In a previous post I inquired about lifter tick and intake man. gaskets. Went to change my oil today, noticed oil leaking from bottom of oil pump. Would this cause the ticking and the oil pressure gauge to just about max out. Never replaced an oil pump before, could it just be a gasket or seal leaking. If it is the pump going bad can I replace it and expect the ticking to go away or is it too late? Any help and tips would be greatly appreciated. Thank you all in advance.

 

Are you saying that you removed the oil pan when you changed your oil? That's the only way you would be able to see the oil pump. Oil dripping from the pump would be pretty normal since it's been swimming in the stuff.

 

I assume he is talking about oil dripping from somewhere either where the oil filter is, or where the lines connect to the block.

 

Just to throw out a possiblility, what about the oil pressure sending unit??? If there is a leak coming from around were that is located wouldn't that produce a loss of oil pressure as well??

 

Sorry about that guys I guess that oil is leaking from behind the crankshaft pulley?? Large pulley in the center of the engine on the bottom. When I drained my oil out I also noticed it was kind of lumpy.No clue why, when I pulled the stick oil looked new, which it was by the way. I bought synthetic oil and some Lucas oil additive for when I can finally figure out what exactly is wrong and I refill it.

 

That sounds like a front seal. Haven't heard of a 4.3 doing that, but it's sure possible. How many miles were on the oil, what weight was it? By 'lumpy', do you mean it kind of globbed out when you drained it, or were there actual lumps in the oil?

 

I changed my oil about a month or so ago. I'd say I put 5-700 miles on since. I'm kicking myself because I used 10w-30 pennzoil. I usually run 5w-30, but the case was given to me. I'm in western NY so temp has been in the 20's and 30's for the most part since the oil change. Thanks in advance for any help or opinions. By lumpy I mean that when I removed the drain plug three or four clumps of oil came out and then straight oil (very black looked like 5000 mile old oil). Felt the chunks that fell out, felt like straight grease out of a tube. No metal in it and no antifreeze. Not sure what to do except take lots of tylenol for the headache my ride is giving me.lol.

 

Don't sweat about the 10w30, quite a few folks in your area run that weight, although I would probably prefer the 5w30 for your climate. As to the clumps, I have heard of that before, but no satisfactory explanation came from it. The color is irrelevant, oil can change or not change color very quickly in use. The only concern I have is the consistancy you mentioned of those first clumps -very curious.
I would recommend having a used oil analysis done the next time you change oil and filter. I use www.blackstone-labs.comfor mine. You would be surprised at the amount of information about the internals of an engine that an oil analysis will reveal in the report.

 

So with what appears to be a lifter ticking and possibly the front seal leaking. I could go ahead and refill with oil and run it. Bought mobil 1 full synthetic and lucas oil conditioner. Should I be more concerned and start tearing everything apart?

 

Honestly, I would recommend having a mechanic take a look at the leak to determine the exact location. It's real hard to pinpoint it over the 'net. He could give you an opinion on the next step, but I've heard on awful lot of lifter ticking that did not necessitate any immediate action. Thereis more than one explanation for that sound.
If you're going to do a used oil analysis, just refill it with any name brand conventional oil and run it 3-4k miles.I would not spend the money on synthetic until I knew what was going on inside the engine. These engines thrive just fine on good quality dino oil.