TheSamba.com :: View topic

Sun Nov 30, 2003 9:02 am

I have been chasing down mysterious oil leaks on my 78 Westy for months now. The most difficult one to solve kept pouring oil all over the inside of the engine compt. The lip of the fan was always full and the oil ran down the fan to the bottom of the housing, then leaked into the airstream to be deposited everywhere else. Of course to complicate things further, as the oil entered the fan housing, it was blown over the cylinders, which causes great difficulty in pinpointing the leak. Needless to say I've replaced just about every seal or gasket I thought was the cause (some more than once). After alot of thought I came to the conclusion that the oil had to be originating from inside the engine compt somewhere near the fan. So I put plastic bags around the Oil Filler and the Dipstick and sealed them off, then drove about 50mis. Sure enough there was about a teaspoon of oil in the bag around the dipstick. So I looked at a few motors laying around and they all seemed to have had a gasket in the little cupped area that contacts the dipstick tube. I bought a rubber grommet for .17 from True-Value, slid it into the cup, and drove to the families for the holiday. I have driven over 400mis and so far no oil leak. All this time and effort and the problem seems to have been fixed by $.17 I know this post is long, but this problem has been my nemisis and probably someone elses, so mabey this fix will work for you. BTW, I don't know if there was a gasket there from the factory, but I don't see how one hurts. I'll tell you something else: a teaspoon of oil every 50 or so miles adds up to one hell of a mess. Dave

Sun Nov 30, 2003 11:01 am

Yeah there was a factory "dipstick boot" that does produce leaks if cracked or just completely missing, glad you found and alleviated your oil leak! anthony

Sun Nov 30, 2003 3:23 pm

Yeah, I replaced the boot twice already (thanks to Mr. Bentley for illustrating the thing UPSIDE DOWN is his manual) but I am refering to the point where the dipstick and the shaft it slides into in the engine compt meet. Thanks, dave

Sun Nov 30, 2003 4:53 pm

farmersdahtr wrote:
I looked at a few motors laying around and they all seemed to have had a gasket in the little cupped area that contacts the dipstick tube.

Are you referring to the rubber grommet between the alternator cover and the dipstick tube, that oval job? Because the real dipstick boot is known as the "bellows" that goes between the metal dipstick jacket in the fan housing and the receiving end in the oil filler pipe. You can only see it underneath the car.
Colin

Sun Nov 30, 2003 10:50 pm

Pull your dipstick out. Now look at the collar just below the round curved handle. Inside that collar is the point where the dipstick seats into the dipstick tube. A seal like an O-Ring or a Grommet will fit nicely in there and may stop an oil leak that manifests itself in the following way: oil is deposited on the fan rim and surrounding tinware, and is leaking into the fan housing, blowing everywhere after that, then dripping on the ground from many points. My Bus did not have anything there when I got it, but I bet it left the factory with some kind of seal. I'm sure someone knows. Dave

Sun Nov 30, 2003 11:04 pm

The factory original does not have a rubber seal on the dipstick itself. Your oil blowing out has another source.
Colin

Mon Dec 01, 2003 3:47 am

If you have oil coming out the top of your dipstick tube then you must have some serious positive pressure inside your case. Your crankcase ventilation breather may be clogged or not hooked up properly. You may also need new rings if all the ventilation is in good order. Worn rings allow blow-by pressure inside the case and you will develop oil leaks from every orifice possible while getting rid of the excess pressure. Good luck.

Mon Dec 01, 2003 8:15 am

My friend has a 78 Westy just like mine, except his is a 1st place show winner. Whenever we want to see how the factory did something, we look at his bus. So I looked at his dipstick before I fixed mine and there was a gasket. That's what convinced me. Besides the other parts motors had disentigrated versions of the same, as did mine. BTW, I am sure I have other leaks, just none doing what this last one did, now my engine compt is dry. As for rings and pressure, I've thought that over many times, but would bad rings run excellent, smoke zero, and burn no oil? Not to mention good compression. The wierd thing about this is when you remove the oil fill cap and the dipstick and run the motor at full throtle, no oil comes out, at least while you are sitting back there. It only happens while driving.

Mon Dec 01, 2003 1:27 pm

I took a really close look at motor my friend has today. What he has appears to be some sort of sealent in the little cup. It is molded where the rim contacts, thereby sealing the mating surface. Whatever it is, it led me to figuring out my problem.

Mon Dec 01, 2003 2:18 pm

Here's a neat trick I learned after having the same problem. Use a rubber boot from a coil wire. Slide the narrow end over the tube and the dipstick cap will fit nicely inside the boots large end. Solved my problem.

Mon Dec 01, 2003 3:22 pm

That's cool, and all VW parts too. I suspect that alot of busses out there have the same leak, that's why I started this thread, to try and help some of those solve the problem without going through all the hassle and wrong turns that I did. Dave

Wed Dec 03, 2003 11:32 pm

farmersdahtr wrote: So I looked at his dipstick before I fixed mine and there was a gasket.
I came across a NOS dipstick. There's a little cord wrapped inside that seals.

Thu Dec 04, 2003 7:40 am

Thank you VERY MUCH! I was hoping that someone could verify the original gasket. Oil leaking from the dipstick does not indicate serious engine problems, it is a natural process that occurs with these motors. VW knew this and solved the problem with a gasket. This gasket, like all others, fails over time. When this happens, you can get a pretty good oil leak. Dave

Fri Dec 05, 2003 12:25 am

Here's the dipstick photo again showing what's supposed to be there.