248 (props to xxfallacyxx)

        Shown as #32 in the diagram:

    • Cam Cap Seals: A close relative to the VTEC solenoid gasket & valve cover gasket, this little black plug is a pain in your ass in more ways than you can count. There are multiple O-ring replacements for these little guys (BLOX, Golden Eagle, Skunk2, ect), personally I think the billet seals with O-rings is a better idea. However, following the OEM ideology of this thread, you can buy OEM replacements. It's a wise idea to use Hondabond sealing agent (although any high-temp sealer will work). You need to remove the valve cover, then remove the cam cap on top of it. Once the cam cap is off, you can replace the leaky bastard with a new one. BE SURE TO TORQUE THE CAP TO 7lbs-ft USING A TORQUE WRENCH!
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: There will be black gunk/oil on the passenger side of the block, behind/next to the VTEC solenoid
      • COST: ~$7 from your dealership, ~$20 for an aftermarket replacement
      • Part #12513-P30-000

        Shown as #8 in the diagram:




        ________________________________________

  • All Other Major Seals: Most other seals beyond this point require major disassembly on your motor. If you are going this far, it is advised to do a full timing belt service while you have it apart. So, ask your mom if you can borrow the minivan for the weekend, or fire up your winter beater- because this is gonna get bumpy. Link to writeup for timing belt job/disassembly for jobs from here on out. Courtesy of JLUDE.
    • Cam Shaft Seals: UNLIKE cam cap seals, these hard plastic pipsqueaks are located under the valve cover, behind the cam gears, on the cylinder head. This will require that you remove the cam gears- meaning you need to remove the timing belt. Once the cam gears are removed, you can remove the seals with a small, flat-blade screwdriver and a little work. You can insert the new seals by sliding them over the cam shafts, and pushing them gently on with the cam gears. (NOTE- MAKE SURE THERE IS GREASE ON THE INSIDE OF THE SEAL. All OEM Honda seals come with grease pre-loaded in the seal, to prevent a dry start and premature wear of the seal)
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: There will be oil leaking down the front of the block, coming from the seals behind the cam gears.
      • COST: Typically ~$7 each from your Honda Dealership.
      • Part #91213-PR3-004

        Shown as #38 on the diagram:
    • Balance Shaft Seal: Like the cam seals, you will need to remove your timing belt and front engine cover to do these. These typically don't leak as much, but it is a good idea to get fresh seals while you are this far in. To remove these guys, you need to break the bolt loose on the end of the balance shaft (good idea to leave the belt on the shaft wheel before doing this) and remove the retainer. Once they are out of the way, it's the same as doing the cam shaft seals.
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: Oil will be leaking from the seal, typically black and dirty underneath seal.
      • COST: About $5.
      • Part #91233-PT0-003


    • Front/Rear Main Seals: The biggest bastards of them all, the front and rear main seals. The front main seal is located behind the crank pulley, while the rear main seal is buried behind the flywheel on the back of the motor. If you're going this far, you might as well plan on investing in a new clutch too!
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: Oil will be leaking between the transmission case and the engine block, or out of the bottom of the timing cover and onto the oil pan
      • COST: $15 for the rear, $15 for the front.
      • Part #91214-PAA-A01 (rear)
      • ......#91214-PLE-003 (front)

        Shown as #45 in the diagram:


______________________________________________________________

This concludes the "Seals" section. Any rep will be greatly appreciated, I will write more concerning other forms of oil consumption and repairs a little later. :emthup:
hey there i have a seal question that i cant figure out. everytime i crack the filler bolt on my transaxle it has an extra litre or two of fluid and it smells like gas. i can tell the case is getting overfull because it becomes increasingly more difficult to downshift. what seal would be leaking to allow excess fuel to enter my manual transmission?
 
#148 ·
I'm new here I found this site because I was Google searching guides to replace some of my seals. Awesome write-up but I had a lightbulb go off in my head. I read just about every reply and didn't notice anybody mention the oil sending unit ? I haven't experienced it in my prelude yet but I know my crx and both del sols I owned all had it leaking and I had to fix them. One was a cracked housing and the other two just needed the threads to be cleaned and 're wrapped in Plumbers tape.
 
#150 ·
Hello everyone. I have a long lasting problem with oil dissapearing. Like for real, oil is dissapearing somewhere, becouse my h22 never makes a blue smoke, regardless its a cold start or i'm hard on the throttle. I've noticed a couple of drops of oil between transmission case and engine block, but that's only it, no oil leaks elsewhere. If i drive under VTEC, it's kinda OK, oil is somewhat stable, but if i drive more in a race mode, it takes only ONE good VTEC "pull" in any gear till the redline, to make around 100-150ml of oil dissapear. I was on 10w40 last time, and in 10000 km's i had to pour about 5-7 litres of oil. It's getting annoying. Thanks in advice for your ideas :)
 
#153 ·
If its burning off before hitting the ground or building up somewhere...it would be hard to tell


Trace the drops. Clean whats there.


