Where is this oil coming from?

[SoCal911SC]

A couple questions. Is this the starter that's in the below picture? And also some thoughts on where the oil may be coming from as there's A LOT of dried (and some fresh) oil caked on it? Is there some kind of oil line that runs above it? It seems pretty isolated to that area.

[Flojo]

Yes, startet in the pics middle.
Oil you see seems to me to be rather the spray from an other area.
Check "triangle of death" around breather.

[SoCal911SC]

This is the first I've heard of the "triangle of death". I'll do some research on it thanks.

[Flojo]

Its the area upside behind the intake, where 3 culprits sit, that can leak all three.
But mostly its the breather cover gasket.

[christiandk]

Does not look too bad, imo. I agree on the holy trinity. It is an engine out job, but I imagine that somebody will differ.

[DRACO A5OG]

Remove the air box and stick a hand mirror and look for oil residue. The triangle would be the Breather Gasket/and or the hose, Thermos stat and oil light sensor gaskets.

[86 911 Targa]

And here's a pic for the 3.2 motors:



Good luck,

Gerry

[Porsche 2]

High probability that the engine oil thermostat O rings are leaking. Looks just like my car oil leak repair solution.

[SoCal911SC]

Originally Posted by 86 911 Targa

And here's a pic for the 3.2 motors:



Good luck,

Gerry

Assuming you take off all that stuff for the visual inspection, can the necessary repairs be made without removing the engine?

[SoCal911SC]

Originally Posted by DRACO A5OG

Remove the air box and stick a hand mirror and look for oil residue. The triangle would be the Breather Gasket/and or the hose, Thermos stat and oil light sensor gaskets.

Do you need to remove all the CIS stuff also?

[porschetub]

Originally Posted by SoCal911SC

Do you need to remove all the CIS stuff also?

No just the air cleaner,you could also give the area a good clean then it will be easier to pinpoint the leak after running the engine for a while.
Is there oil around perimeter (bellhousing) where the motor bolts to the gearbox?if yes it could your rear main seal .

[Bob Kontak]

Originally Posted by porschetub

Is there oil around perimeter (bellhousing) where the motor bolts to the gearbox?if yes it could your rear main seal .

Woah! This is not scare the new guy day. :-)

First off, as noted, your oil residue ain't that bad.

DRACO says remove the airbox, which is difficult to R&R. I would skip that for now, but go get a couple of decent mirrors. I like girly girl mirrors with some length on the handle and a decent size mirror face for looking behind my 81. Plus they help me look beautiful in my non-wrenching moments. The auto parts store mirror on a telescope stick are great for small areas but you need a big screen. Once a bigger mirror is back there it can be moved enough to capture a decent view. Don't skimp on the lighting.

I would maybe pull the bellows off between the air sensor and throttle body if a side angle is not providing a clear view.

Another option is to pull the two big fat bolts holding your engine in place in the rear corners of the engine compartment with a floor jack under the engine. You can drop the engine about 4 inches without issue to increase you visual penetration.

Also, to clean things a bit without going nuts you can spray simple green around the triangle and blow the loosened up grunge off with an air hose. A garden hose would work ok but then you have the same risk issues as with power washing. I.e., possible water in electrical connections.

Anyhoo - if you find your leak and you deem it worthy, make you decision as to how much pain you can endure. If you are fortunate and you are a small boned, 130 pounder with feminine hands, you hit the jackpot. You may not have to remove a bunch of stuff to gain access. If you have meat hooks for hands, pull some stuff off and leave a little time.

Airbox removal provides you lovely access. It sucks time and is like a puzzle to re-install. Very do-able, though. Also gives you a chance to examine closely for air leak issues.

[SoCal911SC]

Originally Posted by Bob Kontak

Woah! This is not scare the new guy day. :-)

First off, as noted, your oil residue ain't that bad.

DRACO says remove the airbox, which is difficult to R&R. I would skip that for now, but go get a couple of decent mirrors. I like girly girl mirrors with some length on the handle and a decent size mirror face for looking behind my 81. Plus they help me look beautiful in my non-wrenching moments. The auto parts store mirror on a telescope stick are great for small areas but you need a big screen. Once a bigger mirror is back there it can be moved enough to capture a decent view. Don't skimp on the lighting.

I would maybe pull the bellows off between the air sensor and throttle body if a side angle is not providing a clear view.

Another option is to pull the two big fat bolts holding your engine in place in the rear corners of the engine compartment with a floor jack under the engine. You can drop the engine about 4 inches without issue to increase you visual penetration.

Also, to clean things a bit without going nuts you can spray simple green around the triangle and blow the loosened up grunge off with an air hose. A garden hose would work ok but then you have the same risk issues as with power washing. I.e., possible water in electrical connections.

Anyhoo - if you find your leak and you deem it worthy, make you decision as to how much pain you can endure. If you are fortunate and you are a small boned, 130 pounder with feminine hands, you hit the jackpot. You may not have to remove a bunch of stuff to gain access. If you have meat hooks for hands, pull some stuff off and leave a little time.

Airbox removal provides you lovely access. It sucks time and is like a puzzle to re-install. Very do-able, though. Also gives you a chance to examine closely for air leak issues.

Thanks Bob. I'll give it a look with a mirror and see what I can find. In the meantime, I've got other deamons to tackle, and no the leak is not bad enough at this point to justify tearing everythig apart to track down a few drops. I was just underneath last night putting in my SS brake lines in the rear and noticed the oil.....and yes it looks like there's some oil around where the motor mates with the gearbox.....so it could be a main seal. But i seem to recall the PO had the trans rebuilt, so i'd be suprosed if they didn't replace the main seal when that was done.

[MBAtarga]

On your SC (CIS) you'll have best luck in doing a partial engine drop to gain as much room back there as possible.

[aquazulu2]

Good luck with your oil leak search and repair.. Thanks Gerry for the triangle of death picture. Any modification/ change out recommended to that area while you are in there. Engine out.

[Flojo]

Originally Posted by SoCal911SC

Assuming you take off all that stuff for the visual inspection, can the necessary repairs be made without removing the engine?

yes it is. at least I did so with my SC. a so called semi-engine-drop, to have better desmantle-access from above

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