Oil all over inside of Skid Plate
 

Hey guys,
So I've posted onto another thread about this before and we couldn't determine exactly if it was just residue from a belt or actual oil, but there's a crap ton of oil gunk and build up on my driver side skid plate. When I look into the engine-bay and downwards, there's black crap everywhere lol. This morning was raining and as I was turning I spun out which freaked me out because I drive quite carefully. My first thought was something I read about how an oil leak can get onto the wheels making it more slippery. Opened the engine bay and saw a puddle on the skid plate above the rest of the black residue. Also, some came out the bottom of the car. I checked oil levels (oil change 3 weeks ago) and there was still a good amount. It's pretty much straight below the oil filter cap. Car is at 50k miles, bought used from a Nissan dealership a year ago.
Will post pics asap.

@Tcoat @Ultramaroon
It's getting worse, lol.

Pics are mine from old thread, but this is the gist of it.

http://i.imgur.com/sAuWWBk.jpg?1

http://i.imgur.com/XRvxbI2.jpg?1

So you have an oil leak and your at 50k miles so take it to the dealer and get it fixed?? You still have powertrain warrenty

Obviously I would like to know if there are any similar issues, solutions, or experiences before trying to go through any issues or delays a dealership might bring up. Honestly, it'd be nice if you just left this thread alone. I'm open to actual help, not snarky suggestions. Thank you.

Fair enough I am out

It's likely to be cam cover or crank case seal issue. Looks the same as mine. I had both issues at the same time http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/12...640eca685d.jpg

Cam plate? Is yours a manual?

Is it a serious issue/any recommendations on tackling the issue?

Yes, manual. A bit noobish in terms on engine stuff, but is this easily fixable? So it is oil coming out though right?

You want help? I was going to actually tell you what to do to find out if it is an actual oil leak, but after that remark, I'll just bugger off too.

Someone actually takes to time to suggest that you should just have the dealer look at it (for free by the way), and you tell him to Fuch off??!!

Brilliant!

Well, its a known issue that they sometimes leak. Enough of an issue that there are multiple fx threads and companies making new plates. Search "raceseng cam plate" and see if that corresponds with what you have going on. Easy fix and mostly easy to diagnose.

Yeah do that, thanks. I'm guessing you didn't see the prior two deleted posts from that above user, but it's alright. Yeah, I told him to "fuch" off when he gave me a rude post earlier that was deleted by mods.

Don't sweat the stain for now. start monitoring oil level daily. Figure out if you're actually using oil. If you can see significant loss between tanks of fuel and/or puddles/stains under the car, then it's an ongoing leak worthy of immediate attention.

If you're under warranty, the answer's easy. Dealer fix.

If not, you'll have to decide if the leak is significant enough to pay to have fixed.

The only really important thing to get a handle on is making sure you don't ever run the oil more than a quart low. Personally, I wouldn't let it get more than a half quart low. That's when I hear this engine start to complain.

Judging by the pics it could be road dirt or a maybe a bit of oil collected over time. To me if it doesn't look anything to worry about. If it's not a fresh oil puddle or a oil drip you'll be ok.

Just to be sure I would take off the plate wash and clean it. If there is a fresh oil on there after a day then I would take it to a shop/dealer if in warranty.

The reason you spun out in the rain was simply driver error. Going too fast on recent rain. If you don't know the few hours after the rain comes down, that makes all roads slick. All that oil, dirt and junk gets lose on the road.