SmoothSteve3 Posted January 4, 2009 Report Share Posted January 4, 2009 Hey everyone- Is there some sort of engine oil dye additive out there that will allow me to detect oil leaks with a UV light? I know they make UV additive for refridgerant, but I'm not sure if I've ever seen anything for engine oil. Why do I want such a product? Wellll....I've got some sort of oil leak on the bottom half of my engine. Its not a huge leak, but the entire bottom side of my engine is covered with oil (hence the need for a method of locating the leak). My guess is maybe an oilpan gasket leak. I seriously hope its not something higher up than that. Especially seeing as how I rebuilt the entire upper-half of the engine this past summer. Thanks in advance fellas. -Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Euro Posted January 4, 2009 Report Share Posted January 4, 2009 They sure do make it, however I'm not sure who makes it/where you can find it. I had some put in at the dealer to confirm the oil pan gasket leak I had on my new engine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfewtrail Posted January 4, 2009 Report Share Posted January 4, 2009 There are several places you can find it online if none of your parts stores carry it. Here's one place that has it online... http://www.autobarn.net/fluorleakdet1.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerry455 Posted January 4, 2009 Report Share Posted January 4, 2009 they make dyes for almost any of the fluids for leak detection. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rockfangd Posted January 4, 2009 Report Share Posted January 4, 2009 I say just pressurewash the underside and run it to find the leak location. The dye wont help anymore than finding the oil itself Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1990lumina Posted January 5, 2009 Report Share Posted January 5, 2009 the dye will help if the leak is from a small area - however it mst be clean for it to work properly. iagree to wash the whole area down so it's clean first. Most parts stores sell the dye up here. I'm sure it's not hard to find locally. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olds W31 Posted January 5, 2009 Report Share Posted January 5, 2009 Brake cleaner, pressure washer, and a couple of trips around the block ought to show you what you need. I have yet to not find an oil leak after starting with a cleaned up engine. You can put the car on ramps and use a good light. Without looking at it, if it is a large area of the oil pan, but doesn't drip on the ground, in other words a fairly slow leak, oil pan gasket is a good bet. How many miles? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SmoothSteve3 Posted January 6, 2009 Author Report Share Posted January 6, 2009 Mileage just passed 170k. Around 160k, I replaced everything from the headgaskets up (including replacing the heads). On top of the oil pan being caked with oil, there appears to be a small oil leak towards the front of the vehicle . I'm still trying to figure that one out.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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