Possible Oil Leak?

[Kheadley]

I opened my hood for the first time after a few thousand km since my last oil change, noticed some oil. There is a possibility that it could be from the oil change because I didn't do it this time, but if that's not the case judging from where the oil is what would the leak be from? Yes I know I have a dirty engine bay.

[1and1]

Looks like they dripped some oil from the filter during removal, gave the mess a fast wipe with the closest rag, and moved on... gaaaahh, I hate oil change places....

I'd suggest cleaning things up and monitoring for a bit to be safe, but no worries I think.

[TurboTom]

Agreed with 1and1, but just to be safe check the underside of your oil filter housing. OFHG leaks are very common for us. It can leak onto a pulley and cause all kinds of messes.

[ShocknAwe]

Yeah looks like spilled and sloppily mopped up oil. Look at the excess in the recesses by the filter cap. Doesn't look like burned residue. Other note is possible coolant dried up on the CP. White residue.

[Kheadley]

Thanks, I already cleaned it and am monitoring, I also read a thread about how it's easy to improperly install the O-rings for the filter. If it does indeed leak ill change the filter first before calling it an ofhg leak.

[Kheadley]

It's definitely leaking, ill try change the oil and hopefully it's just the actual oil filter.

[Dackelone]

Time to break out some "brake cleaner" and hose down that area. Probably due to a sloppy last oil change. When you remove the oil filter cap... use a flash light from inside to out... so check for any cracks in the plastic cover. Oil filter housing(OFH) gasket leaks usually leak downwards.


Looking at your last photo... Are you sure you don't have a boost leak ? Can you check for codes? The hose clamp on your CP looks suspicious to me.

Dack

[Kheadley]

I already concluded it was an ofgh leak, oil leakage got really bad in the last day and im halfway through it. Spilled some oil on the belts below, should I replace them or clean them?

[Gizmo135i]

Originally Posted by Kheadley

I already concluded it was an ofgh leak, oil leakage got really bad in the last day and im halfway through it. Spilled some oil on the belts below, should I replace them or clean them?

Replace the belt! Any oil on it will deteriorate the rubber. It’s becoming more and more common as these engines become older for the belt to slip off and cause thousands in damage.

Also make sure you use a BMW or Mahle oil filter. They are only like 5 bucks more then the cheap garbage aftermarket ones, but if you compare are much higher quality and hold up better. I can’t tell you how many cars come into the shop with vanos faults, howling noises, oil leaks, etc., with a oil change sticker from a quick lube place in the windshield. Some of the aftermarket ones (even “name brand”) have low quality o-rings that start to leak. Even worse sometimes the filter material itself doesn’t hold up, becomes all twisted/scrunched up, and causes oil pressure fluctuations which can cause vanos problems.

[Kheadley]

All was going well during my ofhg change , but one of the intake manifold bolt heads broke. It's sticking out an inch but I cant get my vice grips on it. Feels bad

[TurboTom]

Originally Posted by Kheadley

All was going well during my ofhg change , but one of the intake manifold bolt heads broke. It's sticking out an inch but I cant get my vice grips on it. Feels bad

That sucks! Have you closed it up yet, or resolved it? Those studs are thin, not sure if a bolt extractor would be feasible.

I have a terrible idea as a last resort but I'm going to hold off on sharing unless you really want to hear it LOL.

P.S. Inspect your belts while you're in there. Looks like little splatters of oil around the CP which indicates oil may have gotten onto a belt and been flung off. Oil on the belts can lead to early deterioration and cause bigger issues. When I had my OFHG leak I replaced belts and coolant lines for that reason.

[Kheadley]

Originally Posted by TurboTom

That sucks! Have you closed it up yet, or resolved it? Those studs are thin, not sure if a bolt extractor would be feasible.

I have a terrible idea as a last resort but I'm going to hold off on sharing unless you really want to hear it LOL.

P.S. Inspect your belts while you're in there. Looks like little splatters of oil around the CP which indicates oil may have gotten onto a belt and been flung off. Oil on the belts can lead to early deterioration and cause bigger issues. When I had my OFHG leak I replaced belts and coolant lines for that reason.

I got everything off eventually and the gasket was absolutely mangled. I'm going to wait until my belt and oil cooler gasket arrive before I put it back together.

I see a lot of oil spilled when I was taking the ofh off and it's sitting in the bottom tray. So I need to somehow drain that without making a mess. Thanks for the help and suggestions.

Why did you replace the coolant lines?

[TurboTom]

Originally Posted by Kheadley

I got everything off eventually and the gasket was absolutely mangled. I'm going to wait until my belt and oil cooler gasket arrive before I put it back together.

I see a lot of oil spilled when I was taking the ofh off and it's sitting in the bottom tray. So I need to somehow drain that without making a mess. Thanks for the help and suggestions.

Why did you replace the coolant lines?

Oil dripped from my OFHG onto a belt. That flung it everywhere including a few coolant lines. Figured better safe than sorry.

I would definitely take the tray off and thoroughly clean it with simple green or something like it. I'd just put cardboard down under the car to contain the mess before I took the tray off.

[Kheadley]

According to bmw the proper procedure to prime the oil system is too crank without the fuel injector wiring plugged in. Is there a diy for that?

[TurboTom]

Below is the info from the SIB related to priming the system. I know it doesn't answer your question, but it gives direction to split the 30 second dry crank into 3 sessions. Probably valuable info.

https://www.e90post.com/forums/showp...66&postcount=3

I could be wrong, I've never done it myself, but I think you can just unplug the electrical connections directly from the injectors; Carefully with a flat head screwdriver to pry the clip up. Third photo in the below post:

https://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=651538

[Kheadley]

Finished the job, I didn't end up doing that procedure but I primed the oil filter and poured oil in the housing. Runs really good, no more leaks.

[NorthernDancer]

OK, you posted in the 135 engine section but your name indicates a 128. Replacing an OFHG on a 128 is very simple but oil needs to be drained. And, if I remember correctly, you need the ECS Tuning ¼ universal with E10 socket [UJET410] to access 1 bolt-otherwise intake manifold need be removed.

OK, I now see we're talking 135.

[Kheadley]

Used to have a 128i, I have a 2013 135i now