• The site migration is complete! Hopefully everything transferred properly from the multiple decades old software we were using before. If you notice any issues please let me know, thanks! Also, I'm still working on things like chatbox, etc so hopefully those will be working in the next week or two.

Massive Oil Leak

2

2000superGrandPrix

New member
Okay guys, I'm back with a problem on my Grand Prix. I have a 2000 Grand Prix Super Charged GTP with about 116K+ miles on it. I recently got the engine compartment fire recall done by GM about 2 weeks ago, and it had ran rough after they did some things. I took it back to them, got everything fixed, and I was happy with my car once again.

Today, while starting out after the light had changed green, I decided to put the petal to the floor to see if I had my normal power. Everything went well with that until I got about a half mile down the road and noticed a trail of smoke. I pulled over, looked under the car, and saw a huge leak of oil, leaking like a faucet, it wasn't a small drip here and there. I immediately drove it home, lifted it up a little, and tried to look under the car to see if anything was broken. My brother, who is 1500 miles away told me it could be the oil filter, oil pressure switch, or a broken seal somewhere. But it seem like it may be more major than that. I took pictures of where I thought the oil was leaking from, but it's only a guess since I cant have the car on and be under the car at the same time. After all this, I checked the dipstick, and it was completely dry.
I just need to know what I need to do to fix this (if it's simple) or get it to a mechanic on Monday.
 


Post the pic! It could be a head gasket if its dripping down onto the manifolds it would cause it to instantly burn.

You may want to take it back to the dealer if you think they caused the leak.
 
well I know it wasn't the dealership. It was definitely my fault on this one. But the problem happened when I punched it.

But it wont let me upload the file. It says upload failed. I dont know why it isn't uploading. Isn't giving me much of a reason why.
 
i bet its the oil pressure sensor, is blown , when mine went it leaked like a river from next to the oil filter and straight down on the axle shaft, $10 part, oil pours out where the plug snaps on it.

easy way to see it is turn the wheels to the left, get a flash light and look behind the wheel into the oil filter housing, the sensor is on the left side of the filter housing. start car and see if its leaking. if thats it just pull the pass front tire and reach in to remove it.
 
@scottydogs - yeah that's what my brother was thinking as well (if the sensor is the same thing as the switch). I just didn't know where to look for that. From what I can tell, it is leaking near the oil filter, and the axle (that's exactly the picture that I have that I cant upload).
It's late right now, but I will go ahead and look for what you suggested tomorrow morning.

But which one of these is thing I'm looking for?

Sensor - Oil Level | 2000 Pontiac Grand Prix 6 Cylinders K 3.8L SFI OHV | AutoZone.com

or

Oil Pressure Switch | 2000 Pontiac Grand Prix 6 Cylinders K 3.8L SFI OHV | AutoZone.com

And to clarify, the smoke that I saw wasn't coming out of the tailpipe, it was coming from under the car from the oil hitting the exhaust.
 
1. You want the Oil Pressure Switch. The oil level sensor is what screws into the side of the oil pan.

2. You listed the oil pressure switch for a NON-supercharged motor (Vin K).

Here is what I found for the SC motor (VIN 1)... (even though they are the same part #, be sure to double check in the future as there may be differences in parts between the 2)

Oil Pressure Switch | 2000 Pontiac Grand Prix 6 Cylinders 1 3.8L SFI SC OHV | AutoZone.com


:th_thumbsup-wink:
 


I now have daylight, so I will be checking to see if the oil is leaking from the oil pressure switch. I took the tire off this morning, and from what I saw when I was under the car, the oil could have been dripping down from the oil pressure switch. I would have turned the tires to the left, but im afraid to start the engine since the dipstick was completely dry. So I will go to AZ to buy 5 quarts of oil, and the oil pressure switch as well. Then I'll start the car to see if that's where the oil is leaking from. I'll keep you guys posted...THANKS FOR ALL THE HELP SO FAR!!!
 
Make sure you put oil in it before you try to start it anymore or you'll be buying an engine too.
 
That can be rough on the rack. If I had to do this I would jack the front end up first, then cut the wheels to the direction I needed and then drop it back down. Way less stress on steering.
 


THE PROBLEM HAS BEEN SOLVED!!! Thanks to everyone for their input and suggestions on the issue. It was the oil pressure switch that was causing the problem. I just took the old one off (which was harder than I thought it would be), and put the new one on. Since the oil pressure switch socket wouldn't fit on the switch, I had to use a combination of a wrench, a socket, and pliers to get it off. Then I twisted it on with my hand where it was on good enough and started it up...and no leaks for the most part. Then it began leaking again so I had to drive over to AZ and they let me use a set of, what look like to me, very long needle nose pliers (I don't know the exact name of the tool...i'm a computer guy not a car guy). But once i tightened it enough it ran fine with no leaks. Dipstick reads correctly and it runs just as it was before. I also got a car wash to help with all the oil that was under the body of the car. Again...thanks for all the help people.
 
i used channel locks, the socket wouldn't fit in there for me either, glad it all worked out, i know that amount of oil leaking is quite a scare first hand,, and just a fyi, my new one blew out a 3 days later, keep an eye on it for a few days just to be safe.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top