2010 Kluger oil leak - rear of engine

[Haysie]

Hi, I have conducted a search on this site in regards to engine oil leaks and most of the search results indicate the oil cooler rubber lines failing. I own a 2010 KXS AWD and noticed some oil leaking - looks like for a long time now extending back on the underside of the car from the rear of the engine. I read up about the oil cooler hose failure and took the front splash cover off and had a look there. It looks okay (at the moment) I still do have the rubber hose set up in place. But not a huge amount of oil around the mountings. I've added some pics below.

I looked under the bonnet and looks all dry from up top and couldn't see any oil leaking from up there - yeah I know gravity ehh!

I then looked under the car behind the front wheels on the drivers side and saw wet oil around a banjo coupling. The banjo join is towards the top of the pic (sorry for the darkness in the pic). Is this a known failure of the system? Looks like it has been occurring for a while as there is a bit of dirt encrusted oil extending a small distance back, so I guess it might only be a small/slow leak.

Looking for advice on a possible solution or is there any other possible point where the oil could be leaking from?

 

[campbeam]

Tracking down an oil leak is usually a process of elimination. I would start by cleaning the engine from the top down. I do recall a member's post where he did a series of test drives in varying engine conditions before he located the source.

Happened to come across this YouTube video.

 

[Tony Prodigy]

7 hours ago, Haysie said:

Hi, I have conducted a search on this site in regards to engine oil leaks and most of the search results indicate the oil cooler rubber lines failing. I own a 2010 KXS AWD and noticed some oil leaking - looks like for a long time now extending back on the underside of the car from the rear of the engine. I read up about the oil cooler hose failure and took the front splash cover off and had a look there. It looks okay (at the moment) I still do have the rubber hose set up in place. But not a huge amount of oil around the mountings. I've added some pics below.

I looked under the bonnet and looks all dry from up top and couldn't see any oil leaking from up there - yeah I know gravity ehh!

I then looked under the car behind the front wheels on the drivers side and saw wet oil around a banjo coupling. The banjo join is towards the top of the pic (sorry for the darkness in the pic). Is this a known failure of the system? Looks like it has been occurring for a while as there is a bit of dirt encrusted oil extending a small distance back, so I guess it might only be a small/slow leak.

Looking for advice on a possible solution or is there any other possible point where the oil could be leaking from?

 

It looks suspiciously  like your transfer case seal is leaking. Look at the oil on the exhaust system, under the transfer case itself and the upper area where fluid gearbox oil has been thrown around with centrifugal force.

As Ashley mentioned. Get in there and do a thorough degrease and take it for a drive and take another look. I'm sure you'll find it quickly enough.

By the way, is your oil cooler transfer pipe rubber hose still pliable ? If it's starting to harden, i'd get it replaced asap before you dump oil everywhere and risk losing oil pressure. Yo can kiss your engine goodbye after this.

[Haysie]

Hi, thanks for the replies. 

I will give the engine a pressure wash tomorrow and take it for a spin. Hopefully it will show what's going on.

The pipe felt okay. Is there a procedure with Toyota for getting it replaced? Is is replaced for free?

Cheers

[campbeam]

13 minutes ago, Haysie said:

Hi, thanks for the replies. 

I will give the engine a pressure wash tomorrow and take it for a spin. Hopefully it will show what's going on.

The pipe felt okay. Is there a procedure with Toyota for getting it replaced? Is is replaced for free?

Cheers

Toyota will replace the oil cooler pipes for free if they are leaking or showing signs of seepage. Usually this will involve an inspection by a dealership.

Best to contact Toyoa Australia Customer Service (1800 869 682) between Monday - Friday 9am-5:30pm AEDT or email and confirm that this applies even though your vehicle may be more than 10 years since the build date.

Please note that If/when the oil cooler pipes leak, there is a high probability that you will lose all of the engine oil very quickly then need to have your vehicle towed to a Toyota dealership.

[Tony Prodigy]

9 hours ago, Haysie said:

Hi, thanks for the replies. 

I will give the engine a pressure wash tomorrow and take it for a spin. Hopefully it will show what's going on.

The pipe felt okay. Is there a procedure with Toyota for getting it replaced? Is is replaced for free?

Cheers

Here's a video that should get you motivated. 

 

[Haysie]

Thanks for the information. I had watched a couple of YouTube videos (Highlander) engines and see that it is a reasonably straight forward process. However I will talk with my local Toyota dealership and see what they say. Definitely worth having done!

I will update the site with my findings.

Cheers.

[Haysie]

So just a minor update. I degreased the bottom of the engine mainly around the affected areas. It does look like the rear seal on the transfer case has failed. I am watching it daily for any signs of leakage, but it has only been a couple of days and there are no visible signs just yet.

Thanks for the help.

[Tony Prodigy]

Thanks for the update Steve. I'd just watch it over the next few weeks. It may need more time to present itself.

Cheers mate