Quick oil leak question for you b5 bhw gurus

PickleRick

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05 GLS BHW sedan 5 speed conversion. BHW Carver SantaCruz in progress
My 04 or 05...no idea on year but 2.0 tdi has a pretty good oil leak. Ive stopped the sight leak around the valve cover but im not lucky enough for it to be the only leak. The po stated their mechanic thought it was the turbo.

Ive washed the engine and bay, no leaks on turbo. There is some oil in the charge pipe and around the cool side turbo wheel but nothing i wouldn't expect from a 215k turbo. I couldn't see the wheel but a quick turbo selfie reveals clean fins and no noticeable damage. Using my ukulele trained fingers i determined i could feel no noticeable shaft play.

What i did find was oil all over the cat or at least what i believe is a cat or resonator. Follow that oil trail up and there are 3 or 4 various hoses behind the engine, conveniently between it and the fire wall. With the charge pipe removed and air filter assembly removed i further cleaned the engine. Seems my oil leak that was just a couple drips is a pretty good stream and its coming from that hard to reach area. And i have Jack skeleton arms. So before i start singing the lyrics "Whats this, Whats this?" Which of these hoses carry oil and which carry water? 2 larger ones come off the manifold. Others (smaller) attach directly to the head.

Im ready to have this thing leak free so the little lady can drive around a tdi for a few months before i steal it back to put the motor in my boat.
 
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PickleRick

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05 GLS BHW sedan 5 speed conversion. BHW Carver SantaCruz in progress
Ok so 20 min of searching and im gonna pull the tandem pump and reseal it just in case.
 

1854sailor

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Just saw this. While you've got the Tandem Pump out of the way, you might want to replace the coolant tee and the coolant temperature sensor. Oil leaking from the TP seal can cause the coolant tee's o-ring to swell and crack the gland causing a coolant leak.
 

PickleRick

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05 GLS BHW sedan 5 speed conversion. BHW Carver SantaCruz in progress
Its already back together. Motor will be gone into in a few months for ballance shaft delete, timing belt and possibly cam. I'll look at those closer then. As of now there was no coolant leaks and all the hoses look acceptable. I

I do have one stupid question. Being i had the tp out and hoses disconnected how do i prime her? I cycled the key on and off some 2 dozen times like i would after doing the fuel filter on my excursion. Started for maybe a second then died.

I rechecked all vac lines and sensors were plugged back in. Threw on the battery charger as the 2015 battery started getting weak.
 
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turbobrick240

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2011 vw golf tdi(gone to greener pastures), 2001 ford f250 powerstroke
You might need to crack the fuel lines loose at a couple of injectors, then crank, to bleed any air out. I'd stuff some rags around them to soak up fuel.
 

PickleRick

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05 GLS BHW sedan 5 speed conversion. BHW Carver SantaCruz in progress
Im not at the car at the moment. Injectors under the valve cover correct?
 

PickleRick

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05 GLS BHW sedan 5 speed conversion. BHW Carver SantaCruz in progress
I noticed! I cycle my 7.3 4 or 5 times and im good.

On my 4bd1t and 2t engines i unscrew the primer and pump untik hard and im golden.


Im picking up my kid now so i have someone to turn the key while i make those deep in thought, dad is gonna figure this out looks.
 

PickleRick

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05 GLS BHW sedan 5 speed conversion. BHW Carver SantaCruz in progress
At least im not going crazy. I yanked the valve cover back off....no lines!
 

PickleRick

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05 GLS BHW sedan 5 speed conversion. BHW Carver SantaCruz in progress
No worries...i like doing things twice for no reason lol


Now, back to the task. I got her running, YAY...OK...so now some bad news. The stupid tandem pump is leaking oil. Not from the gasket from the engine to the pump but from where the pump splits in half.

Is there a rebuild kit(just need gaskets) or am I stuck putting in a new pump. I dont remember seeing a brand, I'll pull it back off tomorrow
 

PickleRick

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05 GLS BHW sedan 5 speed conversion. BHW Carver SantaCruz in progress
I got bored...yanked the pump back off. Will take it to work tomorrow, disassemble it, reseal it and re install it tomorrow night.
 

