348 Help - Major oil leak. | FerrariChat

348 Help - Major oil leak.

Discussion in '348/355' started by Rerun, Nov 5, 2005.

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  1. Rerun

    Rerun Karting

    Jun 16, 2004
    63
    Started the 348 up this afternoon, backed it out of the garage and let it idle. Idled fine for about 1 minute then it started making noises like "Vroom....Vroom....Vroom." Like it was losing power, than getting the power back. I hopped into the car thinking "oh ****" and it started to stall out, I re-started and got it back into the garage and turned the car off. Got out of the car and look under and all I see is oil leaking out underneath the car. What the hell just happened? This happened 5 minutes ago.
     
  2. Ricambi America

    Ricambi America F1 World Champ
    Sponsor Owner

    Is the oil coming from the main plug, the rear tank, the cam seals, the ..... ?
     
  3. Miltonian

    Miltonian F1 Veteran

    Dec 11, 2002
    5,966
    Milton, Wash.
    Full Name:
    Jeff B.
    Be glad it happened at home, not out on the road!

    Have you had an oil change done recently? Have you added oil to the tank when the engine was cold (overfilled?)?

    Is it leaking enough to "puddle", or just a drip here and there?

    Has the battery been disconnected lately, or lost charge?

    More info!
     
  4. Rerun

    Rerun Karting

    Jun 16, 2004
    63
    YES! A NEW BATTERY WAS JUST PUT IN. Sorry for lack of info I am moving in between the garage and computer.
     
  5. Rerun

    Rerun Karting

    Jun 16, 2004
    63
    There was a puddle of oil.
     
  6. Miltonian

    Miltonian F1 Veteran

    Dec 11, 2002
    5,966
    Milton, Wash.
    Full Name:
    Jeff B.
    Are you familiar with the procedure to "re-initialize" your electrical system (the Motronic ECU) after having the battery disconnected????

    Where was the puddle of oil? Towards the front of the engine? Rear? Right side/left side? Anything visible from above, or just on the floor?
     
  7. Rerun

    Rerun Karting

    Jun 16, 2004
    63
    I am not totally familiar with ECU. The puddle seems to be towards the right side of the engine. Towads the rear of the engine, in front of the exhaust.
     
  8. Rerun

    Rerun Karting

    Jun 16, 2004
    63
    Not sure if this is important but the battery is located in the back, near the engine.
     
  9. Miltonian

    Miltonian F1 Veteran

    Dec 11, 2002
    5,966
    Milton, Wash.
    Full Name:
    Jeff B.
    #9 Miltonian, Nov 5, 2005
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    I'm sure you would be flooded with advice from other 348 nuts if they were online.

    Good news about the apparent location of your oil leak. As long as it's not at the front of the engine, it's probably something that can be repaired reasonably easily. You DON'T want it to be at the front of the engine, where you would have to pull the engine out to replace cam seals. There is still a possibility that what you are seeing isn't actually engine oil, but transmission fluid or brake fluid from the clutch release bearing. We'll find out!

    Look under the back of the car. The clutch housing is the farthest item to the rear in the center of the drivetrain. On the bottom of it, there is a perforated metal plate attached with four screws. Is there a great deal of oil around that plate? If so, report!

    Otherwise, look at the bottom of the oil tank, and the braided metal oil line coming from the bottom of the tank (#8). Any sign of the source of the leakage?

    If the battery is disconnected/replaced, you have to re-initialize the system for the baseline settings on the ECU's. It's very easy, doesn't cost anything, you can do it yourself, but the engine has to be running, and we want to make sure what's happening with your oil system. Just to ask again, is it possible that you have added oil to the tank with the engine cold? If so, it's overfull.

    Edit: It's VERY common for the oil drain plug on the bottom of the tank to become stripped when removing and reinstalling it. If it's loose and leaking, it would have been a disaster if it came out on the road.
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  10. Ricambi America

    Ricambi America F1 World Champ
    Sponsor Owner

    #10 Ricambi America, Nov 5, 2005
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    OK, slow down.

    Get down on your hands and knees and take a look under the right rear corner (from the bumper). Jammed into that corner of the car is your oil tank. The bottom of the tank contains a drain plug (which could have come loose if a fresh crush washer wasn't used), or the gasket which holds the bottom plate could have failed.

