Engine oil leak, 2003 Grand Caravan 3.3 L engine

[RicDee]

Help please, my engine is leaking precious synthetic oil (5-30w) I put in less than 1,000 miles ago.

Seems to be coming thru high up on the inboard passenger bank of cylinders, where of course you can't see very well.

This may or may not be related, but I've also noticed lately a momentary squeal/rubbing sound upon starting on cold mornings coming from the same general area as the leak and the water pump, and "S" belt area.

The mechanic I talked to today said the valve covers on this model rarely leak and it might be a leaking oil pressure sensor switch.

Does anyone know exactly where the oil sensor switch is located on this 3.3 engine and/or any ideas what other component might be leaking?

I like to do whatever repairs I can w/o taking it to a garage or the dreaded dealer. If I can SEE the problem, I usually can fix it, but with these modern cramped engines that's sometimes hard to do.

 

[FL_Rob]

This info is all I could find .The oil pressure sending unit should be below ,yet in front of the oil filter on the driver side(left)attached to the engine block with a wire going to it.
Disclaimer.this info is from a caravan forum ,not me.Next, besides looking for the obvious (loose filter,oilplug,sending unit)I recommend a UV oil leak detection kit, if you're doing the repair yourself,it would be good to zero-in on the leak,it eliminates guesswork /wasted time . Next question ,how quick was the oil loss? overnight... one week?

 

[mfd111]

By what your describing, sounds similar to problems I have experienced with both the 3.3 and 3.8. Check your belt to see if it has any oil on it. It could be the front main seal. The oil then gets on the belt and causes the start up squeal. This has happened on all of my caravans. My my sister-inlaw 2003 just had to have the oil pan gasket replaced and the main seal at just 63,000 miles. Just some thoughts. The recommendation of using the UV test kit is a good idea.

 

[oilboy123]

The intake manifold is fairly easy to remove. Then it would be easy to replace the valve cover gaskets. I have done valve cover, oil pan and timing cover on a 91 3.3 and a 3.8 litre engines.

Compared to some engines these are a piece of cake.

 

[oilboy123]

I should have mentioned the 3.8 was a 2000 year.