And it was all going so well....

[mikep99]

Hi guys,

Had a productive couple of days...
Gave my leather a bit of treatment and they've come up quite well.
Installed a full set of LEDs in the interior so all looking good there.
Found that 1 of the exhaust flaps was stuck closed so manually opened it with a long screwdriver and bunged the vac hoses up. Sounds good, no problems there...

Then... got back from a short drive out and noticed oil on the road underneath my front bumper.. grrr....
Checked under the car and it seems to be coming down the offside side of the engine and onto the protective tray.
Could anybody let me know if they have any ideas as to where this is coming from?
I've had a look on the threads about the oil cooler & pipes - which side are the pipes located on?
Also, whereabouts is the sump plug? centre/nearside/offside etc...
I don't have any warning lights etc and the oil level is between min & half way..

Any help greatly appreciated...

IMG_20150830_172028.jpg

[audi_do_dat_den]

Check around the base of the shock absorber, its possibly a leak on the DRC hose connection.

[mikep99]

thanks for the suggestion, I'll get underneath the car tomorrow and have a good look around...

any more suggestions guys?

cheers

[Grandadg90]

Sump plug is more central. Yours is more nearside. Suggests to me oil cooler pipe, corrosion on long oil cooler pipe.

Solution, possible new oil cooler and definitely new pipes, if one has gone most likely other wont be far off.

[mikep99]

Thanks for your reply....

Yep, after doing more reading, it definitely looks like its the oil cooler / pipe...
I'll have a proper look tomorrow but have been looking at the options in the meantime - the Forge kit is looking favourite at the moment...

Thanks again

Mike

[Grandadg90]

You can get your cooler reconditioned, because when you take off your cooler pipes the thread will fail. Both threads can be redone, for around £100, then you will need two new oil cooler pipes. Pipes can be ordered from JHM or from ebay, or dealers. The JHM ones have thicker inner linings. I have a set if you require them, they are new.

[mikep99]

That's great, thanks!
I'll check the car tomorrow to make sure that's the problem and go from there..
I'll need to find somewhere local as well to redo the threads..
I'll update here accordingly..

Cheers
Mike

[Grandadg90]

The oil cooler is aluminium, so new threads will need to be welded on. Not sure where you are in the country but there is a chap in Doncaster who did mine. He is very good.

[mikep99]

I'm in the North West so not too far...
Leave it with me, see how I get on tomorrow...

Thanks
Mike

[MikeFish]

I had a loose sump plug after a service and the oil generally went towards the rear of the under tray from the wind when moving and ended up burning on the exhaust.

[mikep99]

If i found that it was just a loose sump plug, I'd be over the moon Mike!
But after checking earlier, it would appear that the oil is leaking down in between the back of the bumper and the protective tray. I'm thinking that would be too far forward for the sump plug...
I'll get the tray off tomorrow and hopefully it'll be obvious where its coming from.
Cheers
Mike

[Grandadg90]

You should be able to see the oil cooler connection by looking through the central lip spoiler. You can even get your finger through to see if there is any leakage.

[Grandadg90]

Oh and oil cooler repair willl be a bumper off job. Can quite easily be done at home. DIY.

[mikep99]

Thanks grandadg90 .. I was about to ask if it was a difficult job for a novice...
I've just had the tray off and as expected, its the oil cooler pipes that are corroded. See piccies..
Now to weigh up the options...

[mikep99]

Sorry chaps - would anybody be able to confirm that the pictures above confirm that this is a oil cooler pipe leak?
I just want to be 100% before pulling the trigger on a replacement kit...

Thanks is advance..

Mike