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jehlan
Samba Member
Joined: April 02, 2007
Posts: 34
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 Posted: Thu Sep 25, 2025 10:21 am Post subject: Guess that oil Leak! |
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Yes all Vw's leak!
In these photos I guess the leak is the oil cooler? Not sure.
leak
In these photos is the leak the oil cooler? If so not easily fixed! |
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Heiferman
Samba Member
Joined: February 28, 2024
Posts: 413
Location: Georgia, USA
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| Posted: Thu Sep 25, 2025 8:04 pm Post subject: Re: Guess that oil Leak! |
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#1 is easy. Pushrod tubes.
#2? That is where my worn out 1600 sprayed oil when the crank seal was going and I needed a rebuild.
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- 1973 Thing, 1970 Ghia, some LandCruisers and an old Ambulance |
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jehlan
Samba Member
Joined: April 02, 2007
Posts: 34
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| Posted: Tue Sep 30, 2025 6:29 am Post subject: Re: Guess that oil Leak! |
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How could a crank seal spray up there? Thought it would stay in the trans clutch housing.
I am figuring cylinder seal leak or someone saying...oh your oil cap is loose!! haha
E
Only one reply? I guess we are heading to REDDIT nowadays? Is that the most common classic VW place?
I don't know how to post well maybe just regular Beetle forum here? I see I got 82 views so far but only one idea.
Thanks All! |
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SilverThing 
Samba Member
Joined: July 19, 2004
Posts: 850
Location: Everett
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| Posted: Tue Sep 30, 2025 7:54 pm Post subject: Re: Guess that oil Leak! |
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It seems like the discussions are slowing here in the 181 forum specifically and I am sorry that there hasn't been much discussion on your issue. I suspect folks are going elsewhere (facebook?), if they are even still posting online. I'm doing my best to try and be more active on the forums here, but sometimes I miss posts or I don't really have anything to contribute.
I've had similar oil build up on both my Thing's and bug's engine. Both engines had flywheel oil seal leaks. My bug went almost 50 years and over 150k miles on the original oil seal before it started leaking and I replaced it (also replaced the original vw marked and dated clutch at that time lol). At the time, I suspected that my oil cooler seals or oil cooler themselves were leaking, but didn't find any evidence when I had the engines out and took the fanshrouds off.
In my case, I suspect that the seal didn't so much as spray up there, but the flywheel slung the oil up there.
_________________
"I like how everyone likes talking about Zeke's Thing yet he's the only one that's ever seen it." - Katie
"I've seen pictures..." - Jeremy |
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lqqkatjon
Samba Member
Joined: July 02, 2013
Posts: 76
Location: St. Cloud, MN
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| Posted: Wed Oct 01, 2025 5:30 am Post subject: Re: Guess that oil Leak! |
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I have no idea... so I was not going to reply.
Oil leaks are really hard to identify in person. much less with a photo. |
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jehlan
Samba Member
Joined: April 02, 2007
Posts: 34
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| Posted: Wed Oct 01, 2025 9:37 am Post subject: Re: Guess that oil Leak! |
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but a leak at the fly wheel oil seal would stay in the 'bell housing' with the flywheel and clutch. Wouldn't that even get oil on your clutch and cause slippage?
how does the oil get out of this housing and onto the top of the engine?
I hate to pull the engine for just a leak without even knowing kinda where.
Re hard to guess with just photos:
This leak is only on right passenger side, wouldn't that exclude the oil cooler and therefore only could be cylinder oil leak number 2 cylinder?
thanks all! |
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lqqkatjon
Samba Member
Joined: July 02, 2013
Posts: 76
Location: St. Cloud, MN
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| Posted: Wed Oct 01, 2025 11:25 am Post subject: Re: Guess that oil Leak! |
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| jehlan wrote: |
but a leak at the fly wheel oil seal would stay in the 'bell housing' with the flywheel and clutch. Wouldn't that even get oil on your clutch and cause slippage?
how does the oil get out of this housing and onto the top of the engine?
I hate to pull the engine for just a leak without even knowing kinda where.
Re hard to guess with just photos:
This leak is only on right passenger side, wouldn't that exclude the oil cooler and therefore only could be cylinder oil leak number 2 cylinder?
thanks all! |
usually a rear main oil seal leak or leak in the bell housing would be on the ground out the back of the engine. they can soak the clutch and cause slippage, but my experience has been it takes ALOT of oil and time to really cause slippage issues that get noticed.
oil cooler technically should be drivers rear area. and bigger mess on the driver side of engine. or cooling fan.
oil can naturally drip down the inside of that metal tube and drip to ground. technically the internal engine compartment should be under a vacuum condition(air sucked in from the fan), so it could be sucking a little oil up from under the tin...
that is all specualtion.... if you look at my garage floor, you can tell i don't know shit about really stopping oil leaks!
as far as engine removal?? that is really not hard to do, but even with engine out, you may not understand exactly where that oil is coming from.
you can also try a UV die to trace the oil sources. |
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74 Thing
Samba Member
Joined: September 02, 2004
Posts: 7681
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| Posted: Wed Oct 01, 2025 2:51 pm Post subject: Re: Guess that oil Leak! |
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It looks like it is coming from above from the oil filler connection to the alternator stand area.
You need to clean everything first. Then take some white foot powder spray and spray above and below. You will see where it is coming from then. |
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SilverThing
Samba Member
Joined: July 19, 2004
Posts: 850
Location: Everett
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| Posted: Wed Oct 01, 2025 7:53 pm Post subject: Re: Guess that oil Leak! |
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You might also check the oil breather hose that connects the oil filler to the air cleaner. I forgot about it until just now, but I had a crack in that hose years ago that made a mess that was hard to trace. Yours has a hose clamp on it, which might indicate that the hose is the wrong size.
I've also spilled oil when refilling (oil change) all over that area before by being impatient...
_________________
"I like how everyone likes talking about Zeke's Thing yet he's the only one that's ever seen it." - Katie
"I've seen pictures..." - Jeremy |
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Heiferman
Samba Member
Joined: February 28, 2024
Posts: 413
Location: Georgia, USA
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| Posted: Thu Oct 02, 2025 6:09 am Post subject: Re: Guess that oil Leak! |
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| jehlan wrote: |
How could a crank seal spray up there? Thought it would stay in the trans clutch housing.
Thanks All! |
There is no physical rubber seal. Mine was seaping where the crank comes through the rear of the engine behind the pulley due to bearing wear. If you grasped the pulley you could move it ever so slightly up and down, in and out.
When I have engine specific questions I have gone outside the 181 section where there is more traffic.
Maybe I am missing the boat but I don't reddit and I mostly avoid Facebook for tech because nobody reads the threads so there is never any real discussion.
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- 1973 Thing, 1970 Ghia, some LandCruisers and an old Ambulance |
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Wildthings
Samba Member
Joined: March 13, 2005
Posts: 52725
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| Posted: Fri Nov 28, 2025 8:13 am Post subject: Re: Guess that oil Leak! |
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| How much oil are you leaking? Most vehicles of this vintage would have been oozing some oil as they drove off of the dealer's lot. Having an engine that stayed dry for a long'ish time was quite uncommon. Prior to 1975 there was literally a build up of oil in the center of each lane on the highways from all the drips. If you only get an occasional drop on the ground maybe lay cardboard down or get one of those shallow "drip" pans that are sold for this purpose. |
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