oil dripping from dogbone mount bolt

[tiv]

Hi,

 

Noticed a small oil patch in the driveway  today (quite sure it wasn't there a few days earlier). Reached under the car and kind of blindly shot a few pics (attached), they seem to show the oil is seeping down near the dogbone mount bolt.

I'm going to jack up the car and take a look later - until then, does anyone have an idea where it could come from?

 

thanks,

Tiv

[tiv]

All right, there we go. Perfect timing, we were just about to leave for a 1500km trip next week...

 

[gregoir]

Is that gearbox oil leaking out via a defective driveshaft oil seal?

Maybe clean the area up using Gunk/Mucoff or similar and then keep an eye on it for a few days? If the leak is more than a gentle weep then get it sorted .

[tiv]

Yes it is - it feels more greasy than engine oil to the touch and also it is more blackish (I've changed oil less than a month ago, so that's still fresh).

 

It only leaks when I use the car (3-4 drops yesterday as I did drive, no drops today as the car has been parked - put a piece of cardboard underneath).

I would not worry  much for normal everyday use, but I'm reluctant to leave for family vacation next week with long drives planned.

I'll try to get it fixed tomorrow, hopefully not all mechanics are on vacation...

 

I wonder it if it's the driveshaft (it is the long one) coming out of alignment has caused the seal to fail over time (now thinking about it I can recall a faint vibration on accelerations) - otherwise I can't really explain (apart from bad luck) as the car has barely 100k kms on the clock.

[ahenners]

Keep us updated on this one. I have a similar issue, noticed a small greasy patch under the car where it was parked. Had a quick peek under without jacking it and it looked a bit greasy around the driveshaft.

 

Just put some cardboard underneath mine today so will see how that goes 

[tiv]

I was wrong - not the driveshaft seal. Took it to a mechanic today, he smelled the oil and said "aint't transmission oil sir, this is from the engine" and said it was seeping down the side of the engine.

He thinks it is either the valve cover gasket, or the camshaft seal at this side of the engine (there is a seal as the water pump is driven from this end via a sprocket and a belt under a plastic shield behind the piping).

Due to the insane amount of water piping in the way, it is near impossible to see (and even harder to take a pic, see my attempts below), but oil is visible there. Also, further diagnostics is only possible by dismantling the water piping which would be a major undertaking.

 

The pics with the red circle show where the black of the oil can be seen using a strong flashlight.

This guy (although claiming to be an indie mech specializing in VW) said he hasn't worked on a 1.4TSI CHPA engine yet, and he himself suggested trying to find someone more familiar with it.

Taking the car tomorrow to another indie Skoda specialist - all 3 dealerships I called has the earliest appointment in 2 weeks...

 

 

[gregoir]

Maybe some oil was spilled during your diy? oil change.

Clean off all the oil using a degreaser and check where the leak is as a starter.

[tiv]

ok, another day, another mechanic, another diagnosis.

1st of all, I've cleaned the oil  from near the top of the engine, drove the car  since then, and the oil did not re-appear. so it indeed could have been the result of a spill, however I cannot possibly imagine how (so far from the filler cap)

 

took the car to dealership finally, when explaining the symptoms, the guy  says, "wanna bet ? it's gonna be the water pump. we've done countless number of them, no matter if diesel or petrol, they all crap out on the mk3 octavias - 

on the 1.4tsi petrol, it's the plastic housing that  develops cracks over time causing seepage". he said what happens is as droplets of coolant trickle down the side of the engine, water evaporates, the remaining thick, slimy stuff picks up the dust/grime and by the time it gets to the bottom it looks and touches exactly like oil.

we could not get an absolute visual on the source, as it is obscured even with the car lifted up, but he said he was 100% sure, also suggested a simple check: place a piece of cardboard underneath the car, collect a few drops. pull the dipstick, and drop a some engine oil to the cardboard a few inches away. wait until both dries and check the residues visually. I did that, and while the difference is actually really not striking, there *is* a difference, so what drips is *not* engine oil.

 

there is still no visible change in the amount of coolant in the reservoir (did not drive that much yet, and we're talking about like 10 drops a day).

 

[Rybu79]

Any update on this?

[tiv]

It is coolant leaking, but at a very slow rate - in about 3 months and 5k kms since summer it went down to the low marker on the reservoir (and then I have refilled it), and the occasional drop underneath the car is still there.

 

Mechanic's advice: leave it alone until it gets worse.

 

[tiv]

water pump was replaced today, it was clearly leaking by the shaft. end of story (hopefully).

Fun fact: by looking at the old WP, I've realized the WP has to come off when replacing the thermostat as the WP cover (where the thermostat is in) is bolted to the WP from the inside. Simply clever...