VW oil leak from he**......

[ZTFab]

OK, so I know it's not uncommon for a VW to leak, in fact I think that it's a given fact that they do....so here's my situation.....

Finishing a bug for a customer....put a 1600 DP motor in that he supplied....come to find out that it's a "refurbished" motor and not a rebuilt......perfect....

Fired the engine, tuned it...runs great. Sitting in my shop, no leaks.....drive it 100 yards...dumps oil like there isn't a gasket on it....


Basically I took the motor down to the long block...I pulled the fuel pump off, replaced both gaskets and the stand-off...removed the carb, intake & tubes, dog-house and the generator, replaced both gaskets and the baffle under the generator stand, put another new o-ring on the new 009 dist., re-sealed the sending unit with teflon tape, pulled the oil pump and resealed the oil pump body and the cover.....I used "gasgacinch" on all my gaskets (like I always do)....still Freakin' leaks....

It only leaks under load...I cannot see an active leak while it's sitting in my shop....oil seems to still be coming out near the oil pump somewhere....maybe from the case split from the crank to the oil pump body? I checked the case bolts...all are tight....

The big problem is the car is supposed to leave my shop tomorrow and it's 8:15 at night.....thought I had the leak fixed until I did one last test....
ANY help would be appreciated...thanks in advance....

Paul

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[ChuckH]

hard to judge online, or in person it seems ... do you have another oil pump to bolt on, are the surfaces flat on the pump case and block ? ... oil pump gasket failure ?

bad push rod tube, small chance but they dont always seat.

[ZTFab]

The block appeared to be fairly flat when I took the pump off the first time....I checked the pump body with a straight edge and it was fine....of course the gaskets that are available for VW motors look like they are made out of recycled bible paper (and they probably are considering that you have to pray that they hold!!!) I've got the front of the engine back apart right now, getting ready to take the pump body back off to recheck everything....the only other pump I have is a used one on another 1600 SP motor....If I have to I can pull that motor apart and scrounge for stuff...I hope I don't have to.....

Thanks for the input Chuck...sometimes it's the simple things that cause the most problems and I probably need reminding of all the basics to make sure I didn't forget...that's why I love RDC...help when you need it

[ChuckH]

I like to keep some sheet gasket material in my shop and hand cut it if needed with a exacto ( spelling ?) you can get it in different thickness, thicker is good for uneven surfaces.

[Tony_Barraza]

Flywheel Seal? Back of motor, behind the flywheel. If that is the case, it's soaking the clutch disc and that will require replacing also.

Just a thought...


Good luck!

[ZTFab]

Flywheel Seal? Back of motor, behind the flywheel. If that is the case, it's soaking the clutch disc and that will require replacing also.

Just a thought...


Good luck!

The back of the engine is bone dry...it all seems to be contained near the crank pulley/oil pump body...after driving, it drips down the case and drops off the sump and since it's near the crank pulley, it gets slung around a bit and I can't tell where it originates from.....

Chuck...right about now I'm wishing I had some thicker gasket material.....I've got some Toyota FIPG leftover from when I used to be a technician...I think I'm gonna try that....

[ChuckH]

use two or maybe 3 stock Vdub gaskets if that sucker keeps leaking, if that doesn't fix it !!.. it might be the crank seal, the one by the pulley

Sealants need time to dry to work right.

[bajaruner11]

A couple of things to check here, most likely it's leaking from around the crank pulley as VW's have no seal there from the factory.
-1st is your crankcase breather open and working properly? If it's not it will push oil out from around the pulley like Niagara Falls.
-2nd did the engine builder install the oil slinger onto the crankshaft when it was assembled. if not again Niagara falls (to check this remove the pulley and looking into the case around the crank there should be what appears to be a large flat washer with a slight forward bend about half way up.)
-3rd If the case was damaged around the pulley in it's prior use due to a bad crankshaft end bearing it may have been worked out and has to much clearance around the pulley for the left hand scroll thread cut in the pulley to return the oil into the slinger.
-4th I have seen aftermarket aluminum pulleys missing the scroll thread, and the thread just cut in. (not deep enough.)

If it is in fact a badly worn case around the pulley which I have many times the cure is fairly simple and I highly recommend doing this anyway, and that is to install a sand seal and pulley. Empi makes a complete kit containing all parts necessary to do the job, and it's a bolt on deal. Just make sure that when you install the crank seal/housing you thoroughly clean all oil from the case and install the seal/housing with JB Weld epoxy to hold it in. Also sanding the case to give the epoxy something to bite into helps too. Last I did have an engine once that leaked around the oil pump and the only thing that would cure it was that toyota fihp sealer, but the oil pump leaked at idle to, you say yours only leaks under load which leads me the pulley.
Hope this helps.
Steve

[ChuckH]

very thorough, kudos

[ZTFab]

Steve...
The breather seems to be working fine, when I took off the generator stand, everything was clear and I've got a new Empi billet filler neck with all new plumbing for the breather....

The oil slinger is there, and is got a factory pulley with the scroll thread...but since this motor was refurbished and not rebuilt, it leads me to believe that the clearance arond the case may be the cause for all of my grief.....where can I get a sand seal kit tonight..literally...I've got to get this car out of my shop by tomorrow because I promised it to my customer and I've got 3 more showing up.....