3.0t weird oil leak question.

[RetroAudi]

Hey all not really too familiar with the 3.0t engines but my father’s 3.0 keeps gathering oil in this empty hole in on the driver side valve cover near the back of the engine. Attaching pictures, valve cover gaskets have been replaced and it doesn’t appear to be the solenoid above it leaking. Any insight as to where the oil is coming from would be appreciated



Sent from my iPhone using Audizine Forum

[AANgry90q]

Possibilities of a sloppy oil filter change aside…. Clean/degrease area completely and run engine will confirm, likely oring on solenoid hardened/shrunk and weeping filling the cavity or valve cover gaskets have followed suit or both! (Suppose rare occurrence of a casting defect cannot be overlooked, that “hole” is a cavity for an exh cam adjuster on the 3.2L engines) Welcome to 3.0t things!


Sent from my iPhone using Audizine Forum

[STXA7]

Hey all not really too familiar with the 3.0t engines but my father’s 3.0 keeps gathering oil in this empty hole in on the driver side valve cover near the back of the engine. Attaching pictures, valve cover gaskets have been replaced and it doesn’t appear to be the solenoid above it leaking. Any insight as to where the oil is coming from would be appreciated



Sent from my iPhone using Audizine Forum

I have this exact issue where a small amount will puddle in the rear valve cover screw hole you picture . In my case there is an identical puddle on both left and right sides.

I noticed the entire engine block soaked as well as the alternator ( located under air intake ) while having test pipes installed. They redid the valve cover gaskets.

I thought that this would resolve the smell of cooked oil coming in through my AC when engine is at full temp.

After some googling I have concluded that the likely cause is o-ring on the variable valve timing thing that the cable pictured clips into. Apparently this is common on other models of VW/Audi and can be done with the engine in, probably need to remove the coolant reservoir and air intake to make it easier.

I’ve got a few pending items and will add this to the list.

I’ve tried washing off the oil with degreaser - water hose - air pressure hose to see if maybe it was just spilled from an oil change, but it returns consistently. My advice to any 3.0t owner is to get their vvt o ring refreshed to avoid burnt oil smell coming into AC, potential oil on driveway , and in worst case maybe it eventually starts a fire if there’s enough oil dripping into your block. I could see that happening if someone just keeps feeding it a quart every 1,000 miles for a few years.

Sent from my iPhone using Audizine Forum