When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
2nd Gen Ram Tech1994-2001 Rams: This section is for TECHNICAL discussions only, that involve the 1994 through 2001 Rams. For any non-tech discussions, please direct your attention to the "General discussion/NON-tech" sub sections.
Hello,
I have a 2001 Ram 2500 with a 5.9 Magnum and noticed a leak today coming from behind the harmonic balancer, beneath the water pump. The leak is engine oil and has gotten worse over the past few days. Does anyone know what seal this could be that needs to be changed?
Not in any particular order, the oil could be coming from the timing cover crankshaft seal, the timing cover itself or it could be an oil leak from the front of the intake manifold that is leaking down behind the water pump. The first two will entail pulling the timing chain cover. If you do that, I'd recommend replacing the timing chain while you're in there.
If it were my truck, I'd get a UV test kit and some dye for oil based systems. Drive it a little bit then use the black light pen light (and the yellow safety glasses, you DON'T want to mess with the UV light) and trace the leak backwards. It will show up as a yellowish green trace.
Hello,
Thank you for the quick response. It looks like it's coming from the timing cover seal. I will start by pulling the timing cover and replacing the seal. Do you know if I'll need to remove the oil pan to remove the timing cover?
Hello,
Thank you for the quick response. It looks like it's coming from the timing cover seal. I will start by pulling the timing cover and replacing the seal. Do you know if I'll need to remove the oil pan to remove the timing cover?
I've changed timing chains and both dropped the oil pan and done it with the pan in place. Generally, it's more aggravating to cut the old pan gasket and try to get it to seal. I prefer to drop the pan and use a one piece rubber gasket. Very little chance of a secondary leak afterward. This will let me clean the pan and pick up tube of any debris. I've seen them squeaky clean, I've seen them sludged up and I've seen plastic pieces from the nylon cover on the factory chains from the 70's. If the engine has a lot of miles (150,000 or more) I go ahead and replace the oil pump with a high volume one. Not high pressure, high volume.
The picture shows a fairly clean engine and I'm assuming it has reasonable miles on it. Myself, I'd drop the pan and do a clean job. More time but a better end result. With the cover off the front, I'd definitely replace the timing chain unless it was recently done. You have 95% of the job done already anyway.
08-09-2021, 05:28 PM
2001 Dodge Ram 5.9 Gas Oil Leak
