Oil Leaking... Need Help - Honda Prelude Forum

supersonixxx99 · 04-09-2011, 03:27 PM

My car has been leaking oil around the VTEC solenoid area. I've taken it to three mechanics and all of them told me it was the VTEC solenoid that was leaking. So I went and bought 2 gaskets from the dealer and had the gaskets replaced. 1 week later, oil is still leaking. So I bring it to another place and they tell me the last mechanic did not install it correctly. So I went and bought 2 more gaskets. 1 week later, oil is still leaking.

Does anyone here know what else it can be? There is a hose under the VTEC solenoid that is going into the engine. That area gets extremely wet.

Thanks for any help in advance.

JDMpreludeKing · 04-09-2011, 07:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by supersonixxx99

My car has been leaking oil around the VTEC solenoid area. I've taken it to three mechanics and all of them told me it was the VTEC solenoid that was leaking. So I went and bought 2 gaskets from the dealer and had the gaskets replaced. 1 week later, oil is still leaking. So I bring it to another place and they tell me the last mechanic did not install it correctly. So I went and bought 2 more gaskets. 1 week later, oil is still leaking.

Does anyone here know what else it can be? There is a hose under the VTEC solenoid that is going into the engine. That area gets extremely wet.

Thanks for any help in advance.

cam seal?

bouckarooo · 04-09-2011, 08:05 PM

sounds like the leak is actully coming from the cam seal, i woud look int opthis before proceeding further with the solenoid.

Prelude1897 · 04-09-2011, 08:30 PM

The cam seal is common to start leaking, so you should change that out. I'd get an aftermarket one that has the 3 O-rings which you can find them on ebay for around $15-$20

bouckarooo · 04-09-2011, 09:11 PM

i have used the skunk 2 cam seal with great sucess. The golden eagle one is also top notch.

01lude812 · 04-11-2011, 08:58 PM

Replace the cam seal and go from there.. Too many different mech and non know whats going on..u are wasting money buying the same parts over and over.. I bought my car 3 wks ago, it was leaking around the vtec solenoid area, not for sure exactly where..but i changed out both the cam seal and vtec solenoid gaket..been over a week and no leak whatsoever.. Having owned other honda car with vtec, i knew its pretty common for those two place to leak.

minilogoguy18 · 04-11-2011, 09:25 PM

If oil has soaked that heater bypass hose going into the head you might want to replace it, the oil will make it swell and it will bust.

supersonixxx99 · 04-13-2011, 01:58 PM

Thanks for all of the responses guys, I appreciate it.

Few more questions... I tried to look for a cam seal on ebay and when I typed in cam seal, it showed two different things. One was a cap and the other was actual seals (2 rings). Which are you guys referring to? I am assuming the cap?

Also, if I remove the valve cover, will that require me to replace the valve cover gasket?

Thanks.

minilogoguy18 · 04-13-2011, 08:37 PM

^Only if the valve cover gasket is old as it might leak after you put it back on, just be careful not to tighten the cover bolts any more than what will make the grommets compress slightly. They are referring to the cap, I have a golden eagle one, works great and I'm pretty sure that if it ever did start leaking I could just get new O-rings for it at the hardware store for under a $1.

integra15 · 04-19-2011, 07:46 AM

When I stopped the leak on my vtec solenoid, I replaced the gasket and used a thin layer of Honda bond around the outer edge. It has been sealed without a drop of oil for about 2 years now.

Also if you are messing with your valve cover seal, again you need to remove and reapply the Honda bond liberally in the corners around the cam humps.

whitesites · 04-19-2011, 10:34 AM

Here is what I did.
First if the oil leaking from the VTEC solinoid, then likely the area below it will be covered in old oil and sludge. Get yourself a couple of cheap cans of carb spray. Hose down the area around and below the VTEC solinoid with the carb spray. This way you will have a clean area to detect any leaks. Next make sure you oil is not low. Then with your hood up. start your car and let it warm up. Then while the engine is running use a flash light to look at your VTEC solinoid. You will visibly be able to see it dripping if the seals are bad.

If you see it leaking, then stop your engine, let it cool down, and then remove your VTEC solinoid. There are two seals, one with the screen, and one without ( have to futher take it apart to get to the second seal ). The leak is coming from one of those two. If they replaced the seals, then its possible they did not reinstall them correctly. you have to soak the seals in oil before installing them. If you install them dry, then they will leak again ( that is what happend to me ).

supersonixxx99 · 05-02-2011, 01:48 PM

Finally took my car into the shop last week. The cam seal was indeed leaking but the mechanic told me most of the leaking was from the head gasket. Will have to go back and get that fixed.

01lude812 · 05-02-2011, 05:22 PM

Dang, that sux when the head gasket leak. How much did he say will cost to replace the headgasket?

supersonixxx99 · 05-02-2011, 07:43 PM

He told me to just live with it until I change my timing belt then he wont charge me labor for fixing it.

JDMpreludeKing · 05-05-2011, 10:08 PM

wow that sounds like a good deal, is he gunna rebuild the motor while he's there?
p.s. when change the timing belt the head doesnt need to be removed