jplion

My 99 E430 has sprung an oil leak. There is no apparent leak from the top side. From below the engine, I have tracked the oil up as high as the base of the belt tensioner. What is the most likely source of the leak? Any suggestions on how to diagnose and correct are much appreciated......

hadam

I had oil leak on my 1997 E-420. I found it was the gasket on lower oil pan. See the second photo

The way oil was splash all over, I though it was coming from bell housing or transmission, but came out to be oil pan.

$50 for gasket and 1 hour of DIY.

ohlord

Clean it and look at the oil pressure port plug just above the tensioner and below the oil filter canister.They leak.Easy diy.I may have given it the wrong name but that's how I refer to it.2 outer fittings and one torx plug in the center that you remove and replace the seal.Cheapest part the dealer probably carries
it screws into the block

jplion

does appear to be the problem but will need to clean and get a better view once the engine cools later tonight or in the morning. A seal replacement....let's hope it is that easy. Thanks for the replies and to Ohlord for pointing me in the right direction. I'll keep all updated. Any idea if both fittings need to be removed or can the top one be removed and pivoted once the lower one is loosened? The reason I ask is it appears that the belt might be in the way of the lower fitting removal.

ohlord

depress the belt down to the bottom of it's half inch play.You can get the star socket on it ,no problem.Wrap the belt in glad wrap,so you don't get any oil on it.Clean front of engine with a spray of gunk foamy engine brite and a garden hose not a pressure washer when done.

jplion

After cleaning and running the engine, oil did drop from the port plug as predicted. Went to the dealer to buy the seal. They also call this part the seal ring for the cap on the timing case (which is a bit wordy for me). $3.30 for the seal ring. Needed to provide VIN since there are two designs for the 1999. Thanks for the glad wrap suggestion, saved cleanup. Put a rag below part when removing to catch the teaspoon of oil that dripped out upon removal. While at the dealership, I treated myself to an early Christmas and bought the radio keys ($7.26) and bulb for my climate control module ($4.13). Enjoy the pictures and I'll find a thread to add today's victory of spending $223 (parts and labor) to replace both cats. Thanks for all the helpful guidance Ohlord....... jplion

ohlord

are most welcome
Thanks

JohnnyDobbins

Having the same problem with the leak coming from the timing case front cover seal. Heading off to the dealer for another seal. Will post pics in a bit.

Thanks for having this problem before me and even more thanks for having resolved it --making it easy for me to make my fix.

superdjl

Do I need to drain the motor oil first before I unscrew the pressure port for seal ring replacement? I was told it's necessary to drain it first before open up the port else the motor oil would pouring out.

Hirnbeiss

Nein.

The oil level at rest is way below the oil pressure port. You may get a little bit (spoonful) out but as long as the engine os off, no more than that.

nicksc

Hi Guys,

I had a similar problem on my E430.
Found to be oil leaking from the two rubber seals between the oil cooler and the oil filter housing. 4 x hex head bolts hold the oil cooler onto the filter housing. Easy to remove and found the two seals had gone hard over time and no longer giving a good seal.
Oil was dripping from the underside of the oil cooler housing onto the serpentine belt and being thrown around the front of the engine. Made a mess but steam cleaned oil away and replaced the serpentine belt which by this time was ruined by the oil.

I would be interested to know if anyone else has had the same problem.

MBtech1098

That is the old style...you should've replaced it with the updated style, less prone to leaking. I'm surprised they sold you the old style seal.

takepic

what do you mean 'old style' ??? what does the 'new' style look like?

JamieMcInnes

Hi Guys,

Just wanted to thank you as it turned out this was the issue with my E430. The leaking oil made a right mess of the lower engine bay.


For anybody else, ask the dealer for a:


"Seal Ring" 112 184 01 61

This should help them know what you are talking about.

Tjamesbo

Why cant I view the pictures in post 6 ? trying to work out where or if i have that on my M112 V6 C240

kajtek1

I take it as script glitch.
Right-click and open in new tab or window.

Plutoe

Forget the mumbo jumbo------simply right click on the image and select open in new window-----volia!!

W210Wagon

Thanks all, for your knowledge. My old E320 wagon started loosing oil at an alarming rate. There was so much oil leaking out, it was hard to pin point. I took a chance and spent a whopping $3.60 (inc. tax) for a new ring seal. Amazing. Leak is gone.

Big Geoffrey

Im having the same problem...is it a DIY job

mikeceledon

Hi. I think I have the exact same problem. My E430 is leaking oil presumably from the Oil cooler. Seems to be a pretty common issue on these Mercs. Anyway. I cleaned the engine bay with a lot of degreaser, steam and all that. Orderd the parts for the seals of the oil cooler and a new belt. I´ll let you know how it comes out.

PS: the photo is after cleanup


Thanks for the tip