Rear of van has oil haze

[jimbope]

Hi Guys,

The van has been running real nice this season - Im sure its because I fitted a vac advance dizzy and junked the 009!! So basically as Vw intended - a stock sp 1600cc.

However.....I notice the back of the van has a slight 'haze' of oil - from the top to the bottom and over the bumper. Its not that noticable - when you wash it you can tell its oil from the way the water reacts.

The engine seems fairly oil tight (certainly no worse than previously owned vdubs which didnt suffer the issue) - There is some oil reside around the oil pressure switch. Heat exchangers bone dry- new pushrod tube seals last year.....

Going to change the oil sender and see how I get on - also got new breather hose to fit (old one looks original!) and clamp in place.

Any one else suffererd from this?? Any ideas?

Checked out buses at Stanford Hall - none of which had this so presume not normal!!

Thanks in advance.

Jim

 

[ZedBed]

I vote crank-shaft oil seal. This is the most common place to leak enough to get it up the back of the bus. I did read what you wrote, but if you have oil up the back, you have a good size leak. IMO.

 

[sparkywig]

I vote crank-shaft oil seal. This is the most common place to leak enough to get it up the back of the bus. I did read what you wrote, but if you have oil up the back, you have a good size leak. IMO.

I agree.

 

[jimbope]

Cheers Steve and Sparky, Mega fast replies there chaps!!

In the past when Ive had leaking main seals there has been quite a obvious pool of oil under van after parking up - I must admit I dont seem to 'mark my spot'!!

If I still suffer after fitting new parts I will look into getting the main seal as matter of course - next time engine is out.

In the mean time will keep an eye on oil level - got a trip to devon in 3 weeks (about 600 mile round trip). At least back of van wont rust :lol:

 

[71Westy]

Another (not nice) thought. Check around the oil pressure switch for a crack in the case caused by over tightening of the switch (it has a tapered thread). In my case, this was quite a major oil leak, but I guess a smaller crack could cause a smaller leak...

Nick

 

[onlybayinthevillage]

I get this oil haze as well. I had the van up on the ramps last weekend at Volkswrecks (formerly Bug Barn) near Tewkesbury as he is doing some work for me. We looked for a leak i had and the only one we found was possibly from the oil cooler housing(?) that has two rubber grommets to sit on, that often perish. No leak from the oil pressure switch though. It's a mystery to me how such a small amount can end up on the back of the van.

 

[sparkywig]

It gets sucked into the fan and blown out under the rear bumper, and aerodynamics does the rest.
Be prepared to clean all the barrels and heads as well, as an oil film won't do the engine cooling much good.

 

[Mechanoid]

Have you checked the oil breather tube under the engine? If you are getting more than usual blow-by in the crankcase the breather will collect oil and it runs down the metal breather drain tube and can dribble oil out of the little rubber seal at the bottom. Because this is only pressurised when the engine is running and any oil is being blown out of the pipe, it isn't always apparent by leaving a puddle of oil when the bus is parked up.

A good clue to see if there is excessive blow-by is to remove the oil filler cap and start the engine. Just at idle mind! If you see a lot of 'vapour' puffing out of the oil filler you probably have worn barrels/rings. There will be a little vapour, even on a good engine. If yours seems excessive, do a compression check. That will show up worn barrels.

 

[spoonerdtg]

Mine was down to oil pump gasket weeping.

 

[jimbope]

Well I've just done 600 miles over weekend 4 up with roofrack full of gear to north Devon- van didn't miss a beat so fingers crossed not low compression.....hoping it could be.something silly like oil pan gaskets....gonna change them at weekend. Also.ordered new main seal at same time as back up.
I'm obviously having to top oil up more than usual....it's surprising how much was covering the back after 2 hours cursing at 3500rpm between stops!
Will change sump.gaskets/oil and see how I get on cruising to Whitenoise Sunday. Don't really want to pull engine at mo.
Thanks for all advise guys- will.update with answer when I find out!

 

[Tofufi]

Do the guys getting this have the bumper splash pans fitted?

I think I get this a little, and I don't have splash pans...

 

[sparkywig]

I waterproofed the front of the trailer on the way to Bude on Saturday.
Another job on the "to do when I get home" list. :lol:

 

[ZedBed]

Do the guys getting this have the bumper splash pans fitted?

I think I get this a little, and I don't have splash pans...

It's nothing to do with splash pans - oil isn't supposed to leak out. Have you ever followed someone with an oil leak, then put the wipers on? Not funny.

 

[Tofufi]

Do the guys getting this have the bumper splash pans fitted?

I think I get this a little, and I don't have splash pans...

It's nothing to do with splash pans - oil isn't supposed to leak out. Have you ever followed someone with an oil leak, then put the wipers on? Not funny.

I was wondering if it was a combination of splash pans and leaky/tired engine... rather than suggesting that missing splash pans alone would cause it

I'm aware that missing splash pans does lead to a lot more dirt up the rear corners of the van...

 

[davebug]

I too get small oil spots up the back after a run.no major leaks anywhere, i from years of owning dif types of aircooled have learned that these things happen theyre old, just live with it and dont worry too much ,enjoy

 

[ZedBed]

I don't get any oil up the back of the van. Not a drop in 1,000 miles. I have the usual push rod tube small leak etc etc, but when it splats up the back it's time to sort it I've always thought? Every time this has happened to me over the years it's been crank shaft oil seal...
So fix it now for a tenner, or do exactly the same job and throw in a clutch for £100 a few months down the line.

 

[sparkywig]

VW engines don't leak oil if put together properly, but are designed to use oil as part of the combustion process.
This is the first engine I've had that's spraying oil out the back, and I assume that the crankshaft oil seal is the culprit as there's a small drip at the case/bell housing join when parked up.

 

[mike202]

It looks like my crankshaft oil seal has gone, my engine is only a year old and has done about 4000miles. How often do these things go?

 

[Tofufi]

It looks like my crankshaft oil seal has gone, my engine is only a year old and has done about 4000miles. How often do these things go?

I've done mine twice, and it's always started leaking again within a couple of hundred miles.

Using a genuine VW seal (from VW themselves), fitted correctly, no excessive endfloat and no apparent wear on the flywheel surfaces...

Mine isn't a huge leak, I just live with it now. I'll probably do it again next time I have the engine out.

 

[Mechanoid]

It looks like my crankshaft oil seal has gone, my engine is only a year old and has done about 4000miles. How often do these things go?

I've done mine twice, and it's always started leaking again within a couple of hundred miles.

Using a genuine VW seal (from VW themselves), fitted correctly, no excessive endfloat and no apparent wear on the flywheel surfaces...

Mine isn't a huge leak, I just live with it now. I'll probably do it again next time I have the engine out.

Did you also replace the 'O' ring in the flywheel? This is often missed and is a common cause of oil leaks on the flywheel.