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Author Topic: Oil leak from top of engine on 2.2 doc Omega  (Read 2335 times)

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DavidF

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Oil leak from top of engine on 2.2 doc Omega
« on: 07 September 2018, 11:21:15 »

I've joined the forum as I have a problem with my father-in-law's 2.2 Omega: The usual oil leak from the top, rear (passenger side) of the engine. Yesterday I changed the cam cover gasket (Copy, not Vaux original as he had already bought one) which was obviously faulty as all sparking plug ports were FULL of oil once I removed the HT pack (1/4 of a cup of oil syphoned off!). Cleaned everything up and ran silicon gasket seal along seal area as well (belt and braces), new screw "O" rings and didn't over tighten the bolts. Removed oil breather pipe to block and applied silicon to gasket before re-fitting. On start up noticed a small drip from behind lower exhaust manifold bolt dripping onto block by the oil breather pipe. Using a mirror, a small amount of oil appeared to be coming from either the head gasket (Unusual) or the housing which the EGR valve bolts to, then running down the head to the exhaust bolt. I thought this might be old oil so cleaned area then started up again. Ran engine for 30 mins with no leaks and whilst doing so, used a mirror to check rear of head and confirmed no oil from cam cover or head nor any running down head towards ex' manifold. Turned off, let it cool down, then re-ran until fan cut in, again no leaks. Left over night and again no leak. Father-in-law collected car this morning and drove home (8 miles), just 'phoned to say oil leak in same place!!! I doubt the head gasket would blow just to release oil (the engine runs smoothly on all four cylinders) and wouldn't suspect the EGR valve "manifold" would contain oil so am somewhat confused. Anyone any ideas of common faults? Thanks in advance...
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tigers_gonads

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Re: Oil leak from top of engine on 2.2 doc Omega
« Reply #1 on: 07 September 2018, 11:29:45 »

Not a expert on 4 pots by any means (all my omega's have had 6 cylinders) but I would be checking to see if any of the breather pipes are blocked with gunk  :y
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jefflem

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Re: Oil leak from top of engine on 2.2 doc Omega
« Reply #2 on: 07 September 2018, 12:04:20 »

It is indeed a known problem and had similar issues in the past which required me to do a full clean on all breather pipes and hoses. Bad breathing means pressure means leakage. Simply replacing the gasket won't help.

The breather pipe towards the crankcase (UK passenger side) is usually full of oil sludge if not cleaned on a regular basis. It's only mounted with two bolts at the bottom, which usually can be removed fairly easy. Take off the pipe and clean it nicely. Easy, fast and satisfying way to do this is using a drill and steel wire brush and push it through the sludge. You'll end up with a shiny and clean pipe. Use some break cleaner to fully clean the last bit of stuff inside. I also installed an oil separator which helps a little to prevent new sludge. Although it's only a matter of time you have to repeat this step.

The hoses that connect the cam shaft cover and intake are usually also quite dirty and filled with sludge. If you're lucky, you can clean these. Otherwise: replace 'em both. In addition to this, you can also completely clean the cam shaft cover giving it a nice diesel bath over night, finishing with break cleaner. After cleaning all parts, my 2.2 runs smoothly.

Advice: change oil after 100 miles after you cleaned all of this and plan oil changes every 7000-8000 miles max. Although it's not the preferred engine in the Omega, it isn't too bad either. ;)
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DavidF

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Re: Oil leak from top of engine on 2.2 doc Omega
« Reply #3 on: 07 September 2018, 13:13:45 »

The main breather tube and pipe on the passenger side was fairly clean when I re-sealed the gasket but I must admit, I didn't check the two at the front of the cover so they're first on my list. Thanks for your replies, I'll keep you updated.
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tigers_gonads

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Re: Oil leak from top of engine on 2.2 doc Omega
« Reply #4 on: 07 September 2018, 17:01:32 »

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Chazza12

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Re: Oil leak from top of engine on 2.2 doc Omega
« Reply #5 on: 07 September 2018, 17:24:47 »

On the half moon part on the seal has to be installed correctly or it will leak. The galmoon part on the lower part should ha a ridge that’s risen from the rest and that part fills the sealing area. Also if he small pipe on the top that goes to the intake in between 2 and 3 on the inlet is blocked it can add pressure on the top seal and leak around that area. They do get blocked up. I Idella put my hand down the back when putting the cam cover seal on with top on and check they both inline with my fingers. Rear ones always don’t line up when putting top on.
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Doctor Gollum

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Re: Oil leak from top of engine on 2.2 doc Omega
« Reply #6 on: 07 September 2018, 18:16:52 »

Did you follow the guide here to the letter?

Reputable pattern gaskets are fine, but buy wisely... Victor Reinz or Payen to name two. Using sealant outside of the detailed areas will cause issues as you have. These will be compounded by not cleaning out the camcover or the breather pipes to the throttle body.

Given as the throttle body gasket is less than a cup of coffee, there's no excuse not to do the job properly  :y

Guess what you're doing this weekend  ;)
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DavidF

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Re: Oil leak from top of engine on 2.2 doc Omega
« Reply #7 on: 10 September 2018, 14:26:17 »

lots of replies/help: As I said earlier, I didn't check the two tubes heading for the throttle/intake manifold area. Waiting for the car to come back to me this week and can't wait to see inside the tubes!
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mandula

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Re: Oil leak from top of engine on 2.2 doc Omega
« Reply #8 on: 11 September 2018, 05:58:24 »

Did you let sealant to dry properly before startup? I believe if sealant still "wet" it let oil go through and leave passage when it finally dry.

I did mine with black sealant all over gasket because cover was slightly deformed (over tightened too many times) causing gasket to leak.
I let it dry over three hours (engine still slightly warm), as I did some other service same time. Thousands of kilometers past and no leaks anywhere.
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DavidF

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Re: Oil leak from top of engine on 2.2 doc Omega
« Reply #9 on: 17 September 2018, 09:34:18 »

Update! Checked the two pipes from the front of the cam cover and no blockages but the narrower one had a severe case of Brewers' droop: very soft and spongy so have advised father in law to buy a replacement and it is very easy to replace so he can do that. The good news is that his initial observation that the leak "was still there" was incorrect and only a minute drip of oil is found on his garage floor in the mornings so have decided to let sleeping dogs lye and monitor the situation. Many thanks for all the replies, especially those with photos. Now off to try and repair his key fob....
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