Yanmar 3GM30F oil leak

[Syversens]

Hey all, we went sailing last weekend... eh... make that motoring last weekend and I noticed small amount of oil under the engine. I use a white oil absorbing fabric so it shows easy and I'd describe the amount as drops... however I felt around in there and there is indeed oil on the engine and it seems concentrated in the front. I'm getting pictures next time I go down there but I'm pretty sure its not from the oil filter...

It seems to come from the very front of the engine, under the belt for the alternator and at the very bottom, there is a small lip on the engine there... Feeling around the filter I had no oil. I'm changing the oil soon and hoping that will help but this is worrying me now as we had no leaks before. Any ideas on what could be causing a slow leak like this I'd sure appreciate some things I can check.

Our boat is a 361 99 Beneteau with a Yanmar 3GM30F and 750 hours.

thanks!
Gaute

 

[DougM]

Sounds like a front main seal leak. Probably not catastrophic by any measure. The seals dry out over time. It may be as simple as checking the tighness of the front oil pan bolts The rear seal may exhibit the same problem. Those seals aren't going to be as easy to replace in a boat as they would be in a car. You have to drop the oil pan to do it. You probably wouldn't have a lot of success containing the leak from the outside. Just keep an eye on it, and keep those abosrbent pads in the bilge.