Do a compression test if you feel it may be the rings
 
#154 ·
Sorry to bump a really old thread, but I just solved my leak issue and wanted to share.
Someone mentioned this before but might be worth adding the VTEC solenoid base gasket to the list. That ended up being my issue. 36172-P08-015
I was leaking almost 5 quarts between oil changes because of that. It finally cracked and leaked a quart in 10-15 minutes.
 
#159 ·
MommysLittleMonster man that was a great write up and It gave me all the info I needed. I was also able to download the pdf manual to my chrome drive. I have my motor sitting on the stand getting ready to take care of everything you went over and when I came across your write up it was a life saver. Your write up is the reason why I joined this forum thank you.
 
#160 ·
Oil slicks infiltrate into the structure of the plumage of flying creatures and the hide of well evolved creatures, lessening its protecting capacity, and making them progressively powerless against temperature variances and considerably less light in the water. Cleanup and recuperation from an oil slick is troublesome and relies on numerous variables, including the kind of oil spilled, the temperature of the water (influencing vanishing and biodegradation), and the sorts of shorelines and sea shores involved. Spills may take weeks, months or even a very long time to clean up.

Oil slicks can have terrible ramifications for society; financially, earth, and socially. Subsequently, oil slick mishaps have started extraordinary media consideration and political hubbub, uniting numerous in a political battle concerning government reaction to oil slicks and what activities can best keep them from occurring
 
#161 ·
Engine oil, motor oil, or motor oil is any of different substances containing base oils upgraded with different added substances, especially antiwear added substance notwithstanding cleansers, dispersants and, for multi-grade oils, thickness file improvers. Engine oil is utilized for grease of inside ignition motors. The fundamental capacity of engine oil is to decrease rubbing and wear on moving parts and to clean the motor from muck (one of the elements of dispersants) and varnish (cleansers). It additionally kills acids that start from fuel and from oxidation of the oil (cleansers), improves fixing of cylinder rings, and cools the motor via diverting warmth from moving parts.

Notwithstanding the previously mentioned essential constituents, practically all greasing up oils contain erosion and oxidation inhibitors. Engine oil might be made out of just a grease base stock on account of non-cleanser oil, or
JDM Import an oil base stock in addition to added substances to improve the oil's detergency, extraordinary weight execution, and capacity to repress consumption of motor parts.
 
#162 ·
This is going to be the mother of all "oil issues" responses, mainly because I've seen entirely too many of these in the 5th gen thread.


H22's like to consume oil, and it is a well-known fact in the H-series community. From leaky seals, to FRM cylinder walls wicking oil into the combustion chamber, to bad valve seals- you are going to have to do a LOT of work if you want to cut down on your oil consumption. I've been in the position that many new 'Luders are in (not making much money and trying to repair my car), so I thought I would compile a list of things to do- from easiest/cheapest, to hardest/most expensive. Here is a link to the Helms manual download to help you along the way.
  • Seal it: If your car leaks oil, do something about it- replace the seals on the motor. Staring at them intently and wishing they would go away will not solve your problem.
    • VTEC Solenoid Gasket: This is perhaps the biggest culprit for stock H22's. The VTEC Solenoid is located just behind your distributor, with the small cylinder sticking out of the top of it. It will require you to remove a few 10mm bolts. Oil will drain out of it, so get ready with some rags or a catch can.
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: There will be oil/black gunk on the top of your transmission casing, and along the passenger side of the block.
      • COST: Gaskets are usually ~$20.. from your local dealer.
      • Part #15825-P13-005

        Shown as #13 & #15 on the diagram:
    • Distributor O-Ring: Like that creepy old guy that hangs out around schools, this little number is well-hidden. Often times, what happens is the O-ring will dry out after sitting for a while, crack, and then leak oil. To get to the seal, you need to remove the distributor from the cylinder head. Remove the three 8mm bolts from the distributor cap, remove the rotor by taking the setscrew out of the shaft (you may need to click the motor over until you can see this set screw), and unbolt the distributor from the shaft.
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: There will be oil leaking on the passenger side of the block, typically black gunk will be pooled on top of your transmission.
      • COST: Typically ~$2.
      • Part #30110-PA1-732

        Shown as #6 in the diagram:
    • Valve Cover Gaskets: Not quite as likely as the VTEC solenoid gasket, valve covers do in fact leak. This is the giant cover over the top of your engine, and is quite easy to remove. There are a few 10mm crown nuts you'll have to remove, then lift off of the top of the cylinder head. You can use a wide flat-blade screwdriver to help start pry it off. It's also advised to put a little high-temp silicone (Hondabond) in the sharp corners of the valve cover gasket, as they don't like to seal very well by itself. It's also a good idea to replace the spark plug well seals, too- they're the funny little guys that look like small rubber donuts. (NOTE- if you are mechanically inclined and your engine has many miles on it, you can also do a Valve Adjustment while you have the cover off. Link to writeup on HondaTech)
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: There will be oil/black gunk around the base of the valve cover, usually on the back or sides of the block.
      • COST: Valve cover gaskets are usually ~$15, the small rubber seals for the sparkplug wells are ~$3 each.
      • Part #12341-P13-000 (cover gasket)
        ......#12342-PT2-000 (rubber seals for s.p.w.)