PickleRick

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05 GLS BHW sedan 5 speed conversion. BHW Carver SantaCruz in progress
Got it split, cleaned and re assembled. All the o rings and crush metal gasket looked good. It appeared that one of the torqx bolts were missing and someone tried to replace it with a coarse thread from a stihl chainsaw(i run an outdoor power equipment shop and am a stihl dealer) so that couldn't have held tight being it was and m5 and these are all m6 (or was it m4 and all of them are m5?) Anywho, luckily i have plenty of metric fine thread bolts.

I put a thin coat of black rtv all over all the o rings and on both sides of the crush gasket.

Fingers crossed i can reassemble and be leak free tonight.

The only seal kits ive found for the LUK pump are in the UK. Shipping is almost as much as the part. My cost on a new Bosch is about 200, no sense in paying nearly 100 for parts to rebuild and not have it last, im assuming it's original with over 200k on it


A question for all you proper smarter than i put there. Can this pump be deleted? Im putting one of these motors into a boat and dont need vacuum for a boat. Can I replace the tandem/fuel pump with an electric inline?
 

oilhammer

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outside St Louis, MO
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There are just too many to list....
The vacuum pump is also factored into the engine's crankcase breather system, in addition to providing vacuum for the brake booster it also provides vacuum for the boost control system.

Diesel will dissolve RTV, you need a new pump if it is leaking.
 

PickleRick

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05 GLS BHW sedan 5 speed conversion. BHW Carver SantaCruz in progress
I used permatex the right stuff "black"

Being that it's a thin glaze just to help seal i doubt I'll have any negative effects. From experience, it holds up well to everything but gasoline. But what holds up to ethanol?

And it wasnt leaking from faulty gaskets or deals, it was missing a screw and the one they put in didn't hold it tight. It was leaking from the center section that fills with oil(o ring sealed) not the outer fuel filled section with the crush gasket.
 

PickleRick

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05 GLS BHW sedan 5 speed conversion. BHW Carver SantaCruz in progress
Got it assembled last night. Went ahead and changed oil. Im a huge fan of rotella (300k and counting on the psd excursion) so went with the t6 and a wix oil filter.

Much easier priming the fuel system this time. I had the battery charger/maintainer on her all night.

Fired up, ran it about 10 or 15 min while i cleaned my mess. Leak free. Took it for a test run around the block. Kicked it a bit in the drive way and she stumbled.

Heard turbo hissing. Forgot a clip on the charge pipe and blew off. Put it back on...dumb me working in the dark with a headlamp. I hate daylight savings. Finished my spirited run around the block testing brakes and power.

Ran great and zero leaks.

Just for kicks i put some cured right stuff in a cup. Filled it with diesel. We will see if it eats it up. I do know that it won't cure properly if you immediately put it in diesel.
 

oilhammer

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There are just too many to list....
Daylight savings is not what shortens the days. The Earth's orbit and rotation to the sun does that. ;)

But I get what you mean.

I would not use that oil and filter in a PD, but that is just me.
 

PickleRick

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05 GLS BHW sedan 5 speed conversion. BHW Carver SantaCruz in progress
Daylight savings means it's dark when i leave for work and it's dark when i get home from work lol.


Why no love for the t6? The psd injectors are way more sensitive than anything on tdi engines and commonly go 300-400,000 miles (many cases more) using only rotella with zero issues. Hell, 8 new injectors for my psd cost more than i paid for this passat lol. I doubt dealer approved oils made the ballance shaft chains/sprockets or crappy oem cams last any longer than a t6 oil. The psd requires 5,000 to 6,000 miles changes, holds over 4 gallons.

It also seems to have good reviews for tdi motors across the web, although you'll always find someone that uses mobile and only mobile...just like patriots and caps fans...i don't understand them. I like mobile 1, back when i ran a turbo b series that i freshly built, i ran mobile 1 and only mobile one. Since then i became a home owner and parent, i found it just wasn't worth the extra money.

I even switched my motorcycles over to rotella t4. From my 78 cb550 to my 06 monster.

For price and quality i can't beat rotella.

