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Alfa 156 2,5 v6 oil leak

4K views 8 replies 4 participants last post by  samuelis 
#1 · (Edited)
Hello
6 months ago I have bought this car with oil leak problem. At first I didnt care that much, but now I have to use the car much more and this leak is becoming much more evident.
It is dripping from the right side of the engine bay- timing belt side. I was expecting it to be caused by damaged crankshaft seal under the timing belt sprocket, so I have replaced this seal, whole timing belt kit and water pump.
All this lead to nothing, oil is still leaking. All 4 camshaft seals are okay, everything dry there, also it is not leaking from under valve covers, everything dry there too. Pretty sure that it is not coming from oilpan seal too.
Only place, where I can see oil is the top of the water pump as there is a small gap between the engine block and pump, in which the oil sits. How could it possibly get there ?
No matter how am I trying, I just cant figure out where is the oil coming from. Could you please give me some tips, where could be this oil leaking from ?
It looks like if the oil dripped somehow on the top of the water pump then into the auxiliary belt and then got sprayed all over the place so it is much harder to figure out. For example alternator is completelly covered in oil. When look under the car after longer drive it seems to be dripping on the ground from engine mount and plastic cover behind the wheel. It is really hard to photograph, but I might try, iw that would help.
I am desperate.
Thank you very much for every answer.

and by the way, car has 412 000 km on the clock
 
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#2 ·
Sound obvious, but you've checked the head. Not unknown for gaskets to leak?

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#3 ·
Do you mean head gaskets, is that possible ? That is my worst nightmare. It could be that one of them is leaking in between heads and then onto the water pump. Havent really checked this as I didnt seem likely to me when I did the timing belt.
If this is the case, then I am f*cked.. as i have to use the car basically every day.
 
#5 ·
Best thing to do is to take all of the covers off and clean everything. Then run it. Remember that when you are driving, there is a howling gale blowing through the engine bay - the oil leak could be from the front of the engine and blown backwards.

If it is the gasket, you'll see it leaking if all of the shields are off.
 
#6 ·
Thank you guys very much,I really appreciate all your help.

No I havent replaced valve cover seals as they looked perfect, both were definatelly changed quite recently. And these are quite expensive as well.
As far as I can tell, these are not leaking- i runned my finger around both valve covers and couldnt see any oil. But if you think that it really may be leaking from under valve covers, I will change them both as it is an easy job.

What should I use to clean the engine ? Just brake cleaner or some water dilutable engine cleaner?

That blowing air is a good point but I still dont get,how does oil get on top of the water pump- as i said, I can see puddle of fresh oil on top of it. Generally everythin that is conected to auxaliary belt is completelly soaked in oil .

What if I just cleaned it the best I could and then let it idling for a few hours ? Would that possibly reveal me something ?
 
#7 ·
As RXE says if the source of the leak is not obvious then you need to clean as much of the oil off as possible then run the engine and see where it appears first. Yes brake cleaner will work well but it's generally more expensive than engine degreaser so use that. And don't idle it for hours, just a short drive should be enough if the leak is significant.

I think it's most likely a cam cover gasket but they're not very cheap and the rear one isn't easy to change so best to be sure first.
 
#8 · (Edited)
Hello
2 weeks passed and I finally get to disassemble the damn thing.
I am kinda getting somewhere but still dont know the source of oil. After removing complete intake, fuel injection ramps and coolant piping I found out that oil is somehow getting in between cylinder heads and accumulates on the top of the block. Then it slowly drips down either on the timing belt or gearbox side basing on how is car angled when I park it.
Most of the time the timing belt side is lower so it runs off top to the top of water pump then on side of the block, on the crankshaft pulley and thet finally drips on ground. In this process it completelly soaks accessory belt in oil. This belt then sprays oil everywhere.

I will add pictures in a short moment, just have to find out how to do it.
 
#9 ·
here are photos
dont mind the coolant, I have drained it but it made a mess anyway after removing the thermostat assembly.
Thing that ****es me off slightly is that the pipe between heads cannot be removed without taking the engine out or removing a head.

Now the question is.. from where and how on earth is that oil getting there. It really does not seem like if the valve covers were leaking, also those gaskets were supposably changed 2 years ago. I can not see any fresh oil coming from under them.
 

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