Leaking oil

[Matt Isaacs]

hey all,

Went for a short ride yesterday on my 1980 Special, and when I got back, oil was spilling out the drain plug nuts (or whatever they’re called) at the front of the engine. See pics. They’d never done that before. Oil level was on the low side, just above the minimum. Any idea why they’d suddenly go? Is is just a matter of replacing crush washers?

Matt

 

[MaxPete]

Well, I'd sure start with new crush washers. They are usually made of copper and are readily available as auto parts places in 6mm and 10mm sizes.

 

[Matt Isaacs]

Funny end to the story (I hope). Last week my son and I checked the valves. So I went back to check how he zipped them up, and noticed something funny. Notice where there washers are in the valve cover. Both front and rear on the right side were like that.

 

[Mailman]

Funny end to the story (I hope). Last week my son and I checked the valves. So I went back to check how he zipped them up, and noticed something funny. Notice where there washers are in the valve cover. Both front and rear on the right side were like that.

Haha! Yeah, that’ll do it!