As for wix filters, my shop gets good deals on them. I've yet to have a failure due to one. Better than most other filters out there.


So...now that this vw up and running it's time to get her on the market.

I pick up a passat 2.0 tdi with a nsf transmission this Satuday that is getting yanked to install in my boat.

I thank all of you for all the quick help on this! Even the fuy who had me looking for injectors!
 
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oilhammer

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outside St Louis, MO
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There are just too many to list....
Everything you know (or think you know) about your Navistar engine simply does not apply to the VAG PD TDI engine.
 

leicaman

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2015 Golf TDI SE, 2005 TDI GLS, RIP
Why no love for the t6? The psd injectors are way more sensitive than anything on tdi engines and commonly go 300-400,000 miles (many cases more) using only rotella with zero issues. Hell, 8 new injectors for my psd cost more than i paid for this passat lol. I doubt dealer approved oils made the ballance shaft chains/sprockets or crappy oem cams last any longer than a t6 oil. The psd requires 5,000 to 6,000 miles changes, holds over 4 gallons.
It is the camshaft that is the devil in the detail. The 505.01 oil spec was created to help handle the extreme conditions that this flat tappet cam live under. I used to own a PD Passat. It had 208k on the clock and I used nothing but the 5w40 505.01 Castrol oil in it. I ran 10k intervals. The car had the original cam in it yet when the deer took the car out. I used nothing but OEM filters, Mann or Hengst filters. I had no issues with the motor. Oilhammer has probably seen the insides of more of these than most.
 

PickleRick

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05 GLS BHW sedan 5 speed conversion. BHW Carver SantaCruz in progress
So you're 100% sure your cam would have needed replaced by then if you had used t6 instead? An oil that many other tdi owners have also used for 200k plus miles?

You seem to take good care of your vw, know how a diesel likes to work.

While the 505.01 oil is superior in some ways, i would put money on the fact that many people with cam issues would have had them anyway no matter what oil they had in them.

Vw diesels draw in a crowd that many other diesels in the usa dont, the people looking for mgs.

The gal who starts her tdi up, scrapes the frost of her window and slams the pedal to the floor to get to work on time. Zero warm up

The guy who lives in the city and drives 5 min to work. Rarely reached normal running temps.

The customer who only has his hood popped when he brings it in for scheduled maintenance, you go to change his oil and it barely shows up on the dipstick. Did he not notice that extra rattle on cold start ups?

I dont want to start an oil debate but too many people have used t6 for too long to say that its gonna doom the car. But im sure we can all agree that many times its the drivers habits or lack or maintenance or even lack or knowledge of diesels that causes the issue.
 

oilhammer

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outside St Louis, MO
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There are just too many to list....
I have replaced lots of camshafts in PDs that used the T6, yes. And I have seen lots of the cheap oil filter o-rings that off brand for these applications use shrink up and start leaking oil. Yes, even Wix. We had a coming-to-Jesus moment with those ass clowns over a fleet of Sprinters some years back.

I will not, nor will I ever, claim to know much about other diesels... but VAG products I am pretty good with. This thread is titled "question for you B5 BHW gurus". Well, I do not like the "guru" moniker much, but I am pretty well versed in the BHW. You asked, I answered. I'm done, do what you like. :cool:
 

PickleRick

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05 GLS BHW sedan 5 speed conversion. BHW Carver SantaCruz in progress
And i thank you for the info. Im going to do more than a few tdi swaps in the future.

I run an outdoor power equipment/rental shop and we also do lots of atv and vehicle repair. We work with many different truck and industrial diesels but I'm new to vw motors.

I have not yet had an issue with a wix o ring. Usually i have issues with them swelling, not shrinking. But in most cases that is because of contact with either brake/carb cleaner or gas/ethanol.


I don't ask questions to argue, simply to learn and understand more.

I am curious as to how many cams you have done in vehicles that had always used approved 505.01 oil?

I did a good amount of research on this before choosing a bhw over a turbo mercedes 606 for my boat swap.

I made my own assumption that many of the cases the driver did not drive properly or take care of it properly.

