Returned from a 12 day trip to Germany last week. After walking our bags through the garage into the house that evening, walked the same path the next morning to discover a large oil leak trickling out the back of the car the next morning. This was not there the previous night. So not just a few drops but a trail of oil. May have half a quart in the drain pain I put under it now. The car had not been driven while I was gone. Father-in-law did joke about 150 mph in 2nd gear but he drives a Prius so I know he was kidding.

Drove another car this past week as just didn't have time to deal with it. This weekend I jacked up up the kitty and it seems that oil is coming from one side of the oil pan. Is wet pretty much the length of that side of the pan and dripping from the back. Is it possible the seal just went bad to that extent? The plastic pan itself has no damage, the bolts holding in seem to be normal condition. But leaking quite a bit of oil all of a sudden, no prior drips noticed. Should I be looking further above for some other issue?

I'm a DYI'er with minor experience, brakes, oil changes, interior stuff, etc. What would your recommendations be? Does the oil pan have a gasket part that should just be replaced? Or is it a remove, clean, and apply silicone gasket seal product, and replace oil pan job? Or would you recommend replacement of the oil plan completely? Or do you think it's something else? Or am I opening up a can I'm not capable of closing and better off just taking it to suitable repair shop?

Any experienced guidance would be greatly appreciated. Love my XKR and need to get it back onto the road.

 

That's weird.
I'd go with the father-in-law's confession.
He probably bottomed out, going over a speed bump at the bingo parlor.

 

Ben,

You didn't say what model year, so I checked your public profile and saw that your XKR is a 2007. How many miles and how often is it driven? Infrequently driven cars with low mileage can have oil pan gaskets that dry out and shrink, and leak. That might be what happened. If so, then the oil pan gasket needs to be replaced. From what I understand, that's not too bad a DIY job. But if the leak is coming from elsewhere, lots of stuff might be in the way to get to and remove that leaking part. You might want to wash down that part of the engine with a spray degreaser and see if you can pinpoint the source of the leak. You might find more than one leak.

Stuart

 

Thanks for the responses. I'm going to unveil my lack of knowledge for this car now, have only had it a few months. While I was doing some additional online research, I realized the oil is dripping off of the trans oil pan and not the motor oil pan. But I'm sure it's motor oil and not trans oil, brown not red. So must be traveling from above unfortunately.

My car has about 75K miles and I had been driving it most days before the trip. I guess I'll get a pro to take a look at it. I'm not all that interested in scuffing my knuckles on a job of any real complication.

 

I suspect that there are some good indy Jaguar shops in Charlotte. That could save you some $$$ over a Jag dealer's hourly labor rates. I'm with you about having a pro handle this one.

 

Are we talking the 4.2 or 5.0 L engine. What year is your car. Is it a top or bottom mount oil filter. I would clean the area and fill the engine with oil . Put it up on jack stands and 1st wait to see if it leaks without running the engine. If it doesn't then start the engine and let it warm up. Look for leaks at the oil filter (could be a blown filter gasket ) and watch around the pan gasket. After run for a few minutes continue to check.

 

It's a 2007 XKR. Have yet to change her oil, though we've been on a few fun "dates" in the 2 months we've known each other. So not sure if she prefers top or bottom mount. Maybe if I'm feeling bold this week I'll climb back under her and see what else I can see. But to be honest, I'm not all that crazy about her leaking fluids so might just be a job for a pro.

 

The 07 is the 4.2 l engine with a bottom mount oil filter. Also the early cars had some issues with the transmission pan. They tend to warp and leak and also there is an electrical plug in the side of it that the o-rings at times leak. I don't know for sure but the ZF A/T fluid may not be red so you may have a transmission pan leak. I think there is info on how to change the pan.

 

In that case, maybe I'll give it another look. Thought the trans fluid would be red but if not this is making more sense. I'll see what threads I can find here as well. I appreciate your help.

 

Read this , similar transmission. https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/s...ics-faq-30991/

 

Motor oil that is leaking from the front of the engine is blown rearward by airflow and can drip off the transmission and other components. The question is: where is the oil coming from? In addition to the oil pan gasket and oil filter gasket, mentioned above, motor oil can leak from the front timing cover - that's not so easy to get to.

Let us know what you find out.

 

My transmission pan developed a crack around 20K miles and had to be replaced. If you are jacking the car up to replace the oil pan (assuming it is and not transmission pan); why not do them both? You can buy a kit that includes pan, filter, and oil.

 

Hi Ben, at the rate of leak you are experiencing, the oil sump for the engine must be pretty low by now. Why not pull the dip stick and see how much oil is in it. If it is full, then the problem is the transmission pan. As with Moses experience, I had one of those plastic pans crack on my VDP. It can be replaced as a DIY project but it is not a simple job. You must have the car on a lift as it needs to be level to ensure you get the proper amount of oil back into it. The transmission has no dip stick.

 

You can basically confirm by checking your engine oil. If it's full, assume it's the trans fluid. There is no dipstick for the trans fluid as they were originally designed to be sealed for life.

If you are losing fluid at that high of a rate, you may or may not make it to the repair shop. FYI, even for the shade tree mechanic, changing the fluid on these cars without a lift, though can be done, can be dangerous. If you have a shop do it, buy what you need online as the parts are expensive. Pan and filter are integrated. Pan bolts should be replaced. @ 75k miles, you can just follow ZF's guidelines to replace the pan, mechatronic sleeve and then refill.
If you use a shop, use one that knows these transmissions. Hyundai Genesis, BMW, Jag use the tranny so those dealerships know the drill.

Here's a video:
https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...-video-114233/

 

After checking motor oil level with no indication of low level, I took my cat to the indy shop and had them confirm it was indeed a leaking trans oil pan. They are going to replace the pan, fluid (OEM ZF fluid), and electronic sleeve while they are in there. Quote was just over $500 for parts and labor. While I enjoy getting some dirt under my nails, and the video links provided were very informative, gonna punt on this one. Based on what I could find to source the parts and fluid myself, its worth it not to spend my upcoming Saturday and risking dropping the car on top of myself from my jack stands working on those apparently pesky fasteners and fill/drain plugs. Getting her back this evening.

Thanks all for your input and advice. This is truly a great forum and I hope I can offer something of value in the future as thanks to return the favor. Love that there is a wealth of enthusiast/mechanical experience here and you are willing to share your knowledge. Much appreciated.

 

Good move. Leveling a car once jacked up is not a trivial task for the average tinkerer. And $500 is not bad for the job plus it includes piece of mind. Besides, you need a trans fluid change anyway

and thanks for the follow up.