MRM

I am nearing one year's ownership of my 84 Carrera cab. I have a rather strange situation. The oil leaks that began over the winter now seem to have sealed. Is this possible? Could the gaskets have expanded and re-sealed now that the weather is warmer?

Here's my story: The odometer claims 53,000 miles, which is probably almost accurate. I live in Minnesota and store the car in an unheated garage. Until the really cold weather hit it didn't leak more than a drop or two of oil. I last started it about Thanksgiving when it was probably in the teens to twenties. Then it got so cold I didn't want to risk starting it. This was a cold winter. 20 below was not unusual. It was below 0 f more often than not this year from November to March.

Within days of last runing it in November, it started to leak badly. I was able to determine that the left oil return tube was leaking and another leak was coming from someplace more centrally located in the engine but I couldn't see where. I thought I blew a seal by starting it with the oil too thick from the cold.

This last weekend it finally got warm enough to clean up the car, start it up, and identify the leak. The problem is, it doesn't seem to leak anymore. I ran it for an hour both Saturday and Sunday, geting the temp up to operating levels. I cleaned up the old oil and put paper on the floor under the engine. They're dry and no new oil seems to be leaking.

Either I just haven't given the leaks enough time, or they sealed back up. Is it possible that the gaskets shrunk during cold weather and then re-expanded with warmer weather and when the car warmed up? Or is there something else going on? If anyone else has had this happen I would appreciate hearing about your expeience.




------------------
MRM 1984 Carrera Cab Eurospec