Oil leak - timing chain cover
 

Hello, recently I noticed very small oil leak from under the timing chain cover, on the front, bottom, passenger side. It seems like it sips from under the seal, right above Tomei header (ceramic coated).
Few questions:
- Can it be caused by heat from the header pipe?
- Is it possible to re-seal the cover without pulling the engine?
- What's the risk of running car with such a leak.

Thank you!

Well,

* the heat from the unshielded header could cause the sealant to overheat and allow a leak.

* I understand that successfully resealing the timing chain cover is tough enough with the engine out of the car ...... so, no, I don't think so.

* It shouldn't hurt running the car with a minor oil seepage ....... as long as it doesn't run low on oil.

This appears to be a relatively common issue ...... many threads cover the subject for your reference.

@Tcoat may be along to list them .......:D

What would I do?

First I'd clean up the area of the leak and confirm that there is in fact a leak.

Then, I would torque the bolts down on the cover on that side.

Of course, if your car is still under warranty ....... you could take your chances with a dealer.

OR, you could go with the "realistic for me" humfrz plan:

Take the car up to my buddies at the local auto shop, ask them to put it up on a hoist, clean up the area, check for a leak and make a recommendation.


humfrz

Front timing cover. Get it resealed by the dealer as it is a warranty item.

It's not from heat. You could do it without pulling the motor but the risk of doing a poor job is greater. And, there is no risk but you really just junk up the bottom of the car over time.

-alex

I literally just got my car warrantied for a leak at the bottom of the timing chain cover, yesterday. I'm at 87000Km. It turned out to be a cracked o-ring - apparently a defect. Part has been updated, also they use a new sealant. So we'll how long it holds. My oil leak was mostly sweat, but started to drip onto the header and burn off, thus creating a brutal smell. That's my two cents.