Thoughts on Stop-Leak type Oil Additives

[runguyrun]

My 73 bronco is leaking a bit of oil from the engine and the C4 transmission.
A few drips here and there - left a noticeable spot in the driveway after sitting for a few weeks.
The entire undercarriage is pretty oiled up so I suppose this has been a long term issue. I consider it rust-proofing for now.

Should I consider a stop-leak type of oil additive? Or do you think that would gum up the works and cause more problems later? My father always said not to use that stuff but over the years I have learned that he was not always right.

At this point I think maybe my Audi burns oil at a faster rate than my Bronco leaks it. But it would be nice to stop the leaks.

 

[SteveL]

I'm not a big fan of the stop leak products unless you're trying to nurse an old motor or part until you save the $$ for a new one. Another tip if you do have some leaks dont go synthetic on you're fluids or the leaks will be bigger.

 

[bronconut73]

Steves right.
Alot of that stuff is snake oil. But like Steve said if you know that the additive is just a band aid and then you are going to be fixing it soon then you should be ok using it. Most of the stop leak products still being sold today shouldn't do any damage at all and hey,.... They may actually slow down the leak a little.
Most of those products either thicken your oil to slow the leak or they swell your gaskets to slow the leak. If your gasket that is leaking is still intact but somehow shrank you may have some luck with the snake oils.
But ultimately you'll want to pressure clean all the gunk/rust inhibitor underneath the eb off so you can see where the leak is coming from. Maybe it will be an easy fix.

 

[maggard12]

i cant speak of the oil stop leak but the radiator stop leak was a horrible idea on my cherokee. 4 years later i am still flushing gunk out of my coolant system.