Dumb question
 

I read this here all the time, What is a re seal? Is that a re build? Or a top end? Or just tighten everything up with new seals and gaskets?

Yo' NaughtyNick, "Re-seal" is a fancy term for a half-baked attempt to fix oil leaks without disassembling much of the engine.

Nick,....a re-seal is just that; a replacement of accessible seals, O-rings & gaskets to stop or at least slow down the oil leaks. If its properly done and with the right components, its successful in most situations.

Trouble is, to access some common leaks (such as case through-bolt O-rings, you have the engine almost completely disassembled so one must consider the labor expenditures at work.

A re-seal is a dangerous start down the slippery slope.

I did a complete engine rebuild in 1998 due to broken head studs and many oil leaks. I enjoyed a dry garage floor until three years ago when I noticed several puddles over time had to use a drip pan to prevent staining the garage floor. I did a search on oil leaks on split engine case and found several VW bug sites that covered this issue. Cleaned the engine and coated the casing where the leaks were noticed and coated the case seams with a fine layer of baby powder. Ran the car and waited for the leaks. Tweeked the casing bolts near the start of the leaks cleaned the area and used a high temp gasket sealer to cover the seams where the leaks where noticed. Let dry over night and took the car for a ride. Today I have no leaks. The main leak was located on the top of the case just behind the fan/alternator. The oil puddles around the distributor base and dripped down onto the driver side heat exchanger. The oil strainer cover leaked a little so I removed it and replaced the gaskets. The third leak was located near the oil pressure flat head screw on the bottom of the case passengers side near the transmission.