Dont forget to check your oil cooler seal!

validius

Lacking in ZDDP
Joined
Oct 9, 2006
Location
Grand Rapids, Michigan
TDI
1997 GTI TDI
In the past 3 months i have seen several failed oil cooler seals. The failure modes varied from a slow seepage to an instantaneous loss of 4 quarts in 8 miles. This is an extremely easy to service seal. It requires that you remove the oil filter and the oil cooler retaining nut. After that proceed to disconnect the oil cooler colant hoses as necessary to remove the cooler from the hollow shaft that it fits over. The seal can be found between the oil cooler and the flange on the block. The old seal should be carefully and completely removed. The new seal will fit neatly into the top of the oil cooler which can then be reinstalled.

Should you suffer a catastrophic failure of this seal oil will spray ALL over your engine bay. This means your coolant fans as well which will proceed to put an anti-corrosion coating on every surface in your engine bay.
 

compu_85

Gadget Guy
Joined
Sep 29, 2003
Location
La Conner, WA
TDI
... None :S
It should be noted that the A4 cars have this seal too, as do the old turbo IDIs. The one on my ECOdiesel had failed, the one on Matt98AHU's 98 TDI failed, the one on a friends 97 Passat failed, one on another friends 97 Jetta failed completely and he ignored the oil buzzer till the engine froze, just helped someone with a 95 Cabrio with the same failure... the thing pumped out a quart of oil in 90 seconds of running! Thankfully she didn't ignore the warning light...

On the ones I've replaced the old seal is very hard and often stuck to the oil cooler. On the Cabrio it was so stuck it required a lot of carefull prying to remove it (in several chunks!). The cooler itself required a light tap to break it free as well. New seals have little tabs that hold it in place while you install it.


Image from WorldImpex

If you are changing your water pump or have the coolant otherwise drained I would reccomend changing this very important seal, you end up loosing some coolant when you disconnect the lines going to the cooler to get it out. The part is ~$5, the number is 038 117 070 A. The nut holding the cooler in place is 27mm, a 1" socket works too.

If you look in the parts catalog you'll see this part has been used from 1981 to the present!




-Jason
 
Last edited:

catmandoo

Veteran Member
Joined
May 9, 2005
Location
ia
TDI
2000 jetta gls tdi,91 2dr jetta gl n/a diesel
you do not have to remove the heater hoses on an a4 jetta.my seal started leaking all at once,the only reason i caught it was i backed out of the garage one day and forgot something inside and went back in the garage and saw a big puddle on the floor and as i looked back at the running jetta there was a big and getting bigger puddle.ran out shut it off and opened the hood.the oil was gussing out of the seal.
 

tdidieselbobny

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Apr 4, 2005
Location
Stafford,NY (WNY)
TDI
'03 Galactic Blue Jetta TDI, '15 Silk Blue Golf Sportwagen TDI
I had Metalman do mine when he did TB in 07-just be careful when removing the coolant hoses you don't tweak the flange,especially if it's original.
 

clamb

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2008
Location
Stouffville
TDI
2011 Golf Wagon; 2010 Golf Wagon
Hey guys, I think I will have to take a picture but I my cooler (I think) is leaking but there is an oil coating on the cooler starting from what looks like #3 on that diagram. If it is the #19 seal I would imagine you wouldn't have any oil residue above it?

Edit: What engine is that diagram from?
 
Last edited:

Matt-98AHU

Loose Nut Behind the Wheel Vendor
Joined
Apr 23, 2006
Location
Gresham, OR
TDI
2001 Golf TDI, 2005 Passat wagon, 2004 Touareg V10.
chrislamb said:
Hey guys, I think I will have to take a picture but I my cooler (I think) is leaking but there is an oil coating on the cooler starting from what looks like #3 on that diagram. If it is the #19 seal I would imagine you wouldn't have any oil residue above it?

Edit: What engine is that diagram from?
You'd be surprised at how oil travels with engine vibrations and airflow...
 

clamb

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2008
Location
Stouffville
TDI
2011 Golf Wagon; 2010 Golf Wagon
Hi yes I was thinking the samething actually after posting. The good news is that I am not currently losing any oil after my 100km round trip to work. The oil looks the same as it did last night... having said that I am still going to order the two seals to be on the safe side. It doesn't look like a big deal to replace them. I have now read both 33mm and 27mm socket to remove the bottom retaining nut.. which is it?
 

