Hi. there is this car that has an oil all around the oil filter and on the underneath of the engine there it looks like mabey oil used to be there. Is this just a bad oil filter housing or bad oil filter? If there was a blown oil seal, where would it leak? just from where the sections of the motor seperate (the cracks)? what about a coolant leak from the block? where would i see if it was leaking? thanks.

 

Before you decide you have an oil leak, completely degrease the engine. That way you can be sure it's not just spilled oil.

But oil leaks are very common at the filter base, and very rarely the the rear dowl pin. The filter leak is easily repaired by replacing the o-rings underneath, but the dowl leak requires engine disassembly.

Coolant rarely leaks from between the engine "sections".