Hi

Fiat panda 2006 1.1 petrol

I have had to top up engine oil a lot recently, and I've noticed a lot of oil at the seal between the air intake box and the engine breather. See pics. I'm assuming this is the problem as no other leaks evident top or bottom of engine.

I recently had head gasket replaced (twice in two years - shabby job first time, apparently), but no evidence of oil leaking there.

Have I identified the cause, and is this easy to fix? I'm no mechanic, but want to do it myself, if I can.

Thanks for any advice or tips.

Craig

In the 1980 s I had a fiat 131 and either the piston rings or bore was so worn combustion blow-by gasses were pressurising the oil so much it was comming up the breather pipe and passing into the carburettor,this may be your problem.

It does look like the crankcase breather is throwing oil out into the air intake.

Michael is correct, worn piston/s or bore/s can cause excess blowby that cause too much pressure in the crankcase, throwing the oil out.
You usually notice/smell exhaust gases from this breather pipe.

Though from what you write in regards to the head gasket, you still might not have cured this, as head gasket leaks can also lead to high crankcase pressure.

The shabby job might actually be damage to the head or block causing it to not fully seal.

Hi,

If you suspect back pressure seeping past your worn piston rings on the combustion

stroke, you could use the old school method. Have your engine at operating

temperature when oil is hot, then remove dipstick. If you see splatters of oil coming

out, its likely you have wear to some degree. Of course you could perform an

engine compression test, but not everyone would have the appropriate tools.

Dipstick removal is a quick test, but only that.

John.

Are you sure the small breather hose is secure. Is it just drops of oil accumulated over time rather than a major fault.

Mine use to loose oil. High mileage engine. But didn't when I changed to 5/40

Clean up the oil and see how long it lasts before it's oily again. It might not be a big problem.

Is the engine using oil? Does it use more oil at speed?

A compression tester is not costly and well worth doing. The biggest hassle will be getting to the park plugs to fit the test gauge.

Get the coolant checked for hydrocarbons. The coolant will be contaminated if there is still a problem.