'02 Jetta TDI leaking oil from front left passenger side? Leaking rear main seal??

My '02 Jetta TDI with 191k miles has, over the last 3 weeks or so, started leaking relatively small amounts of oil. Some days when I come out to check, there is no oil spot on the ground, but most days, there is one to three 2-3" oil spots on the ground. There is also oil all on the bottom of the front bumper, and all over the front passenger side of the engine bay, all over the piping, etc. When I stick my hand into the engine bay down there, it gets covered in oil. I may be losing a quart every couple weeks, probably not that much, kinda hard to tell since it's not been that long, but I haven't lost that much. It's not really bad and I've just been adding oil when it's gotten a little low, but its location (i.e., around what I believe is the intercooler piping) has me thinking maybe it's turbo-related (and I really have no turbo over the last few months, I figured it was prolly sticking vanes or an actuator, etc., but haven't had it checked out)
At first, it seemed like it was coming from the rear of the engine, and I took it in to a mechanic and they said it's a leaking rear main seal. This has me confused now, because the leaking now seems to be coming form the front. IDK how oil on the front bumper could have anything to do with the rear seal..... Maybe I have leaking from multiple sources that have just started at the same time? Not sure. I haven't really noticed more leaking from the rear.
Here are some pics. IDK a lot about TDI engines. What hoses are these? All the parts in the pics are covered in oil. The big pipe at the left of pic #1 & that's shown more closely in pic #2 has lots of oil around its base (all all over it) and seems to be loose when I try to move it, so I was thinking it might be something to do with that. Should I be too worried or it it probably nothing too serious? What should I do?
Any help is appreciated! Thank you!

That's a major boost leak. Looks like a clamp came loose or the connector ripped between the intercooler and the upper plastic boot hose. Need to get under that headlight and see.

Thanks, I figured it was something like that... so how serious is it likely to be? Is the turbo probably going to be fine or could it cause it to go bad? Should I try to fix this ASAP to prevent potential damage, or can it probably wait a couple months till i have some funds? I'll try to keep an eye on the oil level as I've been doing, but if it's something potentially critical, I guess I have no choice but to get it done now.

Watching this thread.. I have a leak that has made a mess out of my driveway. I haven't found the source yet.

Turbo seal(s) probably have gone bad if youre losing that much oil

What's the likelihood I'm looking at a new turbo? How much should that cost including labor? Or could it likely be something less severe? Seems to me like just a loose fitting, and I can move the pipe easily with my hand, so it feels loose to me.

Also, the other day when I started, the car basically could barely drive any and there was lots of gray smoke coming from the exhaust... that only happened that one time, no problems since.... IDK what was up with that or if it could be related or mean the turbo is bad.

If youre using that much oil, and you dont have an actual "leak" then youre almost guaranteed your turbo seals are gone. As for the smoke, your timing could be off, glow plugs could not be working etc... oil in the exhaust (classic blown turbo symptom) usually smomes blue, but can give a greyish tint too I suppose in the right light

Stop listening to guys telling you the turbo is 'probably' blown... Ken nailed it in the first post.. you've got a massive boost leak.. Get that fixed, clean out the IC pipes/intercooler and go from there.

The IC always holds some oil, more then some people realize. Unless you've got oil consumption issues (Which you haven't stated) the turbo is most likely just fine.

The o.p. clearly said in his first post he may be losing a quart every few weeks...

ghohouston said:

The o.p. clearly said in his first post he may be losing a quart every few weeks...

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Key word here is 'may'.. I don't think he knows for sure. All he needs to do is check it.

After an initial oil loss and subsequent refill, I haven't lost any noticeable amount in a couple weeks.

I was looking more and noticed the pipe is definitely loose, the clamp probably came off. Seen the pipe on eBay for like $25-30, so I guess that's a relief. Not sure it'll solve my no turbo issue, that seemed to be pre-existing and is probably caused by a dirty turbo or possibly N75, because after replacing my vacuum lines, unplugging MAF sensor, etc., it still existed.

If you're losing boost, your turbo will feel like it's not functioning at all.

