[Vwdiesel] TDI oil leaks

[Shalyn Shourds]

I finally got the subframe out and the rack dropped on my '00 Jetta.  
This allowed me to take a good look at the back of the engine which is 
covered with oil, as is the inside surface of the skid plate (I put an 
aluminum one on the car).

One leak turned out to be where the air line goes into the 
turbocharger.  That probably has something to do with the oil all over 
where the pcv valve goes into the air intake line and then down to the 
turbo.  I'm going to guess that that's not a good sign.  That would 
indicate blowby, yes?  The short block has 280,000 mi. on it.  The 
head's got about 150,000 mi. on it.  I'm a little concerned that it's 
one of the aftermarket heads, but I don't know how to tell the 
difference and I'm not sure I want to.

The other, more prodigious leak is around the vacuum pump side of the 
head up by the valve cover.  Is there a way to replace the valve cover 
gasket in there?  The whole assembly appears to run $170 which is an 
amount that I refuse to pay for a 50¢ piece of rubber.  I'm thinking a 
bead of Permatex might be involved.....



-Shalyn