Name this leak

Name my leak?

Is it coming from somewhere above cv, or spewing out from within the boot/bellow. Below Power steering tank there’s fluid on hoses and lines nearby. Could it even be clumsy fluid service work? I doubt I’ll get off that easy lol

 

my face

 

I officially call the leak, Grover.

Seriously, If you have access to add some dye and procure a blacklight it will greatly reduce the amount of guess work.

 

What fluid is low??… have you checked?

 

Jose

 

More than likely timing cover. Need to pressure wash it off and find the source to be sure.

 

That’s looks like your power steering pump…might have a pinhole on one of the hoses or maybe a loose fitting?

edit: based upon the dark color of the residue it’s probably not power steering

 

I thought mine was PS too, but it wasn't. Clearly oil.

 

Clean and add dye.

Looks like its big enough to see it pretty quickly.

 

True but a power steering fluid leak could act like a ‘power washer’ on nearby oil soak components…

 

Put it in one place at a time........

Don't be adding dye to oil, PS, brakes etc all at the same time and try to find a leak.

 

Christi.

 

None but power steering was low before last oil service, I think I know why

 

this fitting is sus, as the kids say I think

 

I don’t know…kinda looks you just spilled something and it dripped down everywhere. Seems like there are too many drip trails everywhere for it to be a slow leak somewhere. Unless something is actually leaking under pressure (which should be easy to spot).

When was the power steering fluid topped off? Did you do it, or someone else?

Looks pretty close to what my 4runner looked like after I spilled power steering fluid. I was aiming real careful, and even stuck my tongue out a little, but I still managed to spill some. It made more mess than I expected. The amount wasn’t that much , but the stuff travels!

If it’s a lot more oil than you expect, check the the oil filter housing isn’t leaking. Sometimes the o-ring can break, or the housing itself can get a crack.

 

What work was done to it previously? That tie rod boot has a piece of wire instead of a clamp and its not in the right place.

 

Excuse me, sir. I think you meant SUPER Grover!

 

That looks like the timing chain cover leaking. Bummer, dude.

 

On a positive note, you are getting free undercoating.

 

I’m going to look into cleaning the area today. I don’t have a pressure washer, at my house, but is pressure washer really the best method to clean this area of fluid?
Thoughts anyone

 

Thanks for this man, what’s the easiest way to clean fluids like this off so I can watch for new deposits ?

 

Thanks can y’all tell me more about what repair entails?

 

For oily residue I've found simple green, spray bottle and a toothbrush works nicely. Caked/baked on maybe Dawn, brass brush and some elbow grease.

 

All my tie rods were replaced by a local off-road shop. Your observations are not wrong, I wasn’t happy with the amount of grease spewing from the joints, as well as the angle of the outer rod joint being off from the other side. I don’t think there’s a wire on the boot it’s clamped **edit f*ck me ur right lol

 

So we don’t think fluid is coming from the cv bellow, but from above ?

 

Looks like power steering fluid to me. The hoses at the bottom of the reservoir held by clamps tend to shrink during cold weather and as soon as fluid moves around things crack. I have a similar issue on the hoses that run the coolant for the SC. Frustrating but easy to fix.

 

Note the residue that's on the top side of the steering tie rod bellow cover. It's difficult to tell if the P.S. pump housing has any oil residue on its topside from your first pic. Can you carefully look all around from above. Front corner of the Valve Cover and block for instance.

 

Clean up the seam near right valve cover gasket, head, and the timing cover. Recheck after putting some miles on it. A leak in this area tends to drip on the power steering pump and eventually on the top of the oil pan like yours. Some people mistake this as a power steering fluid leak because it goes down the pump. There's a plate on the right front of the timing cover to check also. I like the idea of cleaning it up and using some UV dye.

 

Thanks for this man, so that would be hose replacement mostly?