Sudden oil loss down passenger side Block (m103)

[ps2cho]

I have trying to track down my oil leak on my 300TE and I put some UV dye in yesterday. Checked tonight and it is leaking down the left side of the block at the back. It is NOT coming from the valve cover and is not coming from the driver side of the block.

I can't "quite" see where because the exhaust manifold blocks my UV light...but I cannot believe the head gasket could be leaking. It hasn't even been 10k miles since I replaced it last year. Car has never overheated. It all started about 1k miles ago. I had the head skimmed and pressure tested and followed the torque procedure with the 2x 90deg turns +- 5deg.

Is there a chance there is some sort of oil plug on that side of the block? I won't be able to jack it up it for a few days, so wanted to get some ideas on where it could be coming from?

It is losing enough that I am "smoking" on the freeway in the morning quite a lot.

Thanks

[JohnM.]

If you are sure it's not the VC gasket, and you are sure it's not the front cover seal, where else can oil leak from on these motors? What torque value did you use for the initial torquing? Did you follow the correct order (starting in the middle)? New bolts I assume?

[ps2cho]

New bolts yes (updated ones, no washer). 55nm as the FSM calls. I started middle outwards. Followed the instructions to the letter. I was very meticulous about my head gasket change.

There was no oil around the valve cover gasket no and nothing on the front timing cover. If I did something wrong wouldn't it have leaked since day one? Why ~8k miles later?

It's just so strange...

[JohnM.]

Not sure! It will definitely need more inspection for sure. Not to proliferate the HG idea, but there are oil passages on the outside edge of the block. And gasket failure there tends to show up as oil leakage at the back of the engine, right (passenger) edge.

Hope its something simple.

Yes there are oil passages that can and do leak. This is much more common on the 104, however.

[latief]

Isn't this the car you just did the tranny job on?

This might be obvious to you, but when my transmission fluid was overfilled, it was leaking right at the same spot near the dipstick and smoking.......

[ps2cho]

Originally Posted by latief

Isn't this the car you just did the tranny job on?

This might be obvious to you, but when my transmission fluid was overfilled, it was leaking right at the same spot near the dipstick and smoking.......

Yes it's my 300TE. It is oil because I put the uv dye in crankcase and the uv light showed it up...so it's not tranny fluid. I cant believe this head gasket already went bad??

I used a victor reinz gasket

[slk230red]

Originally Posted by ps2cho

Yes it's my 300TE. It is oil because I put the uv dye in crankcase and the uv light showed it up...so it's not tranny fluid. I cant believe this head gasket already went bad??

I used a victor reinz gasket

Hey ps2cho, I had the same situation on my 102 engine. I replaced the head gasket Aug. 2007 (8,000 mi. since) and recently it started leaking oil down the rear passenger side. I thought it was the head gasket, but it turned out to be the VC gasket. I replaced the VC gasket and problem solved.
So don't rule out the VC yet.

[JohnM.]

Originally Posted by slk230red

So don't rule out the VC yet.

Yes. The VC gasket can get brittle surprisingly quick!

[tinypanzer]

The VC gaskets for these motors plain suck. That's why when I re-painted my VC, the gasket got a coating of grey MB sealant before I put it back on. A few folks here gave me some guff for doing that, but a year and a half later it's not leaking a drop. Before I used that stuff, it would leak after 3 months. If you pull the VC off, remove that steel pan on the inside and make sure the breather passages aren't clogged. They look to be quite large, but one of them is literally a pinhole deep in the inside of the cover. Lack of adequate PCV can easily cause an oil mess.

Also, that little semi-circle cutout at the back is exactly where mine would leak (first).

[teezer]

i'd replace the vc gasket just to eliminate that area

a little trick i learned years ago when dealing with these type of vc gaskets ~~~ once you have the vc gasket on the cover is to lay it on a flat surface and see if it wobbles, if it does, it's not on right

does the dye show up above the head gasket ??

[ps2cho]

Originally Posted by teezer

i'd replace the vc gasket just to eliminate that area

a little trick i learned years ago when dealing with these type of vc gaskets ~~~ once you have the vc gasket on the cover is to lay it on a flat surface and see if it wobbles, if it does, it's not on right

does the dye show up above the head gasket ??

No it does not. I posted that earlier and just double checked again tonight. The VC is not the culprit. I looked under and its really strange...I just cannot seem to see a definitive place where it is leaking from.
I'll keep trying.

My question was is there any place other than the head gasket on the side of the block where it could be leaking from?

[slk230red]

Originally Posted by ps2cho

No it does not. I posted that earlier and just double checked again tonight. The VC is not the culprit. I looked under and its really strange...I just cannot seem to see a definitive place where it is leaking from.
I'll keep trying.

My question was is there any place other than the head gasket on the side of the block where it could be leaking from?

I was almost positive that my oil leak was coming from the head gasket too, but when I got under the car and looked up, I could see oil on one of the rear exhaust manifold studs. Well since this is above the head gasket I figured it must be the VC gasket, although I could not see a definitive place where it was leaking. After replacing the VC gasket I cleaned the engine and so far everything is still dry.
If I were you I would change the VC gasket first since it's quick, easy and cheap just to be certain.

Good luck.

[mak]

The oil pressure sender unit joint ?
mak

[ps2cho]

Replaced vc gasket -- no difference. I can see I dripping onto the passenger side of the block at the back.

so I think it is definitely the head gasket. I used a reinz kit. This sucks...

What about retightening the rear head bolts? Can it even be done due to the 90deg turns?