Oil cap looks moist. Should I be worried?

[CharlesE]

Originally Posted by JFP in PA

Possibly, but the water could be coming from an internal source as well.

I drive it alot and i dont drive slow so i know its gets warm enough. I did notice a really slow coolant leak but I dont know where its coming from I just see the level drop every month or so. Could this be a factor?

[Jager]

Originally Posted by CharlesE

I drive it alot and i dont drive slow so i know its gets warm enough. I did notice a really slow coolant leak but I dont know where its coming from I just see the level drop every month or so. Could this be a factor?

First thing I thought of when I saw the photo is a coolant leak into the oil system. The residue under the oil cap is not normal. Hopefully it is something simple like the Oil Cooler.

[pilot4fn]

Depends also of the climate you're at.
We used to have 'normal' 20-30 years ago that if you do not get the car hot for a long time at least couple of times a week (if driven daily) during winter when the temps do hover between 30-0 F, then the oil cap looked just like on the OP's picture. Summer was never a problem.
Also, the coffee color stuff is so small amount, that makes me to believe the current colder weather could be the culprint of this - or very recently started small mix of water to oil.

[CharlesE]

Originally Posted by pilot4fn

Depends also of the climate you're at.
We used to have 'normal' 20-30 years ago that if you do not get the car hot for a long time at least couple of times a week (if driven daily) during winter when the temps do hover between 30-0 F, then the oil cap looked just like on the OP's picture. Summer was never a problem.
Also, the coffee color stuff is so small amount, that makes me to believe the current colder weather could be the culprint of this - or very recently started small mix of water to oil.

This sounds like it could be whats happening. I did let the car sit for a week so I dont daily drive it. I'm not worried about it but I'll try to find the coolant leak to see if its a problem. Thanks!

[blue62]

looking at your picture I see quite a bit of water droplets on the underside of the oil filler cap. Not good.
Also due to the fact that your slowly loosing coolant that makes the water droplets more suspect. So finding the reason for the coolant loose is rather important.

Things you can do:
Coolant system pressure test.
Test coolant system for presence of hydrocarbons, I think you can still get test kits for this at auto parts stores.
Send an oil sample out and have it tested for the presence of antifreeze.

[CharlesE]

Originally Posted by blue62

looking at your picture I see quite a bit of water droplets on the underside of the oil filler cap. Not good.
Also due to the fact that your slowly loosing coolant that makes the water droplets more suspect. So finding the reason for the coolant loose is rather important.

Things you can do:
Coolant system pressure test.
Test coolant system for presence of hydrocarbons, I think you can still get test kits for this at auto parts stores.
Send an oil sample out and have it tested for the presence of antifreeze.

Do you have a link to the tool to use to pressure test our coolant tanks?

[blue62]

Originally Posted by CharlesE

Do you have a link to the tool to use to pressure test our coolant tanks?

Harbor freight carries a coolant system pressure tester for a reasonable price.
It will work on any system.

[blue62]

Originally Posted by CharlesE

I drive it alot and i dont drive slow so i know its gets warm enough. I did notice a really slow coolant leak but I dont know where its coming from I just see the level drop every month or so. Could this be a factor?

First thing to do is pressure test the cooling system and see if you can determine why your coolant level is dropping and where it is going. Once you know the answer to where the coolant is going you will know if you need to be worried about the moisture on the oil filler cap or not.