Spulen81

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 30, 2004
Location
Warners, NY
Another way to do this is to remove the hollow stud and leave the coolant hoses connected. With the stud out you can move the cooler enough to remove the seal, clean the cooler and re install.
 

clamb

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2008
Location
Stouffville
TDI
2011 Golf Wagon; 2010 Golf Wagon
Hi guys, so I have cleaned the oil cooler and just for some info it appears my retaining nut is a 32mm (2000 New Beetle). Now, since cleaning the oil cooler I have ran the car in the driveway for about 5 minutes with not a sign of any leakage. I am going to do a drive and get some 'gas' and see if any leaking starts up. IF I don't have a leak after this drive what would you suggest? I went out and purchased the seals but I don't really want to rip it apart if its not leaking. I did read that there is a pressure relief valve in that area for the oil system.. is there any chance this may have releived some pressure during some spirited driving? I have never had any oil warning lights of any kind just for informations sake.

In terms of oil lost it has not been much... a very light coating on the skidplate (now cleaned for later inspection purposes), and some light coating on the entire oil cooler itself some of which seemed quite old when I was cleaning it. There was what appeared to be fresher oil on the drivers side of the oil cooler. Suggestions?

(as an aside I think the hollow stud and retaining nut housing are all one peice on my car.. it appears that way in the diagram but I suppose I will find out for sure if I have a leak and take it apart.)
 

rdkern

Top Post Dawg
Joined
May 21, 2004
Location
Humboldt Co CA
TDI
Passat 1997 silver (sold after 11 years), Jetta 2000 atlantic blue
By getting "gas" I assume you're going out for some fast-food?

Have the engine up to temp and see if you have any leaks. I wouldn't do anything until I found the leak. That's just me. Still trouble-shooting a darn blinking oil-pressure light a month after it started.....
 

clamb

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2008
Location
Stouffville
TDI
2011 Golf Wagon; 2010 Golf Wagon
;) well I have cleaned it and test drove it with no leak in sight. About 20 km total and some hard accelerations at the end... nothing to show for it. I am of course happy not to have to fix it in the cold but wondering where the oil came from. Oh well I will keep my eye on it ;) At least I have the parts to fix it should something happen.
 

yetimus

Vendor , w/Business number
Joined
Sep 13, 2004
Location
Indiana
TDI
Former owner :-(
Thanks for posting this validius. I was living with the slow leak on mine until I read your post.

Spulen81 said:
Another way to do this is to remove the hollow stud and leave the coolant hoses connected. With the stud out you can move the cooler enough to remove the seal, clean the cooler and re install.
I also left the coolant lines connected as Spulen suggested. A few tips for anyone doing this on a 1Z/AHU engine. A 27mm or 1 1/16 socket with a universal joint makes removal and retightening of the nut fast and easy. I've read in older posts where some people have grabbed the end of the threaded shaft (#16) with vice grips and were able to loosen it from below. Mine was way too tight to do this without damaging the threads. So, after I removed the nut, I tapped the cooler loose and was able to drop it down about one inch from the housing. I was then able to grab the shaft with 7" channel locks through the gap between the cooler and housing and remove the shaft without damaging threads. A dental pick is very handy for removing the old seal. Should only take about a half hour to change if you have all tools on hand - it took me longer because I went and bought a universal joint after struggling to loosen the nut.
 

Donny O.

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 11, 2007
Location
Edgerton WI
TDI
96 Passat TDi
I jsut had to do this yesterday on my wifes Gas NB. I figured who knows when her coolant had been changed last anyway so pulled the lines and removed it and jsut replaced the coolant(yes with the correct stuff). I wish I had seen this before hand it would have taken me less time and I would have anticipated this when i went looking for an oil leak. luckily I have a neighbor with a heated garage!!!
 

otm646

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 20, 2007
Location
Metro Detroit
TDI
1998 AHU Jetta.
clean all around the flange and the oil cooler before you start. This way it will be easy to tell if you have a new leak. also check the sensors in the flange for weeping.

If it is still leaking after you replaced the seal i would take everything apart again. clamp off the coolant lines and install the seal on the bench. make sure the sealing surface is clean on both the cooler and flange side. be absolutely certain no parts of the oil seal are still attached.

remember to purchase the seal with the locating tabs. the tabs assist in holding the seal during the reinstall.
 

compu_85

Gadget Guy
Joined
Sep 29, 2003
Location
La Conner, WA
TDI
... None :S
It's not that way from the factory and there's no way I would do it now... it would make such a mess and this sealing surface isn't really designed for a liquid sealant like that. It seals just the same as a spin on oil filter.

-J
 

bikeprof

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 2, 2005
Location
Pagosa Springs, Colorado(YEAH!)
TDI
1996 Passat B4 Variant white, 1996 Town & Country 3.8 LXI
Apply some grease to the oil seal to keep it stuck to the metal so it does NOT droop before you can tighten the oil cooler pipe.

NO RTV in neccesary in my opinion, it may make a mess later when passages get clogged up!
 

otm646

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 20, 2007
Location
Metro Detroit
TDI
1998 AHU Jetta.
If you get the seal with the locating tabs, like the pic compu posted, I have not found the need for tack grease to hold it all together.
 

