RAV4 leaking rear main seal

L

ltroast

Joined
Oct 26, 2023
Messages
11
Newbie here, looking for ideas/advice.
Acquired 3rd gen Rav4, 2.5 4cyl, Auto, has 200k miles. Purchased "as is". Immediately noticed oil dripping, golfball size after parking. Mechanic diagnosed. Otherwise, car seems good with her high mileage.
Loss somewhat over a qt in 1k miles.
Have tried Blue Devil and Bar's Rear Main sealer.
No significant change.
Mechanical repair way too costly. Definite buyers remorse now.
Does anyone have a suggestion as to oil or additives at this point? Is a road trip out of the question? Sell or baby it?
Many thanks!
 
ltroast said:
Newbie here, looking for ideas/advice.
Acquired 3rd gen Rav4, 2.5 4cyl, Auto, has 200k miles. Purchased "as is". Immediately noticed oil dripping, golfball size after parking. Mechanic diagnosed. Otherwise, car seems good with her high mileage.
Loss somewhat over a qt in 1k miles.
Have tried Blue Devil and Bar's Rear Main sealer.
No significant change.
Mechanical repair way too costly. Definite buyers remorse now.
Does anyone have a suggestion as to oil or additives at this point? Is a road trip out of the question? Sell or baby it?
Many thanks!
Click to expand...
Get a second opinion, a lot of times oil runs down from somewhere else and looks like a rear main seal. I would clean it off with brake cleaner and use a dye with a UV light to see the oil leak.
 
That's not too bad a leak really, drive it for a while, give yourself some time to figure out where the leak is coming from. I was given a car with a worse main seal leak and drove it from Vancouver BC to Ontario, adding about a quart every 2 fill ups. Miraculously, the leak stop in a can worked on it, but it was a rope seal. Its not great having it smell like toasty oil when it gets on the exhaust but its not the end of the world.
 
Stuck with it, so I would drive long enough to figure out loss rate. Quart per 1k, just live with it, quart per 100, too much imo.

But do get a second opinion, like Trav says, maybe it is some thing else, and much cheaper.
 
cptbarkey said:
No magic will fix that, save up and get it fixed. The internet cant help you with the other questions other then endlessly speculate.
Click to expand...
Yes, agree, too much speculation. Don't want to sink a ton more $$
Trav said:
Get a second opinion, a lot of times oil runs down from somewhere else and looks like a rear main seal. I would clean it off with brake cleaner and use a dye with a UV light to see the oil leak.
Click to expand...
That seems reasonable, thanks!
 
Trav said:
This is a dye that works with oil, no need to drain after using it. This is harmless, get a UV light, the leak will glow when subjected to the light so you can follow it to the source. There may be an inspection cover under the torque converter you can remove to get a better look.

Click to expand...
Yes, believe I saw this on Youtube, and understand to track the high up source
 
IndyIan said:
That's not too bad a leak really, drive it for a while, give yourself some time to figure out where the leak is coming from. I was given a car with a worse main seal leak and drove it from Vancouver BC to Ontario, adding about a quart every 2 fill ups. Miraculously, the leak stop in a can worked on it, but it was a rope seal. Its not great having it smell like toasty oil when it gets on the exhaust but its not the end of the world.
Click to expand...
Thank you! That's a long haul. I guess by taking it out and keeping track of consumption you can see what you're up against.
 
2strokeNorthstar said:
Liquid Moly Motor Oil saver stopped a leaking front main seal on our CRV. It went from daily drips on the driveway to nothing. Took a couple hundred miles or so to stop but I was shocked. I fixed all the other leaks first but I didn't feel like dealing with a crank seal
Click to expand...
Glad to hear it worked for you! I have seen that at Napa. Think soon I may go for an OC with clean high mileage oil, then give it a shot.
 
IndyIan said:
That's not too bad a leak really, drive it for a while, give yourself some time to figure out where the leak is coming from. I was given a car with a worse main seal leak and drove it from Vancouver BC to Ontario, adding about a quart every 2 fill ups. Miraculously, the leak stop in a can worked on it, but it was a rope seal. Its not great having it smell like toasty oil when it gets on the exhaust but its not the end of the world.
Click to expand...
I had an ‘83 Escort for a while that leaked from the RMS so bad that people would think it was ON FIRE on the interstate! That seal got replaced…
 
bullwinkle said:
ATP-205 & MaxLife (blend, red bottle). It slowed the RMS leak on my departed ‘98 XJ to almost nothing. If it doesn’t, then start saving up to do it.
Click to expand...
Thank you, I have done some research and see the MaxLife syn blend has good results. May start adding it immediately as necessary. Wondering if I step up viscosity to 5w30 vs 0w20 or 5w20 (owners manual) would yield better results?
 
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