Help identify oil leaks? (pics inside)

[darkcolor.666]

Cool. I see eBay sells the kit for about $15 to $20. May go for that.

[darkcolor.666]

so just an update. i left my car inside the garage for about 2 weeks, not driving it, because i was out of town. i came back and see this on the cardboard i left under the car before i left for vacation. does this look like a bad valve cover gasket that can cause this?

[darkcolor.666]

bump for help?

[dnguyen1963]

I know it is frustrating, but only you can see the engine. Clean all of the spill as much as you can. Go get some UV dye (and lamp) and add to the oil. Drive around for about 1/2 hour then shine the UV lamp on your engine. You should be able to see where the "new" leaks are coming from.

[theBAYsics]

check the oil control valve gasket and other areas on the oil filter housing.

[darkcolor.666]

You can get a VCG (and the blind plugs) from your local BMW dealer or try an online place like Pelican Parts. It should take under an hour to replace.

See: http://www.pelicanparts.com/bmw/cata..._pg1.htm#item0

As for degreasing:

(1) warm your engine a little
(2) spray lots of something like purple power or simple green all over the oily spots
(3) use a scrub brush as needed
(4) hose down (try avoid spraying electrical components or simply cover them with saran wrap)
(5) repeat as necessary until clean

EDIT: Rocker shaft plug part no: 11-33-1-264-519-M17 (you will need four of them)

see: http://www.pelicanparts.com/cgi-bin/...FILTER_TOOL=ON

Good luck.

thanks, i was able to find a 'kit' from ebay that includes the VGC and the 4 Rocker Shaft plug. But I cant find any kits that includes the Valve Cover Bolt Seal. I m assuming i should replace these too right (15 of them)?

Am i missing anything else? (the valve gasket cover, the 4 rocker plug, and the 15 bolt seal).


edit: by the way, i was looking at pelicanparts.com and i saw a couple of choices for the cover, and there are 3 different ones:

-This brand has a hard waffle finish with a silicone bead ($7)
-This brand has a hard waffle finish without a silicone bead ($11)
-This brand has a soft waxy waffle finish without a silicone bead ($9.75)

which one should i get?

[darkcolor.666]

Help with my above message anyone please?

[lcoleman]

Your m20 doesn't have bolt seals. Don't buy parts from ebay unless they're name brand. Victor Reinz, Elring, Goetze, should all be fine.

[Skunkworks]

Check The oil filter adapter housing, I am guessing its the blow by valve. check realoem.com in the correct screen showing the oil filter adapter its part #7. That would be my bet....

[darkcolor.666]

Check The oil filter adapter housing, I am guessing its the blow by valve. check realoem.com in the correct screen showing the oil filter adapter its part #7. That would be my bet....

unfortunately i dont know which part you talking about

[darkcolor.666]

up

[darkcolor.666]

i jacked up the car and snapped a couple of pics that show some leaks. I replaced the valve gasket cover already

[lcoleman]

Could be rocker shaft plugs, cam seal, crank seal, head gasket...leaks are pretty much impossible to diagnose from pictures.

That looks like a really major leak, it should be obvious where it originates from.

[SlamedIAm]

The UV dye/lamp route is probably your best bet. The cleaner you can get it the easier it will be to find the origin. No one is going to be able to diagnose it from a picture you just need to get in there and start cleaning/looking.