05 BHW Oil Leak Frustrations....

Hey Guys and Gals,

I am at wits end with an oil leak that has plagued my car for awhile now. Originally I thought it was the oil return line at the base of the turbo...it had a small drip leak that was coming around the bolts. I fixed this problem as the oil return line plate was warpped just the slightest amount, and so the problem was fixed. And yes, I did have the Balance Shaft delete done about 11 years ago, when the car had 100k on it...we are at 230k now.

2nd Culprit:
Valve cover...just replaced this two weeks ago, but not change.

The oil leak has grown from a little drip into loosing a quart every 100 miles of driving. The leak is coming off the passenger side of the car...can you point me in any other direction the leak can be coming from at this point in time before I send it into a shop to have them track the leak down?

Thanks,

John

tandem pump, if you bought an after market valve cover that's you second problem

with that much oil, I second the tandem pump and or gasket. That much, I would be suspect of the tandem pump itself. If you replace it, go ahead and replace the temp sensor housing below it as you will soon have a coolant leak too.

Wash the engine and then look for the leak. Shouldn't be too hard if it leaks that much.

I am thinking itnis the tandem pump as well...Ironically ut inly happens under load. On idle the leak is nonexsistent which is why it is so hard to find.

Alright, thanks will update after I finish anothe car's repairs and am able to tackle this one.

Alright here is the update:

Just changed the tandem pump gasket and I still have a leak. It is definitely engine oil and nothing else.

Here is what I have done:
Changed the tandem pump gasket.
Changed the oil return line gasket and leveled the flange so that it is flat.
Changed the valve cover gasket as well.

And at this point that stupid leak is not going away. I am probably losing about a quart of oil for every two hours I am driving under boost. When it just idles there is no real appearant leak.

Got any other ideas where it might be? I found oil on the lower half & driver side of the tandem pump when, I found oil on the bottom passenger side of the tandem pump, as well as around the passenger side of the motor going towards the turbo...but it is all coming from the back side from what I can see. The rest of the motor seems totally fine.

Anyone got any other thoughts on where the major culprit could be?

Thanks.

The tandem pump its self could be leaking. Mine was like crazy at 205k.

I,m at 225 k on the 125 dollar ebay China tandem pump that came with the gasket.

Thanks Rick for that insight. Where was yours leaking at on the tandem pump, or did you know? The next step will be for me to take it apart and rebuild it then.

The only rebuild kit i could find shipped from Europe. I pulled mine apart, cleaned the o rings/gaskets and re installed with a healthy coatings of great stuff. Kept me leak free for a week until i had time to get the new one installed. There were i think 3 different companies making the tandem pumps for vw so you'll need to identify first before ordering a kit.

I did the same thing yesterday, pulled the pump, tore it apart, cleaned it, then put it back together using ultra black, let it set for 24 hours and hoping that will do the trick. If that fixes the problem, I will be ordering a new rebuild kit. If it doesn't...then I am done with the car.

So we will see tonight when I fire it up and take it for a drive.

PickleRick said:

The only rebuild kit i could find shipped from Europe. I pulled mine apart, cleaned the o rings/gaskets and re installed with a healthy coatings of great stuff. Kept me leak free for a week until i had time to get the new one installed. There were i think 3 different companies making the tandem pumps for vw so you'll need to identify first before ordering a kit.

Click to expand...

Giantmcm said:

I did the same thing yesterday, pulled the pump, tore it apart, cleaned it, then put it back together using ultra black, let it set for 24 hours and hoping that will do the trick. If that fixes the problem, I will be ordering a new rebuild kit. If it doesn't...then I am done with the car.
So we will see tonight when I fire it up and take it for a drive.

Click to expand...

Meat and Dora has all the parts for the tandem pump

So the oil leal still exists...with no change. The car starts a lot easier after the pump rebuild, but the oil leak is still VERY prevelent.

So here is my last two thoughts:
1) Oil leaking out of block from headgasket...I know others have said their headgaskets have seeped oil, and so wondering if this could be the case since the oil leak is strongest under driving pressure.

Option 2:
Leaking around the turbo housing when the engine is under pressure. I have oil on top of the center turbo housing at the base of the oil feed line. However my lack of turbo knowledge does not know if what I am thinking is even possible.

For history knowledge, I purchased the turbo a long time ago (7 years) rebuilt from a guy on ebay. I have had issues with the turbo, but I just dealt with it as the car still ran well. I have had a slow oil leal from the turbo for almost 5 years (oil return line, at least that is what I thought). I have replaced the return oil gasket 4 times, this last time I leveled the oil return line as it has a slight bow to it...but the oil makes it impossible to know if it is sealed or not.

Thoughts and feedback would be appreciated.

Sounds to me that you have replaced parts that are not the cause of the leaks. Is the oil return line flange mating surface straight?

If the leak is from the head gasket then replacing the tendon pump gasket is not the fix. Did you clean the area really well so you can be sure the leak is coming from where you think it is coming from?

imo000 said:

Sounds to me that you have replaced parts that are not the cause of the leaks. Is the oil return line flange mating surface straight?

If the leak is from the head gasket then replacing the tendon pump gasket is not the fix. Did you clean the area really well so you can be sure the leak is coming from where you think it is coming from?

Click to expand...

Yup, you would be correct. Where they may have been leaking a little (the possibilty does exist), I would say my main problem is still very present.

Where I do believe the Oil return line flange is straight, I can not guarentee that the mating surface of the turbo is straight...it is hard to do that without removing the turbo...which at this point in time, I am not willing to do.

In regards to cleaning, yes, I cleaned everything quite well when I reinstalled the tandum pump both times. Upon the 2nd time, it seemed there was a light film of oil by the pump, but not nearly as much as what is dropping from the engine.

So unless there are any other major oil leak locations I should look into, I am at an impass. I am considering the oil leak is from one of the three places (just realized one more place):

1 - Head gasket
2- Turbo
3 - Split in the turbo oil return line

Anyone have any possible feedback to change my train of thought?

Thanks.

Thinking you have enough oil coating everything and it is harder to find the source.

Maybe a UV light and dye kit would help. A lower buck alternative is to put some cardboard or rags in spot briefly while you drive a couple of miles. Look for the spray. That would be flammable for anything longer if near the exhaust plumbing obviously. Just sounds like it wont leak in the driveway with the hood open.

I thought you were onto the right track with the tandem pump.

I had a oil pump chain break on my car. The oil went towards the turbo from the hole in the front crank cover.

I did see you deleted. But maybe check the sealant condition at the front crank cover or even the oil pan for degraded sealant.

Your list of three look good.

Lotawood said:

Thinking you have enough oil coating everything and it is harder to find the source.

Maybe a UV light and dye kit would help. A lower buck alternative is to put some cardboard or rags in spot briefly while you drive a couple of miles. Look for the spray. That would be flammable for anything longer if near the exhaust plumbing obviously. Just sounds like it wont leak in the driveway with the hood open.

I thought you were onto the right track with the tandem pump.

I had a oil pump chain break on my car. The oil went towards the turbo from the hole in the front crank cover.

I did see you deleted. But maybe check the sealant condition at the front crank cover or even the oil pan for degraded sealant.

Your list of three look good.

Click to expand...

That is a really good point, I didn't think to look at the front sealant condition because in my mind it should be "Good". Go fig...sometimes we miss the obvious one. Thanks for the heads up, I may give something a try, just placing a piece of CB up there between the turbo and the block to see which side gets sprayed and on which end...front or back.

Thanks for the idea.