LIMG Leak Oil Color
 

Since the LIMG thread I searched and posted on was too old to warrant response I suppose I will just create a new thread for my question:

If the dreaded sign is oil that looks like coffee: what kind of coffee are we talking about? Oil that has been sitting in an older engine for a while will usually come back out black so if it is black coffee colored that wouldn't necessarily alarm me...

However, creamer in black coffee turns it that brownish color that if I saw it in my oil I would take pause. Oil starts out that clear, brownish/amber color that looks so fresh you engine will love it, but coffee with creamer brown would be totally unnatural.

Which is it?

i like my my coffee black. i like my oil black too. after the engines been running for a bit, pull the dip and check then. if its not clean and clear like new oil, and its not the norm "black" but has the "chocholate milkshake" color... uh oh.

i like my coffee black, just like my metal.

Ah, so creamed coffee it is. That makes a little more sense but I wanted it posted just to be sure. Thank you kindly.

When mine was leaking, I could not tell from the dipstick. With the valve cover off, it was obvious. Having said that, they way I really found my LIM leak was to look for it with the engine running. I saw coolant seeping externally from the seam where the gasket is, which made it obvious.