        Shown as #3 & #4 on the diagram.
    • Oil Cooler O-Ring: This guy is in a different area code in comparison to the last few seals mentioned, but is still a pain in the ass. This seal goes between the oil cooler and the block on an H22, and sometimes goes bad from heat cycles or age and cracks. This will cause you to dump all of that nice 10w-30 oil that you just changed all over your driveway, your exhaust, and everything south of the boarder. It will require that you use a 30mm deep-well socket to remove the oil cooler, and a torque wrench to torque it down to 54lbs-ft.
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: Your mom will be screaming at you for dumping your oil on her driveway, and oil will be leaking from behind the oil filter and the block. Typically can be seen dripping into your axles and flex pipe.
      • COST: This little guy will run you about $4.
      • Part #91316-PE7-730
      • WRITEUP LINK: How to: Replace Oil Cooler O-Ring (props to xxfallacyxx)

        Shown as #32 in the diagram:

    • Cam Cap Seals: A close relative to the VTEC solenoid gasket & valve cover gasket, this little black plug is a pain in your ass in more ways than you can count. There are multiple O-ring replacements for these little guys (BLOX, Golden Eagle, Skunk2, ect), personally I think the billet seals with O-rings is a better idea. However, following the OEM ideology of this thread, you can buy OEM replacements. It's a wise idea to use Hondabond sealing agent (although any high-temp sealer will work). You need to remove the valve cover, then remove the cam cap on top of it. Once the cam cap is off, you can replace the leaky bastard with a new one. BE SURE TO TORQUE THE CAP TO 7lbs-ft USING A TORQUE WRENCH!
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: There will be black gunk/oil on the passenger side of the block, behind/next to the VTEC solenoid
      • COST: ~$7 from your dealership, ~$20 for an aftermarket replacement
      • Part #12513-P30-000

        Shown as #8 in the diagram:




        ____
  • All Other Major Seals: Most other seals beyond this point require major disassembly on your motor. If you are going this far, it is advised to do a full timing belt service while you have it apart. So, ask your mom if you can borrow the minivan for the weekend, or fire up your winter beater- because this is gonna get bumpy. Link to writeup for timing belt job/disassembly for jobs from here on out. Courtesy of JLUDE.
    • Cam Shaft Seals: UNLIKE cam cap seals, these hard plastic pipsqueaks are located under the valve cover, behind the cam gears, on the cylinder head. This will require that you remove the cam gears- meaning you need to remove the timing belt. Once the cam gears are removed, you can remove the seals with a small, flat-blade screwdriver and a little work. You can insert the new seals by sliding them over the cam shafts, and pushing them gently on with the cam gears. (NOTE- MAKE SURE THERE IS GREASE ON THE INSIDE OF THE SEAL. All OEM Honda seals come with grease pre-loaded in the seal, to prevent a dry start and premature wear of the seal)
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: There will be oil leaking down the front of the block, coming from the seals behind the cam gears.
      • COST: Typically ~$7 each from your Honda Dealership.
      • Part #91213-PR3-004

        Shown as #38 on the diagram:
    • Balance Shaft Seal: Like the cam seals, you will need to remove your timing belt and front engine cover to do these. These typically don't leak as much, but it is a good idea to get fresh seals while you are this far in. To remove these guys, you need to break the bolt loose on the end of the balance shaft (good idea to leave the belt on the shaft wheel before doing this) and remove the retainer. Once they are out of the way, it's the same as doing the cam shaft seals.
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: Oil will be leaking from the seal, typically black and dirty underneath seal.
      • COST: About $5.
      • Part #91233-PT0-003

    • Front/Rear Main Seals: The biggest bastards of them all, the front and rear main seals. The front main seal is located behind the crank pulley, while the rear main seal is buried behind the flywheel on the back of the motor. If you're going this far, you might as well plan on investing in a new clutch too!
      • HOW YOU CAN TELL: Oil will be leaking between the transmission case and the engine block, or out of the bottom of the timing cover and onto the oil pan
      • COST: $15 for the rear, $15 for the front.
      • Part #91214-PAA-A01 (rear)
      • ......#91214-PLE-003 (front)

        Shown as #45 in the diagram:


__

This concludes the "Seals" section. Any rep will be greatly appreciated, I will write more concerning other forms of oil consumption and repairs a little later. :emthup:
WHAT ABOUT REMOVING THE OIL PUMP AND RE SEALING THE SEALS UNDER THERE?
 
#163 ·
What about them would you like to know? They are uncommon to need replacing - and the pump itself is sealed with Hondabond. I've seen them last longer than valve seals on many motors.
 
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