Oil on top of valves?

renegade420 · Post by **renegade420** » 19 Nov 2021, 22:40

2005 s60r. So I found an oil leak on timing cover side down by the control arm. Was thinking cam seals. So I did cam seals and timing. Everything runs fine but after returning from a short drive I saw more oil in the same spot as before so it wasnt the cam seals. Now im leaning towards crank seal. But while removing the intake manifold (so i can get to the starter to remove it so i can use the crank lock tool), I noticed that inside cylinder # 2 was about a teaspoons worth of oil sitting on top of the valves. Any idea what could cause this?

TisMe · Post by **TisMe** » 19 Nov 2021, 23:00

From what I've gathered, 99% of the time oil on your valve cover is this. If you had a car with a valve cover gasket then the gasket itself would be the likely culprit, yet our trusty P2s seem to accumulate oil on the head from a crusty oil cap seal. As far as I'm aware, there is no other source on these engines.

My head looked like a war zone when I pulled the beauty cover. After replacing the cap seal, I finally believed my meticulous dabbing and scrubbing had been worth it.

renegade420 · Post by **renegade420** » 20 Nov 2021, 01:17

TisMe wrote: ↑19 Nov 2021, 23:00 From what I've gathered, 99% of the time oil on your valve cover is this. If you had a car with a valve cover gasket then the gasket itself would be the likely culprit, yet our trusty P2s seem to accumulate oil on the head from a crusty oil cap seal. As far as I'm aware, there is no other source on these engines.

My head looked like a war zone when I pulled the beauty cover. After replacing the cap seal, I finally believed my meticulous dabbing and scrubbing had been worth it.

This is where I found the oil. (picture used for reference, not my car). Could that still be caused by the oil cap seal?

csh · Post by **csh** » 20 Nov 2021, 05:11

I think that TisMe right about the oil cap seal. The oil was probably on top of the intake before you removed it and ran down into the head when you removed the intake. Check your oil cap seal and you will probably find that it has split and oil is leaking down from there. If there was that much oil getting in there during normal operation then you would probably see smoke out of the exhaust.

Has the PCV system ever been serviced? If not, now is the time. A clogged PCV system can cause the cam and crank seals to leak. Since you have the intake removed, now would be a great time to take care of the PCV system because removing the intake is probably the hardest part of that job. I recommend watching the video the FCP has for the PCV system service if you decide to do it.

Post by **abscate** » 20 Nov 2021, 06:30

You want to sort out of that ran down or if you have bad stem seals. Oil on the intake valves will smoke a bit, oil on the exhaust will burn on, carbon, up, stop the valve sealing and heat transfer, and then you get this......oooooof.

Post by **SuperHerman** » 20 Nov 2021, 20:40

Abscate brings up a valid concern - valve stem seals.

Examine the valves to see if you have excess oil build up on the valves. The picture shows a shinny valve top which points to no.

The best course without pulling the head is to shove a camera down the cylinder via the spark plug hole. With a mirror on the end, you should be able to see the top (or bottom of the valves).

A leak down test will also provide information, with the manifold off you will be able to hear the leak.

renegade420 · Post by **renegade420** » 20 Nov 2021, 20:59

Thank you all for the replies. I'm think you all might be right about the fact that the oil dripped down while removing the intake because the valves have no build up and I have never seen smoke out the exhaust. As far as the massive oil leak i have at the bottom near the timing cover, are the crank shaft seals and/or oil pump seals known to go bad pretty easy? because it happened out of no where.

TisMe · Post by **TisMe** » 20 Nov 2021, 21:22

renegade420 wrote: ↑20 Nov 2021, 20:59 are the crank shaft seals and/or oil pump seals known to go bad pretty easy? because it happened out of no where.

"Easy" is perhaps a matter of interpretation, it's certainly not uncommon right now with our cars hitting two decades. Since you did your cam seals, oil around your belt housing should likely (100%??) be your crank seal. I'd say it can happen at the drop of a hat with no obvious prior warning; once the final pinhole is sealed with gunky oil, your engine is no longer breathing through its natural lung.

Perhaps before you (or preferably simultaneously) replace the crank seal, investigate your PCV. Pretty sure a clogged turbo hose/oil trap/oil pan vent chimney is the only thing that will ever push out cam/crank seals. Whichever pushes out first is the weakest, crackliest link. Be happy your main seal is good and go from here

Use a rubber band to wrap a surgical glove around your oil input, crank the engine, and apply gas. If the glove expands, you have backpressure in your crankcase which, as you guessed, escaped through your engine seals until one was finally pushed out. Better info on the glove test is one search away.

This is worth watching.

Much shorter synopsis on the workings of the PCV.

When I discovered the PCV, I replaced the system and then I moved to solve my massive oil leak. Didn't want to waste the time I did on my seals.