fbgh2o

I believe that the cam tower gasket failed this morning. Giant clouds of blue smoke were coming from under the passenger side of the hood accompanied by the smell of burnt oil....

I was hoping that it is the rear cam tower seal, but it appears dry. Clearly oil is dripping straight onto the downpipe and burning. I have attached a picture. Oil is pooled on the cam tower flange right near the #4 cylinder exhaust manifold pipe.

Does this appear to be a main cam tower gasket failure? Thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

mtnman82

You just need to make sure it's not leaking from somewhere else and then 'running' along the seam to there. Is there oil anywhere else, or just that spot and down from there? If just there and down, that's probably it.

I was just going to post asking the forum if this is a common place for oil leaks? Mine's been sealed up for ~1000 miles after I replaced the head gasket and just started leaking in the same spot over the weekend. I could smell the oil burning all weekend but it took that long to figure out where it was coming from - no smoke or anything, just the smell.

Looking forward to what folks have to say on this - I'm hoping a quick turn of the wrench will remedy...

Grandpa#3

You need to clean the area spotless and then watch the area for just where the oil leak is coming from. I'm from the old school but you can buy engine cleaner from any auto parts store. I keep a fire extinguisher close at hand and I use kerosene to clean and then carefully flush area with water. Be careful not to get electrical parts wet.

Cheers,
Larry

Luis de Prat

Hi Fergus.

If the main cam cover gasket (PN 944.105.199.03) has never been replaced, the rear seal (928.105.189.02) looks dry, and you're running synthetic, I'd say the main gasket is the culprit of your oil leak. BTDT.

Good luck with it!

PEvans

I had a bad cam tower gasket in my 86 years ago and the only symptom was loss of oil. I can't remember anymore whether it puddled under the car or just evaporated, but I had to carry a few quarts with me all the time until I got it fixed. I don't recall that there was any smoke.

fbgh2o

Just did the diagnosis.... It's the gasket and leaking quite significantly...

So the question becomes.... Should I DIY? I am a low to moderate skilled person, having done brakes, MAF, fuel lines, had the intake and fuel rail off multiple times, done Iceshark cables, but the timing belt piece scares me - a lot!

mtnman82

I tightened up the cam tower bolts. None were really loose, but I did go to 15 ft/lbs (vs 14 ft/lbs called out). I have two days and ~60 miles on her and that appears to have taken care of it (hope I'm not jinxing myself...). Mine was apparently leaking more than I though because I was down on oil a bit.

Crazy Eddie

There are a number of things that are a bit of a PITA with that gasket replacement
Issues I had were when I had to remove the gasket a second time. (first one leaked for some reason, which I never was able to confirm why )
The biggest issue is the timing belt tensioning. I am very lucky as I have a friend who has the tool and knows how to use it (if you can find one of those guys, its not to hard to complete the job ..
The one thing you have to be sure of is that you tighten the bolts inside the cam tower correctly ( if one of those gets loose ( your F$%#)
And make sure you tighten those bolts on the came tower evenly or you can rip the gasket ...
Good luck
Regards
Ed
Oh one other thing ... That oil leak detector dye is great and will pinpoint exactly where the leak is ... it uses a dye glasses and a special flashlight