engine and drivetrain S14 help:1qt of M1 15w50 added 2 an engine full of unkwn oil

[tut]

Hi All, I recently got my M2 back from the shop. Mostly body work done, but they did an oil change too. I explicitly requested Mobil 1 15w50. Today I added a quart of Mobil1 15w50 assuming that's what was already in the crankcase, and drove for about 10 miles. The car has never leaked a drop of oil, but upon arrival home noticed quite a bit of oil seeping around oilpan gasket. I've heard that synthetic can seep under certain conditions even though my engine has never done so w/ M1. My fear is that when oil was changed that conventional oil was used, and when I added the quart of synthetic it some how reacted to make the seepy mess that I'm observing.

Does anybody know if this sounds reasonable? Any idea what if any damage I've done? Any suggestions for remediation? Thanks heaps and happy new year! - CT

[2002maniac]

Was the crankcase 1qt low when you added the oil? Might overfilling have caused it?

[robdelk]

the red baron used 0 oil with 15w50 change to catrol 20/50 in apinch . she started drinking. daughter did not put M1 back in and it drinks and leaks

[Madvibes]

yeah, if it just had an oil change and it never leaked oil, why did you put another whole quart in there?

[tut]

yeah, if it just had an oil change and it never leaked oil, why did you put another whole quart in there?

car burns but has never leaked oil. It needed oil so I added some, it wasn't quite a whole quart - it's possible that I over filled slightly, but not by more than 1/2 cup - maybe that caused leak around oilpan gasket as previously speculated - anybody think that's possible?

I'm not looking for comment or opinions on whether or not I should have added oil, rather - does anybody know if either a) mixing viscosities, or mixing sythetic w/ conventional oil, or c) both of the above, could cause leaking where none existed before using only pure 15w50 M1? Also, what damage have I caused? Also, what steps can I take to mitigate (beyond immediate oil/filter change)?

Thanks - CT.

[jgerry2002]

1) Mixing synthetic and nonsynthetic does not cause any issues.

2) overfilling can potentially cause leaks, but most motors will just burn it off

3) More likely that the leak would have started regardless of the oil type used.

4) I highly doubt you caused any damage.

[MichaelP]

Leaks caused by using synthetics usually happen to motors that (a) were not designed to run with synthetics and ( have been run with dino oils for 100k miles and then switched. The S14 was designed for use with synthetics and was most likely run with it for most of its life. As for the amount of oil added, many S14 owners (myself included) run the motor with the oil over the max fill line, so that shouldn't be an issue. So no, the synthetic oil is 'prolly not causing weeping around the pan.

I'm curious about that oil pan. Is it a shortened S14 pan or an 02 pan? If it's the latter, maybe it's not sitting dead flat against the block. If it's the former, it may have been twisted by the heat during rewelding.

[tut]

I'm curious about that oil pan. Is it a shortened S14 pan or an 02 pan? If it's the latter, maybe it's not sitting dead flat against the block. If it's the former, it may have been twisted by the heat during rewelding.

Thanks all for these insights - this is just what I was looking for.

I'd heard that slightly overfilling the s14 was SOP and had mad slight overfilling my custom as well.

re: pan - it's an 02 pan

the car NEVER leaked a drop either before going into, or during the two weeks since returning from the shop. I'm struck by the cooincidence that it started leaking only after adding a quart the other day. With the holidays I have not had a chance to confirm w/ mechanic the oil type used when he changed the oil. I'll do that tomorrow - if he used the oil that I specified (m1 15w50) then I guess it's just a coincidence.

Ok - something else occurs to me: The oil pan did come off when the car was in the shop. I'm confident that it was correctly installed w/ a new gasket, but when replacing the oilpan on such a setup (02 pan on s14 block) is it necessary to re-torque the oil pan bolts after a couple of weeks?

[BLUNT]

im sure they just flattened the gasket out. i dont know about you but i dont trust anyone to do anything on my car i know i can do better. perhaps time was an issue with you but i just dont let anyone touch my shit.

[MN2002]

Still need that wheel?

[BLUNT]

it will give me a matching set of 4. maybe we can get together sometime and swap them out. is the one you have a spare or is it on the car?

[NickVyse]

there's your answer - they removed the pan. Either they re-used the old gasket, screwed up putting the new one on, or didn't torque the sump down properly in the first place.

[MN2002]

it will give me a matching set of 4. maybe we can get together sometime and swap them out. is the one you have a spare or is it on the car?

It is a spare.

[BLUNT]

and with my other cars in storage in the garage mahal i cant be painting till spring.