Matt-98AHU

Loose Nut Behind the Wheel Vendor
Joined
Apr 23, 2006
Location
Gresham, OR
TDI
2001 Golf TDI, 2005 Passat wagon, 2004 Touareg V10.
otm646 said:
If you get the seal with the locating tabs, like the pic compu posted, I have not found the need for tack grease to hold it all together.
Exactly! I did it to my car about 2 years ago and I haven't noticed a hint of oil leak in that area since. No RTV, no grease, just made sure the surfaces were clean (had some oil on them still) and put the seal in place using those tabs and reassembled.
 

Keith_J

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 12, 2007
Location
West
TDI
2000 Jetta MT
Replaced both on mine in '07 when I did the overhaul. Took the entire thing off, cleaning it out fully. 32 mm socket, used my torque wrench. Last time I did the oil, it was still a beautiful matte aluminum color so no leaks. The engine is clean, transmission not so. When I do the clutch, I will take the time to clean it well, the apply a protective Alodine ;) to the bare aluminum.
 

Number6

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 30, 2007
Location
Madison, Wisconsin
TDI
98 Jetta
Hi folks, thanks for this post. I think I am having this problem, however, it almost looks to me like the oil is shooting out of the back lower housing-to-block bolt ( #5 on the diagram ), rather than coming off the top of the cooler. Is this at all likely ( i.e., a failure of gasket #11 )? Should I plan to replace that gasket too while I'm in there?
 

validius

Lacking in ZDDP
Joined
Oct 9, 2006
Location
Grand Rapids, Michigan
TDI
1997 GTI TDI
Number6 said:
Hi folks, thanks for this post. I think I am having this problem, however, it almost looks to me like the oil is shooting out of the back lower housing-to-block bolt ( #5 on the diagram ), rather than coming off the top of the cooler. Is this at all likely ( i.e., a failure of gasket #11 )? Should I plan to replace that gasket too while I'm in there?
I have never seen #11 fail but since its a cheap paper gasket its failure is not out of the question. You MUST replace the seal while doing that job as the removal of the flange from the block requires removing the oil cooler from the flange.
 

Number6

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 30, 2007
Location
Madison, Wisconsin
TDI
98 Jetta
I did the job yesterday. At first glance, the o-ring looked good, so I continued on and replaced gasket #11. The old gasket was metal, the new one was paper. It really didn't look like the old gasket had failed either. As I was reassembling, I removed the old o-ring from the cooler and, yep, there was a hairline split clean through the o-ring; that had been the culprit all along. Oil had been shooting out of the o-ring, hitting the housing mounting bolt and bouncing back, giving the impression that it was coming from the bolt. I hadn't been able to see that, in part because my cooler was cockeyed, hard against the bolt in question. It is parallel to the block now.
Tool tip: stubby 1/2 drive ratchet with 27mm socket worked for me.
Parts tip: I replaced the coolant hoses at the same time; Metalman is currently selling both of the 3-way hose assemblies as a kit for $43. It's a bear of a job replacing those, but a good time to do it if you need to.
 

TonyJetta

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Sep 15, 2005
Location
Tucson, Az
TDI
'15 Jetta TDI SE / '06 Jetta TDI DSG Pkg0 / '96 Passat TDI
Hey fellas!

Thanks for the heads up on this failure mode. 2 weeks ago, I Replaced the oil cooler seal and the gasket on the oil filter adapter, against the engine block.
I was apparently losing quite a bit of oil...much more than just a drip in the driveway. My oil consumption has gone to NEAR ZERO! WOO HOO! Previously I would fill ~0.25-0.375 liter of oil per 700 mile. I have about 500 miles on the fix and no need to add oil!

Thanks! This site is what others strive to be!

Tony
 

TonyJetta

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Sep 15, 2005
Location
Tucson, Az
TDI
'15 Jetta TDI SE / '06 Jetta TDI DSG Pkg0 / '96 Passat TDI
Try 028117070

Confirm it with your local dealer before ordering; that's the seal what I used.

Tony
 

kooyajerms

grocery getter
Joined
May 5, 2004
Location
Pomona, Southern California
TDI
97 B4V (mine), 11 x5 35d (hers) 04 V10 (that one you want), 2014 Q7 (mom's) 74 Shasta 1400
TonyJetta said:
Try 028117070

Confirm it with your local dealer before ordering; that's the seal what I used.

Tony
I thought we had the same seal? Are the two any different? I noticed that my 2.8l oil cooler seal has 3 connecting tabs... Parts lists them as the same seal... Anyone even use a 3 tab seal? before i try to get this 2 tab to fit somehow...

http://www.worldimpex.com/parts/genuine-part-oil-cooler-seal_201555.html
028 117 070 (b4 seal?)

http://www.worldimpex.com/parts/german-oil-cooler-seal_42452.html
381 170 70 A (supposed to be everyone seal)

Jeremy
 
Last edited:
Top