FWIW, I just replaced my front timing seal in my 95 on Monday, since it as of recent started to leak oil pretty steadily. Just little drops here and there, but the pass. side front of the engine was always "wet".

I looked at it carefully, as well as my independant. We both agreed it was "probably" the front cover seal. Well, after replacing it, brake cleaning everything spotless, I drove home (30 miles). I get home, and much to my horrific disappointment, the leak is still there. I dont know if I was more bummed about wasting 4-5 hours labor putting the new seal in, or realizing the headgasket needs replacement. Needless to say, I was discouraged. I will continue to drive it like so with the minor external oil leak, and check the oil more frequently. Come summer time, If I get ambitious, I might do the head gasket. But who knows, its not something I really want to do on a 204K mile car. The head gasket is original, and I guess its surprising it lasted as long as it did.

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93 300D 2.5 Turbo, Black/Palomino 273K
09 E350 Black/Black 41K