stigg

Investigated an oil leak today, cleaned all the parts under the car, there was oil and crud in many places. After all was relatively clean, I have run the engine and after a while droplets
showed up on the rubber hose from the left turbo. The right side is a bit wet too but no droplets appeared so far. The pics show the area. Any ideas where the oil is coming from and if it can be fixed?

amiram

There is a possibility that the oil coming out of the turbo. In the turbo ther is engine oil pressure to lubricate the turbo bearings . Sometimes the oil seal was damaged and needs replacing and cleaning.If you have the skill and tools you can buy on eBay set to renewal and on YouTube has examples. Check the engine breather to

stigg

Thanks for your reply. I guess this would be the worst scenario as geting at the turbos means dismantling half of the car.

tccraiger

valve cover, rear cam seals

all(over)road

Nah, it's not hard to remove the front bumper to get at the turbos and after you've done it once, itsa piece of cake thereafter.

jav

Bump. Replace the spider hose, too as once it gets clogged up the crankcase overpressurizes and creates leaks everywhere.

stigg

I decided to replace the valve cover gaskets as I found oil on the outside corners facing the firewall. So I cleaned all really good, got new gaskets, put some silicone in the corners where the manual says it is required, reassembled all the parts only to find the same spots oily after the engine has run for a while. The oil shows up in the corner, below the edge of the cover and on the smooth edge of the head facing the firewall, on both heads. After driving I get the usual smoke as well. Yesterday I pulled the covers again, put some more silicone, checked if the gaskets are aligned properly, all looked all right. I let it sit overnight, today I run the engine, oil shows up in exactly the same spots. When I wrap my fingers around the corner of each head I get them wet with oil. What could be the problem here, because I'm stumped?

YKallroad

Too bad you didn't get at these when you had it apart for the VC gasket replacement. The good news is that if you can do the VC gasket you can do these as well. There's a kit from Blauparts that I used.

http://www.blauparts.com/proddetail.asp?prod=GF21002-1C

I also recommend an 18" flat screwdriver with an angled tip to help get the rear cam seals out. And a small mirror on a stick, very handy. and don't break the valve tensioner tool (like I did. Twice.)

squidix9

You don't need to pry the can seals out. You'll struggle trying to get to them. You'll mangle the seals and may damage the surface if not lucky. Trying to get the new seals in will be more than a chore.

On the passenger side you just loosen the bridge and it will fall right out. A little sealant on assembly and you're set. Similar on the drivers side but it's the double bridge. Piece of cake.

squidix9

There are a slew of places it can leak. You've hit the valve cover gaskets and next the cam seals. With an nspection mirror check the chain tensioner seals. If they aren't leaking, don't replace them. If they are, sorry,but should have been done with the covers off.

The turbo bearings do leak some. Not uncommon to see a film of oil in the lower rubber intake hoses. Up to about a teaspoon is normal.

A spot everyone forgets is the oil cooler o-ring. Depending on the style it's either $6 or $23 for just the o-ring or the seal if you will. Don't overtightened the nut.

The hard ones are the crank seals and the cam bearing seals. Not going there.