Oil around engine cover

1.8-liter VVTL-i (2ZZ-GE) and VVT-i (1ZZ-FE) engine, transmission, exhaust, intake, and performance tuning discussions
Post Reply
David1234
Posts: 1
Joined: Fri Apr 19, 2019 3:58 am

Oil around engine cover

Post by David1234 »

Hello all,

I am new here. I have a 2009 Pontiac Vibe, 2.4 L engine, 285k miles that was given to us. It burns about 1/2 quart of oil every 1500 miles. There is oil around the engine cover where you put oil in and it may be leaking around the gasket too. At this mileage, do you think I should have the gasket changed or just leave it alone and add oil? Is it common for it to be burning oil at this mileage?
zbyers
Posts: 1767
Joined: Thu Apr 03, 2014 6:12 pm
Location: Sheffield, Pennsylvania

Re: Oil around engine cover

Post by zbyers »

I'd change the valve cover gasket. It's cheap maintenance that could resolve parts of your issue. Burning some oil on your year/engine Vibe is common in general, especially at that mileage. I don't recollect the full story, but something to do with the piston rings or something wear out and oil seeps around it and starts burning.
'74 Thing, '79 El Camino, '83 VW DoKa '91 Vanagon, '03 Base, 04 GT
'06 CRV, '06 AWD, '07 Base, '12 Highlander Limited, '17 Frontier CCLB

Byerscrew Garage, GenVibe Facebook, How-To Index
Everything You Need To Know About the Pontiac Vibe
Caretaker

Re: Oil around engine cover

Post by Caretaker »

Endless videos on you tube regarding the improper Toyota design of the oil return holes in between the rings. Should have been much larger
brandon4987
Posts: 24
Joined: Tue Aug 07, 2018 5:30 pm
Location: Pennsylvania

Re: Oil around engine cover

Post by brandon4987 »

David1234 wrote: Wed Apr 24, 2019 9:14 am Hello all,

I am new here. I have a 2009 Pontiac Vibe, 2.4 L engine, 285k miles that was given to us. It burns about 1/2 quart of oil every 1500 miles. There is oil around the engine cover where you put oil in and it may be leaking around the gasket too. At this mileage, do you think I should have the gasket changed or just leave it alone and add oil? Is it common for it to be burning oil at this mileage?
I like to start with the simplest solution and then start looking into bigger problems if that doesn't resolve them. You shouldn't have any oil leaking at the valve cover gasket. If it's leaking it definitely needs replaced. It's a simple fix, and the gaskets are only about 15-20 bucks so I'd recommend starting there. After replacing that your next place to look would be the oil pan gasket. Have a look under the car where the drain plug is. Look at the pan and surrounding areas. If it's all caked in oil clean it off, then check a couple days later to see if its dirty again. If so, replace the pan gasket at well. This one is a bit more involved than the valve cover gasket, but still not a difficult fix if you have some simple tools. I had similar issues on mine and after taking care of both of those have very minimal consumption between changes and mines over 300k miles. Wish I could say the same about my daily driver 2014 VW, thing burns through oil like no car I've ever owned!
Post Reply