Oil on top of engine

[Peter Palmer]

This is actually for a Dispatch engine but I think its identical to the Berlingo, 1.6 HDI.

Not bought the van yet but had a look at it to day, it feels slightly under powered and on opening the bonnet there is a bit of wet oil on the top half of the engine near the filler cap, there is also a bit of sludge rounf the flexi pipe that goes from the turbo to the intercooler, this pipe.



Is it a fair assumption that this pipe has a split in it? and would be quite an easy fix?

[polar]

The sludge in the pipe could be a sign of the turbo passing oil.

the oil round the filler cap - best to wash off the engine and see where it is coming from, could just be the cap

[GraemeT]

That pipe on mine was leaking a little slackening, reseating and retightening the jubilee clips fixed it. On the engine end, it connects to the throttle body (aka doseur) that can develop a leak from the joint (if you look carefully you can see that it has an upper and lower half that are clipped together and sealed with mastic). Some report success resealing the mastic - on mine I had to buy a secondhand replacement (£30) from eBay. Together this stopped the leak at that point.

[Quin]

Somebody could have just spilled it everywhere when topping up, but if theres more than a thin film of oil within that pipe... Avoid

[Gravity]

The two things you mention - down on power and oil leaking (possibly) from the turbo flexi pipe - go together. It is probable that your leak really is this pipe, either split or loose. This would account for a slight power loss.

Worth thoroughly checking before you buy. An easy fix, if this really is the cause.

[Peter Palmer]

From what I've seen in the past you always get a bit of oil in the intake pipe due to the breather system. I've had a few vehicles with this engine in and rubber pipes on the turbo have had splits in before, the sprayed oil in this van looks similar to what I've seen before.

I can't say its certainly down on power, It certainly feels slower than our Berlingo but the Dispatch is a bigger van however the Berlingos full of stuff, and it has a cheapo chip on it.

I've told the dealer about the hose and want to test drive it again if he fits a new one before buying it, the garage its come from does have a fair few bad reviews though.

[polar]

From what I've seen in the past you always get a bit of oil in the intake pipe due to the breather system. I've had a few vehicles with this engine in and rubber pipes on the turbo have had splits in before, the sprayed oil in this van looks similar to what I've seen before.

I can't say its certainly down on power, It certainly feels slower than our Berlingo but the Dispatch is a bigger van however the Berlingos full of stuff, and it has a cheapo chip on it.

I've told the dealer about the hose and want to test drive it again if he fits a new one before buying it, the garage its come from does have a fair few bad reviews though.

If a garage has bad reviews walk away - reviews are never an accurate way to tell if a trader is decent but i would walk away from this one. A decent trader would have sorted out any problems the van had before letting a customer any where near it.

[Gravity]

A decent trader would have sorted out any problems the van had before letting a customer any where near it.

Many traders nowadays do not thoroughly check and rectify any faults before sale. They save money and time by selling the vehicle and waiting to see if the customer picks up on any problems before rectifying them - hoping some faults will slip through the system unnoticed.