2.3 turbo woes

[OFG]

I have a ford 2.3 turbo that developes an oil leak when it gets warmed up to operating temp. When the leak starts, it also gets a vacume leak, and dies at every stop light unless I put it into neutral before it dies. Starts right up after it dies. Vacume leak only happens when engine is at operating temp or above, so I think the oil leak and vacume leak are def related. Anybody know where it might be happening on the engine?

 

[SVO]

The 2.3 is notorious for the rear main seal and valve cover leaking.

The rear main is one piece, but of course you have to remove the tranny and clutch/flywheel assy to get at it.

The valvecove needs the rubber gasket not the cork, becarful as you can rip it as you install it.

Check the oil seperator on the top of the back of the valve cover, and the one on the side of the block under the lower intake manifold, with a hose going to the PCV valve located between the block and distributor.


Holla if you need any other help.


P.S. I wanna see pics of your ride.

 

[OFG]

Thanks for the info. I have done the valve cover twice now because thats what I thought it was. I cant tell if it may be leaking out the very back, where I cant see. Dosent look like it, but I dunno. I will check the oil seperaters like you mentioned. The car is a 1986 merkur xr4ti, third I have owned, and only one to ever have this problem.

 

[SVO]

Thanks for the info. I have done the valve cover twice now because thats what I thought it was. I cant tell if it may be leaking out the very back, where I cant see. Dosent look like it, but I dunno. I will check the oil seperaters like you mentioned. The car is a 1986 merkur xr4ti, third I have owned, and only one to ever have this problem.

Don't forget to check the oil pressure sending unit on the back of the head on the driver's side, though if you have owned that many XR's then you prolly know where it is, also are you sure under boost it's not pushing it out of the oil dip stick tube, high milage 2.3's with large amounts of boost will do that too.


P.S. I used to run a company of my own when I lived in Columbus, Ohio selling parts for the Merkur's, here's a couple of pics of my XR, Scorpio and SVO at the autocross with the United Ford Owner's at Powell Speedway.
Note my 86' XR had no factory sun roof.

 

[OFG]

Is there any way it could be the head gasket leaking? The head gasket blew out last year, so I had to let the car sit a few months before fixing it. Im thinking that the head wasnt resurfaced just right and now mabey it gets tweaked slightly when the engine gets hot. Man, I just cannot find this leak. Nice pics of cool fords! Im trying to build up this stock 2.3 xr to compete in local drag races against other imports, but this oil leak thing is pushing me closer to 5.0 swap, or possibly a dohc 4.6.No factory sunroof on my current xr either, my first and second ones had it though. A friend of mine had an xr with no sunroof, no power locks, no power windows, 5 spd. I have heard it may have been some sort of limited production competition special.

 

[SVO]

99.9% of the time they will never leak between the head na dblock, when they blow they usually burn the gasket between the cylinders, not on the outside of the gasket.

Any XR with no pwr or sun roof is a low number car, almost all of them came loaded, BTW I still have some really nice, like new sales brocures and all the L&M micro fisch.