2005 4.0l 6 cyl Tacoma oil leak

Hello,
I have had my truck for a few years now and never had a major problem with it. Currently 175k miles. Recently I notice a oil leak coming from the front of the engine. I have cleaned it a few times to try and identify where the leak is coming from however when I run the engine and sit idle the leak dose not present itself but when I drive it for a bit the leak becomes big and covers the whole lower side of the engine. Because of how tight everything is I reverted to using dye to try and identify it however this has also led me to a dead end. I can say with certainty it is engine oil I believe it is coming from the crank pulley. The leak gets as high as the power steering pump and as far back as the crossmember under the engine. The leak has only gotten worse with time. I have been substituting 1qt of engine oil with atf to quite the lifters when the engine is running. I’m really posting this to see if anyone has had this issue before and if so what they did to fix it. Like I said before it’s really tight to identify the leak because of the radiator I’m pretty sure the only thing other than the timing cover and heads that could leak oil would be the crank pulley but I am unsure. Any help would be appreciated thanks for reading.

 

Sounds like the somewhat common timing cover leak (usually leaks in the area behind the power steering pump), if it is then unfortunately to fix it properly the timing cover has to be removed which also requires removal of the oil pan. Some members claim to have had success cleaning it really well and packing the area with good silicone gasket maker but that likely won't be a permanent fix.

 

Sounds like a crank seal if it got to the crossmember and mucked up the whole front of the motor. Timing cover will only be damp, havent seen one drip yet. I used a mini 1/2 impact gun to break my crank bolt free, 24mm IIRC, may be a 19mm. remove old seal with flathead. Get a new seal from toyota or koyo and tap it in with a socket that fits the outer edge of the seal, tap it as flush as the one you are taking out. Took me 45 mins on a lift start to finish. Do a new serp belt while in there since it has to come off to pull the crank pulley.

 

First: If you have a 6 cylinder there are no lifters to quiet. Stop putting ATF in your engine oil system.

Second: I agree that a leak as large as you say you have would more than likely be at the crankshaft seal.

Crank seal is an easy fix. Get a new seal installed and then clean up the mess and see what you have then.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/changing-out-front-crankshaft-seal-without-removing-fan.431334/

 

Glad you made the post, mines losing a lot of oil as well. Front of the engine. Crank seal here I come.

 

If you don’t have access to an impact or room for one.
See here for the “bump start” method.
See post #7 and #44
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/crankshaft-pulley-bolt-removal-thoughts.93777/#post-1790479