That's your Compressor Bypass Valve. Basically a pressure activated diaphragm.

That is indeed a very tight area with a lot of stuff going on. Have you tried getting a small mirror in there? Get as much light as you can too. I'll wear a headlamp, use a flashlight, and even mount small LED lights into tight places to get a clear view.

My T5 was Hades to remove the CBV on the car but I got it done. Three m6 bolts, 10 mm heads.

You don’t want leaks in the diaphragm as that device pulls the turbo boost off when you lift your foot. That’s important for driveability, so that boost is cut off quickly when you lift.

On mine I removed some things for room and did a lot of cleaning back there, then replaced all those hoses with the bright-colored silicone set from ipd. Easier to keep track of the routing, and so much easier to see than black.

To replace the CBV, I just removed the airbox top and snorkel tube. That gives plenty of room to see and work on the turbo. Maybe the heat shield. Only three or four bolts for that. The CBV can be installed in place, but I found it helpful to install the vacuum hose first, and then hold on to that h...

Carb cleaner fine. Just dampen paper towels and wipe. Nitrile gloves for your hands. It doesn’t have to be surgically clean

The PTC nipplevalve is just a hole heated by electricity. Clean off the grunge and make it shiny. It’s a 50k service item.

Glad you found the source of the leak. Yea, those plastic snorkels do deform/crack over time. I installed one of those IPD silicone turbo inlet hoses last year. Do make sure it's clamped on tight to the turbo, or else it will come off over time, and cause your call to stall. Ask me how I know. : ) S...

One more tip, now that I think of it. I had a bit of a time getting the IPD hose around my MAF. A heat gun softened it up nicely, so as to help me get the hose on.

Also, you'll have to dremel off part of your PTC to fit it into the IPD hose, but you perhaps already knew that.

rick4484 wrote: ↑11 Nov 2022, 16:34 I decided to order a new silicone part from IPDUSA, $286.99 plus tax,

Ouch....

What brand is your smoke machine? Seems way more usable than burning rags.

You'll need to cut off the rubber grommet, but I believe you also have to file or dremel off the plastic lip of the PTC. Here's a before and after of mine. Just a thought, if during installation there's more dialogue on this, maybe a new thread for installing the turbo inlet hose would be in order, ...