I have a 98 prelude with
AEM v2 intake, ngk wires, iridium 9 spark plugs, high flow cat, i use 10w30 regular oil. Went from 0w30 synthetic to regular to save money

I took my car to my mechanic after noticing a nasty blueish gray smoke coming from below my car, which was oil leaking from somewhere onto my o2 sensors and cat, giving me a cel code of 67 indicating catalytic converter deterioration, and its been liek that for the past 2 months, so i kept reseting the code, because i replaced my cat, but obviously my o2 sensors being burned up are triggering the code, which is the same for o2 sensor and cat converter.

I've been gettin shitty mileage because of the o2 sensor, but the oil leak got severe recently so i took my car to my mechanic as i was saying, and they told me my oil cooler was leaking. They said there was nothing to tighten, and that I need a new one. They also said my valve cover is slightly leaking, and told me not to worry about that for now. My oil filter gasket was also leaking, but they tightened that, however my car still leaks oil from there too.

What do i do???

 

Go to another mechanic. It is your oil cooler o-ring...there are tons of threads about this topic as it is a very common problem with an easy fix. You can get a new o-ring for cheap from Honda

 

Yep, the oil cooler o-ring is cheap and replacing it is super easy. There's only one bolt holding the oil cooler on and the o-ring is right underneath. Make sure to put some hondabond (and letting it set 10min) before installing the new o-ring in the oil cooler.

 

I had the EXACT same thing happen to me.. The seal blew completely out, so there was no driving it home, i just took it to a shop. He said that i needed a new oil cooler and the total bill estimate was $800! I said to hell with that, i can swap an h22 myself for only a little more than that..

After towing the car home, i took the oil cooler off, and there was a 1/4" gap in the oil cooler o-ring. $ 1.25 o-ring and about 5 minutes extra to an oil change. you can do it yourself

 

Does a 98 prelude even have an oil cooler? probably a stupid question, but i have no idea where it is located, nor do i know what an o-ring is

I went to an oil change place and they said my oil filter was leaking, very weird, as you all say, it is the oil cooler. I looked underneath my car, and was lost...but everything is oily....im very mad


Modified by Seroga415 at 9:26 PM 4/25/2008

 

The oil cooler is what the oil filter goes on.

 

LOL remember that chinese kid that told u to sell that car a long time ago ?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Seroga415 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Does a 98 prelude even have an oil cooler? probably a stupid question, but i have no idea where it is located, nor do i know what an o-ring is

I went to an oil change place and they said my oil filter was leaking, very weird, as you all say, it is the oil cooler. I looked underneath my car, and was lost...but everything is oily....im very mad </TD></TR></TABLE>

Oil cooler is #17, o-ring is #32:



The o-ring is behind the thing the oil filter bolts to, so it is an easy mistake to make if you don't know what you're looking at.

 

Whats the torque on the bolt?

 

Had same problem a few months back. I recommend first degreasing the whole area around the cooler and filter and exhaust and anywhere else the mess has ended up. Then get your new o ring and put the cooler back on, then the filter. When mine started leaking i got under the car 4 times trying to locate the leak and it wasnt until i degreased everything that i could see the source. All in all as the others have explained its an easy prob to fix, just remember to use jack stands or ramps cause if your under that part of the car and it falls off the jack your going to know about it .

 

that makes sense now, thanks for the diagram, it is in fact the o-ring now that i look at it

 

I annoys me how most ppl are so quick to say something is wrong with your car and sell you parts, when in reality they dont know what they are talking about. I cant tell you how many times Ive heard other mechanics say things that I know are complete bullshit. I really feel for every 1 helpful and knowledgable person there are 10 dumbasses. It sucks




Modified by lude98SH at 9:32 PM 4/27/2008

 

just brought my car back from my mechanic. Apparently my oil cooler did not need to be replaced; they replaced the O-ring, and now, no more leaking!

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Choose your mechanics wisely...