2003 S60 2.4T FWD engine oil leak

[nicholaicascio]

My car is at about 95,000 miles and has suffered from a sudden onset oil leak. It's a pretty decent leak coming from the front of the engine block. I've attached some photos with captions, let me know if you have any questions.

My question is: where does this appear to be coming from? How much should I expect to shell out for this (I reside in the pacific northwest of the USA)?

Thanks in advance for your help!

-Nick

[abscate]

Probably a cam seal.

3 hours labor, $5 part

[vtl]

Fixing the problem (clogged PCV) is more intense, both in $$$ and time.

[nicholaicascio]

So if I'm paying someone to go through the PCV and the cam seals, should I get the timing belt done in the same go, or wait another 10k? Just wondering your recommendation.

[vtl]

Makes sense to do it now.

[abscate]

You aren’t due on miles until 120k, that could be 5 years away. Look at your usage

I would put a new belt on but not replace the other parts until due if it’s 5 years out

Do the glove test to see if the crankcase PCV needs service

[vtl]

I would put a new belt on but not replace the other parts until due if it’s 5 years out

When the belt snaps, it's usually not the belt, but the belt tensioner. Industry came up with a real good belts 10-15 years ago, in fact they can last longer than timing chains if everything else works properly.

[abscate]

I would put a new belt on but not replace the other parts until due if it’s 5 years out

When the belt snaps, it's usually not the belt, but the belt tensioner. Industry came up with a real good belts 10-15 years ago, in fact they can last longer than timing chains if everything else works properly.

Indeed. That also supports the thesis, supported by data, that timing fails on miles, not on time.

That’s repeated enough here to become official MVSlore (tm)

[nicholaicascio]

I could be wrong - I was under the impression that this car had a 105k service interval for the timing belt. Granted, I'm still a ways off of hitting that number because I do not put a lot of miles on the car yearly.

It might be best to crack open the timing cover and see where exactly we are leaking from before deciding if the whole belt should be serviced at the same time. But, I figured if the cam gears need to be removed we are basically already doing the timing job at that rate.

[nicholaicascio]

So I got the car into the shop today. We looked under the timing cover and didn't see any oil, the cam seals are dry. It looks like it's coming from the head gasket. Oof!