OttawaDave

Same as mine - when I bought my car last summer, it had evidence that there had been oil on the right heat exchanger, but it was dry as a bone. Then I put it away for the winter and it dropped about a quart while hibernating. Seems to have come from one of the oil return tubes and the right side exhaust valve cover. One short drive directly out of storage and she sealed right up again.

am

It is leaking from between the heads and cam housings and a bit from the valve covers. I'm a perfectionist and i wanted to know if there were chances that i would loose time trying to make it completely leak free and after a few answers i think it's yes so i'll leave it like that and i'll put a piece of cardboard underit every time i park it in my garage.
I changed all the oil seals, gaskets and o-rings on my 928 engine and tranny.It was perfectly leak free then after a few rides some drops here and there, so i surrendered. They called it a wet engine.
I don't want to make useless efforts again on a 100 000 miles 1970 air cooled engine to hope that it will become leak free. Most of all i'll use it about 1000 miles a year.
Thank's a lot for all your answers, for me it was like a survey but much better

Steely

one small wet spot on right rear cyl exhaust bolt that's prolly dripping on the exchanger - I could smell it, but I haven't seen any on the floor until I crawled under (w/ no creeper or jack stands) and looked up. Valve covers are dry.
And it's wet around the bottom of the oil pressure sensor/switch? (cylindrical item just to the right and under the alt/fan on the case. (plan to tackle this in the winter as one of the 101 projects suite).
No issues with any seals.
87 targa, 92K, umpteenth owner (of less than a month).

911vet

119K miles, and not a drop.

Edward

My SC has about 25K on the engine. When driven on the street to keep her "exercised" (it's a 95% track car), the engine remains bone dry. But when on the track, she leaks from one exh valve cover. The heat and high RPMs of track use undoubtedly results in leaks, yet when I wipe down the engine after I get home, she stays bone dry until the next event. Heat and expansion is my guess ...but I'd certainly prefer it to stay dry all the time!!

Edward

Brian F.

When my Land Rovers stopped leaking I knew it was time to add more!!!

But I still loved them.

Brian

Peter Zimmermann

am: First, you have to make a distinction between a magnesium case engine in your car, and the aluminum case engines used since '78. Your car is almost impossible to get dry, and keep dry, because of the mix of parts. Fortunately there are a host of sealants, gaskets and o-rings available today that can help to alleviate issues, but a leak free mag case engine is an uphill battle. The picture below is of my car, and that mag case, 2.2 liter "E", had everything possible done to it to seal it properly.

My '82 SC has 203K miles, has never been apart, and the only leak is very minor seepage at the #8 main bearing o-ring (complete engine disassembly required). The oil return tubes have been replaced, I've done the cam o-rings (when I replaced the cams and installed Carrera Tensioners), and, of course, the thermostat o-ring and oil pressure switch have been replaced. The rest of it is dry...

84_Carrera

I have a small leak, leaves a quarter-sized stain if left for a few days. Good thing I don't usually let it sit that long.

MUSSBERGER

No leaks. I did have a trans oil leak from the selector shaft seal. The PO was running Reddline and it was leaking all over the place. I replaced the seal and filled it with Swepco. It shifts as good as a 915 can.

rllevin

Had lots of leaks on my '87 with 79K miles. Mostly both cam lines but also the junctions of the main oil lines to the thermostat and oil tank and a little from the front (crank pulley-I love porsches!) seal. Even the oil tank sensor gasket-probably from a PI overfilling the oil. I'm waiting to see if the right cam tower seal was leaking or if it was the cam line drip making it look leaky before tackling the front main seal. None of these was bad enough to cause problems driving significantly increase oil consumption but I had to put a pan under it to keep the driveway from looking like hell.
Dry engines do happen, I've even owned one, but I think most leak somewhere unless the leaks have deliberately been tracked down and fixed.