3.7L CX-9, oil leaking from front of engine?

[puma]

I have a pretty big oil leak in front of the engine and can’t see where it is from, it is wet all the way behind the alternator, anyone ever had that kind of leak?

 

[rowlands57]

Are you sure it's oil and not coolant coming from the weep-hole in the water pump? If you have trouble finding the source try cleaning the area with brake cleaner and then check frequently for the leak. With a clean surface to check it should be more obvious as to the source of the leak.

 

[jal142]

Oil pressure sensor? It's down by the alternator on the side of the engine.

 

[puma]

well i used some engine cleaner last time and it wasn't a success in term of cleaning the engine. Now i tried the brake cleaner and man that stuff works! Now that it is clean, i let the engine run for a little bit and didn't see anything, went for a ride and didn't see anything so i guess i will need to drive it some more until it leaks again. I will keep you guys updated.

I thought about pressure sensor too but doesn't seem to be it and i know it is not coolant.

thanks guys

 

[jal142]

Are you sure you or someone else didn't spill oil when adding it to the engine? The fill hole is above that area...

 

[puma]

no, i cleaned it a bit lately to see if that was the problem and then i forgot about it, didn't drive the truck much and some day i realised there was oil on the floor of the garage so the leak definately came back. I just didn't drive it enough yet to see a leak since i cleaned it with brake cleaner, lots of snow today so i'll wait untill the roads get clearer because that will screw my test if it gets filled with snow and salty crap.

 

[jal142]

My only other ideas are the oil cooler gaskets or the valve cover gasket.