I refused to give this pd to the little lady because she works 10 min away and wont take the time to warm her car every morning. She needs to keep her saturn, you need to adjust your schedule a bit when switching to a diesel and i know she wont do it
 

zzdiesel

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05 passat tdi Geared BSM and Bewcam 2nd 2005 deleted ,converted and bew cam stage 2 Malone3 tune.
I don't believe warming your engine before driving or cooling down afterward will do anything for your cam. Pistons and cylinders and rings , yes. The thicker cool oil should be good for the cam as long as it is not to thick to circulate.
Opinions?
 

PickleRick

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05 GLS BHW sedan 5 speed conversion. BHW Carver SantaCruz in progress
The oil is cooler and thicker but i would think that in theory that would compound the issue of the cam/valve train being the furthest part away from the oil pump.

Reving the motor before the oil has warmed and fully lubricated the lifters, lobes and bearing surfaces i would think leads to premature wear.

With today's advanced oils i dont think getting to normal running temps before driving is necessary but gravity does force all oils back the the bottom of pan.

The best example i can come up with is usually a car with a tapping lifter will quieten down once warm.

And proper warming/cooling is also very important for life of the turbo. Skid loader operators eat turbos like candy because they ignore this. Running hard for 4 hours? Scew cool down, its lunch time!
 

zzdiesel

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05 passat tdi Geared BSM and Bewcam 2nd 2005 deleted ,converted and bew cam stage 2 Malone3 tune.
Apparently turbo failure on a BHW is considered quite rare, and my bet is the majority are driven like a gas car. Starter and go, arrive and stop. I expect most of the time the engine is running at 30% power or less and the turbo is mostly just idling. I am used to farming situations where the tractor is probably doing 80% power for long periods of time, and there is a lot of heat built up. Cooling down is a must and warming up if the engine is going to jump into 80% power.
Do you get -30 degree temps or are you on the coast and milder temps? Engine oil can be pretty sluggish at -30.
 

PickleRick

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05 GLS BHW sedan 5 speed conversion. BHW Carver SantaCruz in progress
We went from snow last week to almost 70 this week. Over 90 is common July and aug.
 

MEgearhead

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Hope your repair works out better my attempt. Bought mine in 2013 at 113k miles with an oil leak. Tried the exact same thing, but did not have the missing screw. Lasted around 500 miles. Put a new TP on it and it has been leak free ever since. Now has 206k on it. If you do the conversion, please document it in a thread. I'd sure be interested.
 

PickleRick

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05 GLS BHW sedan 5 speed conversion. BHW Carver SantaCruz in progress
So far so good. Seems the only issue was the missing bolt. The service kits (o ring, metal gasket and springs) are available from over seas but be sure to see which brand/model TP you have, mine is a luk but there are several different ones.

In a pinch I've re used crush style metal head gaskets like this (obviously cylinder heads have more pressure) by cleaning them well and hitting them with a coat of rattle can paint. I always did so with intentions of replacing asap but never had to go back into any of them again because of a HG leak. On the o ring, if its damaged you're pretty much done for. Do not clean it with brake cleaner or carb spray or gas as it can swell and then you're also done for.

I work in outdoor power equipment so hydraulic repairs are a norm, my attention to detail on imperfections are more keen than most so this type of repair may not be for most, as oilhammer pointed out there is a reason shops do not repair these, in the usa anyway. It will no doubt get you back and forth to work a few days while waiting for a new pump! If i was doing it for a customer in my shop it would be a new pump, the second time doing it is free if it leaks again, shops dont like losing money. Look for bearing wear, feel the metal to metal surfaces, they should feel smooth with no rough spots or ridges. Basically look for any scoring or play. Those issues will lead to diesel in your oil, quickly. Whether it's a tandem pump, oil pump or power steering or a hydro gear wheel motor, it's all hydralics. If i had more time (or was better with phones and computers posting pics) id tear one down and do a cleaning, inspection and reassembly but id need a bad one to help show comparison.


Are there any good threads on engine removal on the bhw? Do i yank it out the top or jack her up and remove the engine and tranny together from underneath?

Im ready to do a bs delete, timing belt and water pump and inspect a cam but i want it on an engine stand for all this.
 
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