I had a major oil leak, found it was the main oil seal. After inspection and trials, we discovered that the crankshaft had excessive play at the thrust bearing. The engine had never been worked on and discovered that the thrust bearing was only half installed at the factory. The end cap cradle was not properly machined to accept the other half of the thrust bearing. So a standard bearing was installed in its place, failing to properly keep the crankshaft from "walking" and pushing the oil seal out causing oil leak.

So factory failed to install the set of thrust bearings and ultimately causing the oil leak. Thankfully it was at slow speed and I shut off car immediately.

My 2007 PT Cruiser with 17.340 miles (Yes, that's what I said), began leaking oil. Researched it online and got very worried. Brought to Chrysler dealer. Here is what the invoice says..."customer states vehicle is leaking oil, verified the concern. Found oil leaking from cam and crank seals. Disassembled engine to replace seals and found excessive crankshaft end play. Causing the crank shaft seal to push out. Inspected motor, found broken thrust washers and damage to the crankshaft. Replace the engine and recheck." And that's what they did........to the tune of $5,700. Not including tax. Based on what I had researched and read, I requested that they install a short block. They claim a short block has been discontinued and no longer available. Car is worth about $6,000. Agonized over this, but went ahead, cause its cheaper than a new car.. I do have a 3 year 100,000 mile warranty on the new engine, but I have to tell you that as a 67 year old on social security this was tough.

Do I have any options?.....thoughts please.

I bought my PT Cruiser in July of 2007 On 5/06/2014 was driving on the interstate when I heard a ding noise . upon going around a curve heard it again and this time saw the oil light come on for just a second . I took it to Jiffy Lube to have them check it out and they said I had lost 2.5 quarts of oil they topped it off only to find it all pouring back out . I was told that the crank seal needed to be replaced . I took it to my Mechanic and he replaced it and the oil coated timing belt .started it and again the same thing happened . he said the was to much end play on the crank shaft and I needed a new engine . I contacted Chrysler and was offered no help even though they new of the problem . I do not understand how companies can get away with this kind of thing I am beside myself because I cannot afford a new engine and this was my only means of transportation. any help would be appreciated.

crankshaft front seal repeatedly gets pushed out right after replacement due to crankshaft end play.

seems the only fix after all the work has gone into it untill someone did some digging to find many people have this issue with many 2.4L DOHC engine with years falling between 05-06

after following the procedures found online the only fix to this is either a new engine or atleast a new short blocks. WTF chrysler step up to the plate and help some of your customers out for buying your junk engine!

Case Number K93016699 Vehicle Issue Crankshaft front seal pops out of the front cover. Year 2005 , 2006 Model JR - Sebring/Stratus Sedan , JR - Sebring Convertible , PT - Chrysler Cruiser , RS - Caravan, Voyager, Town and Country Engine 2.4L 4 CYL DOHC 16V SMPI , 2.4L I4 DOHC 16V H.O. TURBO , 2.4L I4 DOHC 16V TURBO System or Component Front Seal Area Symptom Engine Oil Leak , Fluid / Lubricant Leak Region Front Condition Verification Yes - Continuously Case Verification Crankshaft front seal had popped out. Replaced the seal, and the same condition occurred again. Recommendation If the front crank seal is popped out of position, measure the crankshaft end play. If the end play is out of spec (acceptable range is .090mm-.240mm/.0035"-.0094"), perform the following procedure;

Remove engine from vehicle (follow procedure as outlined in the service manual).

Remove bedplate (follow procedure as outlined in the service manual).

Inspect the following components: Rod bearings, main bearings, #3 thrust bearing, and #3 bulkhead for scoring.

If rod bearings, main bearings, and/or bulkhead are scored, replace short block.

If rod and main bearings show no scoring, but #3 thrust surface is scored, go to next step.

Measure width of the #3 bulkhead in the engine block and bedplate (Specification is 23.56/23.51mm). If measurement falls outside the range of specifications, then replace the short block.

Inspect crankshaft thrust faces (front and rear). If scored and/or worn, replace crankshaft.

Inspect condition of thrust bearing. If scored and/or worn, replace all new engine bearings.

Inspect back side of the oil pump (look for contact condition between the crankshaft and oil pump) – If contact is observed, install new oil pump, and a new front crankshaft seal.

Modification Date 11/9/05 12:03 PM

NOTE THE dropped bomb "measure width of #3 bulk head on block and bedplate and ... spec is 23.56 / 23.51 mm ... if outside, REPLACE SHORT BLOCK"

Update from Jan 20, 2016: UPDATE

had a dodge mechanic take a look at the car and it was determined that the crank had exsessive play and was walking the seal out just as described in the bulletin.

we ended up replacing the crankshaft and bearings BUT not the short block.

it worked for as long as she had the car. (cant say if it is still holding up as the car has been sold for a newer suv) but it was still holding up when it was sold

ended up costing about 1000 (sure we could have put a used engine in cheaper but really what are you getting? back into the same spot in 10K?)

hope this helps anyone in this situation

ALL of this oil was gone from the vehicle. There was definitely a manufacturing defect. Some of the holes that were drilled to hold the engine were incorrectly sized. If you scour the internet, you can find other instances of massive oil loss.

I contacted Chrysler. Although they recognized it as a manufacturing defect, they did not recall for this. They should, because obviously it is not only expensive to fix, but if the engine locks up will cause a serious accident.

Chrysler paid for parts, and I paid $1200! for labor to have partial engine replaced. I no longer own this car but thought I'd catalog this. It was BIG deal and expensive. I remember two years of PT's had this problem.

ever since i had an oil change on 2*14*13 , my car has started leaking oil (extremely bad) at first it was thought to be just the oil pan, well since then i have had the crank shaft seals replaced twice. this past weekend my daughter was nearly stranded on a major interstate because the oil leak completely out of the car, had she not been close to a service station she would have been stranded. She check the oil and it was completely gone, luckly i have been toating around bottle of oil , she poured 2 qts in and it immediately hit the ground. this is a pain and i have spent to much having it towed and fixed. if this is a recall issue Chrylser should be covering it and notify people of such problems!

once again i have to have it towed to the mechanic for a 3rd look. I have been told that it will probably need either a bearing or new engine . not at all thrilled with either option!

We have a 2007 PT cruiser with 54,800 miles. We bought the car as a second owner with 34,000 miles on it in July of 2008.

A week ago it has suddenly had a major oil leak. The mechanic whom we have used for 25 years, and trust very much said the engine would need to pulled out repairs would cost at least $600.I looked up the problem on various PT cruiser forums. the problem does not seem unique to this individual cruiser.

As this car only has less than 55,000 miles, we are wondering if there has been any established recalls, suits or even voluntary manufacturer efforts to remedy this problem, which we can address? Or can you recommend any other actions or options, with this particular lemon car? Had the engine seized on the freeway, considerable danger could have resulted