LNXGUY said:

If you're losing boost, your turbo will feel like it's not functioning at all.

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I understand that. I wasnt saying his turbo was not working, and I agree he has a boost leak where the oil leak has developed. All I meant that if he is leaking A LOT of oil from the boost leak, and keeps losing the oil after re filling it, that his compressor side seal on the turbo has probably went south.

ghohouston said:

I understand that. I wasnt saying his turbo was not working, and I agree he has a boost leak where the oil leak has developed. All I meant that if he is leaking A LOT of oil from the boost leak, and keeps losing the oil after re filling it, that his compressor side seal on the turbo has probably went south.

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I was replying to the OP... And yeah, if you've got quarts of oil in your IC and your consumption is insane, your turbo is most likely toasty.

The moral of the story is get that fixed ASAFP!!! The poor little turbo won't take that for a long time, it's overspinning trying to achieve boost pressure. Drive light throttle, low rpm and go get it fixed.

Got my mechanic looking it over now. Somehow the pulley wore a hole into the pipe which is what caused it to come loose.... (?) Probably happened from letting Midas do my serpentine belt.

So just to make sure, this is the correct part? http://www.ebay.com/itm/99-00-01-02...Parts_Accessories&hash=item232d56201a&vxp=mtr
Should come with all the right clamps?

Nooooooo. Wrong pipe. Put up a looking for thread in the for sale section. Many of us should have extras of what you need lying around. I'm sure somebody will ship you one or maybe find one close by.

This it? http://www.ebay.com/itm/231045717206

http://www.idparts.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=1277


That's all you'll need.

BuzzKen said:

http://www.idparts.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=1277


That's all you'll need.

Click to expand...

So the eBay part should be fine, no need to buy the new one?

Got it back. Had the hose reattached and I'm ordering a used one to replace this burnt one...
Would you believe that? Seems like it happened right after Midas did the serpentine belt.

Mechanic (not the Midas one) said there was some oil blowback around the breather tube as well, which he said in most cars can mean the engine is going. He told me that over the phone so I don't know exactly all the details, but from Google, that seems to be a somewhat common problem and not necessarily major? He said it could be related to a turbo problem. He's the one that saw it and I strongly trust his word as a mechanic and as a friend, but he says he doesn't know enough about diesel or TDI engines, which is why he won't do any major work on it. How should that be interpreted? Like I said, it doesn't really seem like I'm losing quarts. Last time I refilled was a couple weeks, and when I check the level now it's still right where it was after I filled it then.

At first the car still had really low power. Second and third time I started it and drove it, it had more power and the turbo seems to kick in, definitely better than before. Maybe about on the level it was when I bought it, kinda hard to remember because it's been powerless for months. Not sure it's really boosting to the level it should be, but there could be other problems that cause that like a clogged intake/EGR, sticking turbo, N75 maybe. The other week, I replaced all the vacuum lines, so that must be why I've got power now when I didn't before, even before the hose came loose. Still, if it were just a vacuum leak, I should have had power from the first time I started it, right? So still maybe something else. Car seemed about the same with & without the MAF plugged in. Maybe a dirty turbo that's sticking. I'll have to wait till I can take it to a guru for that.

Whoever touched that car, never let them touch it again.

^agreed. These people arent the best mechanics in the first place, much less diesel mechanics, and even more so not tdi mechanics. I would never let a midas, jiffy lube, etc touch anything with a diesel motor in it, but im also a diesel mechanic by trade

And all diesel motors have blowby. It gets worse when they become worn out, but its probably nothing. Over time, oily vapor from the crank case vent seeps out where it can

Another reason to vent the CCV to the atmosphere

Knew I shouldn't really go to them, but figured it was a simple enough repair... anyway...

I was gonna get the turbo pulled and cleaned next time I'm able to get it to a guru, but now that I've got boost again, do you think it'd still be a good idea to have it pulled and cleaned and the system fully inspected, as preventative work on a car with 191k miles? How much would I probably be looking at in labor to have that done at a standard Euro specialist?

Leave the turbo alone.