Jamison182

Hey. The car has had a steady and medium sized oil leak since i bought the car. I thought I fixed the problem a few weeks ago, but I guess it wasn't the problem.
There is a steady drip which comes from the passger side, underneath what looks like either the oil/feed return system, or the turbo or manifold. It drips about 1 drop of oil evry 3 seconds or so while running. As you can see, the oil drip off to the right side, then collects by that frame support/joint.(rubber cirular part.). Ive tried power spraying the undercarriage and area that had lots of oil, to see where it was coming from, however no such luck. I dont have very high jack stands. I took off the intake pipe and box to free up some work space, also the turbo does have some shaft play, wondering if that could be related......
The car also idle surges about 300 to 400 rpm, Im not sure if these 2 problems could be related, but also the TPS was replaced not long ago. It was replaced by the previous owner, so I know nothing about it. Ive read to try and spray brake cleaner to find vac leaks, maybe ill try that. Any help and advice would be awesome....Thanks!

this is where most of the oil collects and drips from, the frame and turbo/manifold area.



This is a shot from the engine bay looking down at the oil feed/return system I assume....Theres plenty of oil around this are also.


This is a close up of the same area....Keep in mind I cant see oil actually bubbling or soming from any visable spots here, but there is alot of oil here, so the problem is either here, or nearby.

I was also thinking it could be a cracked turbo exhaust housing. Since I cant really hear the turbo spool, basically at all. The car builds boost however. Could the oil possibly come out the wastegate????

Thanks again for any help!!

David Beale

What you are looking at (with the four oil lines) is the oil injection pump. Most oil leaks occur at one of two places:
1. Most common is the engine mounts as there is a bolt that goes through the oil pan. These ususally don't leak very much when the engine is not running.
2. Its a little less common, but after working on the turbos, sometimes the turbo oil line fittings aren't tightened properly.

It is possible one of the oil injection lines has cracked. They get hard with age. The oil in them is not pressurized. You can visually inspect them, but you have to remove a lot of stuff up top.

In your case I'd check the turbo oil lines first. There is a supply line and a larger return line. Hard to see them. Don't confuse them with the turbo coolant lines. A shop manual would be a good thing. Find one at: www.iluvmyrx7.com

Jamison182

thanks for the tips man. Im gonna check out that engine mount bolt, cause it looks like that might be the problem cause it doesn't leak oil until the car is at running temp, and then it only leaks for a minute or 2 after i shut it off.