Please excuse my english. It is hard enough for me to find the technical terms in Norwegian.

I recently bought a 2000 Octavia with a 1,6 litre engine, code AKL, with 117000 km on it. I have discovered som leaks in the engine, and I wonder what they are (oil, water), and wheter or not I should do something about it. The car is still under a 3 month "used car guarantee", and I wonder wether or not I should claim that the dealer fixes the leaks.

I discovered the first leak (the black arrow in the first picture and the second picture) at the dealer, but the salesman said it was supposed to be like this. It is a plastic lid located at the branch pipe. What is the function of this, and is it leaking oil or water?

The second leak (last picture) is below a plug between the oil filling and the throttle house. At first I thought this was comming froom spilling of oil when refilling, as the camshaft casing was completely covered in oil, but then I noticed the wet area below the plug.

Lastly, I discovered the wet area at the red arrow. Is the gasket for the camshaft casing damaged?

I did an engine wash in order to be able to better locate the leaks, and I will keep an eye on it for the next months.

One more thing: Inside the hole for filling oil, I discovered quite a lot of dirt in the form of black, sticky stuff like a mix of oil and dust. Has dirt come inside engine, or is this normal? In my opinion this should be as clean as possible.

I hope someone can give me some response on this. Thank you in advance.

Din engelsk er bedre enn min nordmann, har glemt jeg all ordet amd stavingen. Godt hell med

I'm afraid I don't know, but someone on here will. In the meantime, Welcome to Briskoda! :wavey:

Welcome.

I'm afraid I don't know the answer to any of your queries in a definative sense, but I would agree with you that the inside of the oil filler pipe should be clean. The only ways that I can see dirt getting in there is if the car was driven for an extended period without an oil change, and/or without the filler cap fitted. Do you have a logged service history? (Skoda stamped service log and/or copies of service invoices stating mileage when service done).

Those leaks apart, the engine bay looks clean, and you're proceeding the same way I would; clean the affected areas, and keep an eye on them.

Thank you for replying!

The service history seemed fine at first, as it has been serviced at the Skoda dealer every year. But I noticed now that the previous owners at three occasions went 6000km, 5000km and 3000km past the recommended 15000km intervall for oil service. I also noticed orange (rust?) spots on the dipstick, which I have heard can occur due to condensation if the car is mainly driven short distances.

I took a picture of the oil filler pipe. The stuff has a brown colour, and I don't think there is any dust in there, as I first thought. The same stuff is on the cap. I think you are right, KenONeill, in thinking that this is due to the car beeing driven for an extended period without an oil change.

I'll keep my fingers crossed and hope that my loving care and frequent oil changes will alleviate the damage done and ensure a long life for my car.

Are you sure the car's always been on fixed interval servicing? If it was on variable intervals (or even the owner believed it was) that would be one explanation for the extended oil changes. Also, I don't know how much "owner hidtory" you normally get (we only get the last owner's name and address unless we get bills with the car or a helpful dealer who's known the car for a long time).

That doesn't look like grit in the new photo, in fact I've never seen anything much like it, beyond saying that it's not mayonaise (as in salad dressing, but made with mineral oil), which is a certain sign of stop start runs and never getting properly warmed up.

I'd try an oil change using flushing oil, and follow up with an oil and filter change. I won't recommend a product partly because I've never done one, and partly because I don't know what would be available to you anyway.

From what I read in the service book, I am quite shure the car has always been on a fixed interval. It says: Oil change every 15 000km, or every year (depending on which one occurs first). In addition the book does not state QG1 or QG2.

The only history I have is what is stated in the service book, which is not a lot.

I talked to a mechanic on the phone, and from my description, he said that this brown stuff was not unusual. He did not see any connection with the prolonged service intervalls, but said it was due to contamination in the oil. He, like you, recommended an engine flush and oil change.

I feel relieved, thanks again.