Ok, so I just posted the other day a thread regarding a 96 HX w/ 226,000 mostly highway miles, very clean in and out. That thread aside, I was able to lift the HX up today and get a better look under the engine.

And what I saw was mostly clean underneath - HOWEVER, I did see a little bit of oil (by this I mean a light coat, nothing at all on the ground) on the:

-Oil pan (I assume this is normal, as the oil was just changed about 2 weeks ago)
-Around where the axle? goes into the engine on one side - light coat once again, but it was dry on the other side and this is not on my g/f's 97 HX.

I know for a fact that it is not dripping on the ground b/c the civic has been sitting in front of my apartment all week, and there is nothing on the ground. My Jeep had a leak like this, it didnt drip but it was just an old seal.

Something to be concerned about? This is going to be my commuter 80 miles a day, and then 1x a month a 3-4 one way trip. dont want to buy a car for the engine if the engine itself is about to go, as everything else on it runs very smooth, pretty much like new..

thanks in advance!

 

Wipe everything down until everything is completely dry. Wait a couple of weeks and look under the car again for leaks. Do you drive a manaul or automatic? The fluid by your axle should not be engine oil, unless there is a drip from higher up. That fluid could be either manual or automatic transmission fluid. Auto trans fluid is red in color.

 

Its a manual, but the problem is, this is a car that I am looking to buy (see earlier thread). I did wipe everything clean - but really, there wasnt a whole lot to wipe. And the car is not being driven by its current owner now either, so I doubt anything will change.

I'm almost certain it is engine oil as well...definitely not transmission fluid. Maybe axle fluid, if this is even an option? but I'm not too familar w/ civics - I'm a Jeep guy trying to come over to this side, my g/f has converted me (well kind of, at least convinced me to get a civic as my 2nd commuting car, as she is the one w/ a 97 HX and she will not let it go!)

 

that exact thing happens in my '96 EX and my mom's '03 Tribute,

 

There is no such thing as "axle fluid". However, inside the CV boot there is greese to lubricate the CV joint. Check the CV boots and make sure they are not cut/broken at all. I think that manual transmissions use oil that may look like engine oil, its like 70 weight or something. The car not being driven would be a problem. I wouldn't buy a car that you suspected of having an oil leak unless it was super cheap. If you are going to fix the leak, you are gonna end up doing a lot of work and if you pay some to do it you are gonna end up spending a lot of money. Somethimes they are cheap and easy fixes, somethimes something not so easy is broken. My advice would be to move on and find a car that works fine. There isn't one civic for sale on the market, plenty more fish in sea.

 

good for your g/f man rock the civic power lol, j/k does the car burn any oil at the present time?

 

Whoever changed the oil wasn't clean enough to wipe down the oil pan and around oil filter. Like everyone said, just wipe everything down and take it for a spin. One thing to note, I had my rear main seal replaced because of a slight oil leak. It was not a big deal because I had it replace when I was getting a new clutch.

 

Thanks!

Yeah, I actually meant "gear oil," not "axle oil" - one of those mental slips. I know my Jeep has gear oil in the differentials, and it can leak out of the ends of the axle. Of course mechanically these are two different machines, haven't had the time to poke around my g/f's civic or any other civic to know whats going on down there.

I was thinking rear main seal too - I just replaced that on my Jeep - if its something like that I can handle it.

Don't think the car is burning any oil, oil level is good.

True there are other civics out there, but this one is so freakin clean its amazing - almost all highway miles, the thing looks and drives like new - except for that little leak that I speak of, and for 3K and gas at 2.85 a gallon right now, this man needs something - I have no problem rebuidling the engine in year of two, but at least for now I really don't want to spend over 3K...I guess I'll check it out in a couple of days again and see if its reformed after another test drive - Thanks!

 

The reason why your Jeep leaks oil is because it uses one solid axle for both wheels. Your civic however uses 2 CV Shafts that are connected independently to the transmission. There is no way for the oil to get into the CV shafts because the axles are pretty much solid steel with no passages for the oil to go through. If there is any oil on the axles, especially around the boots, then it will prolly be CV greese or an oil leak from above. Hope that helped.

 

i say the leak on the akle is from changing the oil filter. when i change the oil filter on my 98' ex i get oil on the axle. i don't have steady hands plus the oil filter is in a crappy place. the oil from the oil pan could also be from the oil pan plug those things will wear out over time and need to be replaced. if it's the plug it would be a inexpensive fix.