    This is the assembly you're looking for:
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  11. Ricambi America

    Ricambi America F1 World Champ
    Sponsor Owner

    HAHAHA.... jeff, you beat me to it!
     
  12. Miltonian

    Miltonian F1 Veteran

    Dec 11, 2002
    5,966
    Milton, Wash.
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    Jeff B.
    Daniel, I looked at the little icon before I made that post, and it said you were not online at FChat, so I assumed you were busy with Luca!
     
  13. Ricambi America

    Ricambi America F1 World Champ
    Sponsor Owner

    #13 Ricambi America, Nov 5, 2005
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    .
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  14. Rerun

    Rerun Karting

    Jun 16, 2004
    63
    Air filter has a bunch of oil on it. ****.
     
  15. Ricambi America

    Ricambi America F1 World Champ
    Sponsor Owner

    Motor oil? Is it a K&N or a stock paper filter?
     
  16. Rerun

    Rerun Karting

    Jun 16, 2004
    63
    Stock from Ferrari.
     
  17. Rerun

    Rerun Karting

    Jun 16, 2004
    63
    Guys, the oil that came out of the car was not motor oil. Looks like transmission oil. Any ideas?
     
  18. ernie

    ernie Two Time F1 World Champ
    Lifetime Rossa Owner

    Nov 19, 2001
    22,614
    The Brickyard
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    The Bad Guy
    Where is the leak coming from? Can you see were it is coming from?

    If it isn't motor oil then it's either your throw out bearing, or the triple seals on the shaft.
     
  19. Rerun

    Rerun Karting

    Jun 16, 2004
    63
    You are not going to believe this. I talked to my Dad, ( I store the car at his house ) He installed a new battery and put some oil into it w/ out starting the car up....there was enough oil. He didn't tell me and I was thinking What the hell is wrong with the car. He just put too much in and it overflowed.
     
  20. Miltonian

    Miltonian F1 Veteran

    Dec 11, 2002
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    Jeff B.
    Are you talking about oil ON the air filter housing, or oil INSIDE the housing, on the actual filter? Daniel asked about the K&N type filter because you are supposed to treat a K&N filter with special oil. Otherwise there shouldn't be any oil on the filter element inside the housing.

    Check the brake fluid level in your front trunk. The same tank holds the fluid that is used by the clutch slave cylinder/bearing inside the bellhousing. Did you find fluid around that perforated cover plate on the underside of the clutch housing? Do you know how to check the level of the transmission oil to see if it is down?

    We're getting closer to having an explanation...
     
  21. Miltonian

    Miltonian F1 Veteran

    Dec 11, 2002
    5,966
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    Jeff B.
    Ah, soooooooooo!
     
  22. 308 GTB

    308 GTB F1 World Champ
    Rossa Subscribed

    Feb 7, 2002
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    Barry Wolinsky
    Rerun,

    It's a bit more than just an oil overflow. Please contact your mechanic and follow his advice.

    Barry
     
  23. Boxer12

    Boxer12 Formula 3

    Jun 1, 2003
    1,672
    I hope this isn't a sad ending...what happens when you overflow the oil into the air filter? Why did he say it isn't oil? What's the mystery here? And why the heck do you let your dad work on your car if he doesn't know the diff btwn a dry sump and a wet sump???
     
  24. Miltonian

    Miltonian F1 Veteran

    Dec 11, 2002
    5,966
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    Jeff B.
    #24 Miltonian, Nov 5, 2005
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    This should explain what happened, if the information we have been given is correct. Dad overfilled the oil tank (how much? could have been several quarts). When the engine was started, the excess oil was blown out of the tank vent into the intake boots. Because the engine was at idle, the throttle plates were almost totally closed and the oil backed up through the boots, past the airflow sensors, and into the air filter housing.

    When cleaning up the mess, be very careful with the airflow sensors. Don't damage the "hot wire" inside, it's delicate. The rest of the intake system should be easy to clean, it's just attached with hose clamps. Get as much oil as possible out of the filter housing, and use a new filter if the old one has become oil soaked.

    And make sure you check your oil level as described in the manual, with the engine hot.
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  25. Bandit

    Bandit Formula Junior

    Dec 21, 2003
    493
    Central MS
    Full Name:
    Mike B.
    I don't know much about dry sump systems, but if there was enough oil to back up into the air filter could there have been enough going into the intake to cause hydraulic lock in any of the cylinders?
     

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