Date:         Mon, 27 Dec 2004 10:48:20 -0500
Reply-To:     William Greenamyer <william.l.greenamyer@BOEING.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         William Greenamyer <william.l.greenamyer@BOEING.COM>
Subject:      Oil leaks from tower and air intake

Hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and wishing everyone a Happy New Year.

It seems that the tower on the 1.9 in my 84 Vanagon is weaping a little oil.
 I thought it might be from the breather hose from the top over to the air
intake tube but it doesn't really look like it is the hose.  It is
characteristic for these towers to accumulate oil on the outside and if not,
is it usually some kind of crack that is at the cause?

Second item is oil leaking from the air intake tube in front of the
throttle.  Most of the time, the van is running between 65 and 80MPH when I
am driving.  I can put 750 miles on the van a week.  This amounts to a lot
of breather vapors which would seem to have oil mist.  This I understand.
The engine is supposed to take this in and burn it.  The van is running
clean (smog wise it passes) but my guess is that there could be a crack in
the intake tube that is letting the oil leak out.  Problem is that I don't
seem to have a vacuum leak.  One other thing.  Between the air filter box,
AMF, air intake tube and the throttle it doesn't seem to align perfectly.
The intake tube (hard rubber) seems to be a little pulled back.  I think
this is because the filter box mounts in a support and is clamped to the
side of the engine bay and the engine might not be perfectly centered in the
bay somehow.

I am looking for any ideas on what normally occurs with respect to the tower
and the intake tube and if these are due to be replaced or if there could be
some other problem.  I am trying to eliminate some of the visible oil leak
points so I can trace down some other oil leaks that maybe are being covered
up by these from the top of the engine.

William