Oil leak behind bottom pulley (type 1)

I have a leak behind the bottom pulley (Type 1 engine). It might look woarse than what it is as the oil is getting flung around by the pulley. It has been getting progressively woarse over a period of time.

What could be coursing this and is it easily rectified?
If i keep an eye on the oil level can i still keep using the van?

There is no forward and rear movement in the pulley and from my understanding there is no actual seal behind the pulley but a spline that throws the oil back in the engine, not sure if this is correct though.
Not able to get the pulley off with the engine in situ as the bolt is so tight to get a decent look behind the pulley (and no i dont need to spend more time in the gym).

Hope this makes some sense

 

You're right - there's just an oil slinger behind the pulley.

Have you got excessive crankcase pressure? Aftermarket alt stand, or breather blocked off? If the pressure builds up, it can force oil out. Is the pulley stock?

 

What pulley do you have fitted? OG steel, new steel, or an ally one?

 

The pulley and alternator stand are all Stock. The breather pipe goes from the oil filler to the air filter (pancake one). The van was laid up over winter when i got it out in feb it leaked but very slightly now it is quite bad. I went out for a short drive of about 20 miles when i got back there was slight splatterings of oil up the back and there was quite alot of oil in the tinware of the pulley well and obviously where it had caught the pulley wheel it had splattered around like a chain saw massacre. I presume the splattering up the back is where the oil drained through the void in the tinware and was thrown up through the slip stream of the van.

 

Check the breather pipe itself isn't bunged up. Cold running mayonaise can readily block the pipe if its not draining through . It has to be said the air dynamics are not so good when the crankcase venting goes into a pancake filter...reduced venturi effect or so I'm told

 

Thanks for that info fritt, will check the breather pipe out. Apart from buying an original air filter is there a way i can combat this problem in the future if it is blocked?
Is it as simple as buying a breather box like in Birdy's product review and putting the breather pipe into this box, ,connecting two of the outlets to the rocker covers and then creating another hole for fuel breather pipe.
Trying to think of a solution( with my limited knowledge) to the problem at the same time as asking the question

 

Hello Again,
As above. Checked the engine again and got a breather box fitted (like Birdy's - Bug pack one) i am sure this is not the problem, as i have a single carb i connected one pipe to the original alt stand, two pipes to the rocker covers, connected fuel breather pipe as well. None of which are blocked. Still having the same problem.
It has an original bottom pulley. Paul Weeding
I don't have a gauge for engine pressure so not sure how to check snotty
Any advise of what it may be, causes or remedies will be appreciated, not using the van till Big Bang in a weeks time so have a little time to try and fix it.
Hopfully it will not be an engine out job

 

Have you checked to see what your end float is like?

 

Must admit not used any tools as i haven't any for checking end float.
By end float, Do you mean seeing if there is any excessive movement forwards and backwards at the bottom pulley. If so there is no movement in that region at all by mk1 feel

 

Yeah, simple check is just pushing then pulling on the bottom pulley...

What is the case pressure like... if you take the oil filler cap off and hold your hand over (not on) the filler there should be gentle pressure, but not a vast amount!!

 

Thanks, will check that.

 

Take the oil filler cap off, start the engine & stick your hand near the orifice. A "fluttering" is fine. A good chuffing out of the oil filler means you've got too much crankcase pressure (mebbe piston blow-by).

Another poss is that your vent hose from the stand is too narrow. Clean everything up, disconnect the breather box & go for a drive. No oil = obstructive bits.

 

I have been out to check the crank case pressure,

One thing i didn't mention is that i have an after market oil filler, it is one that is angled vertically with the breather pipe coming off horizontally. When i unscrew the cap the revs die, the second time i tried it the engine actually stalled, is this normal?..
When i do actually get the cap off and the engine still runs the pressure is slightly more than fluttering but not blowing a gale (it moves tissue paper to almost vertical).
How do i cure too much crankcase pressure? if this is the problem with the above info

 

Fact - the aftermarket filler has a minute breather hole in it. Less than 10 mm inside diameter. The standard breather pipe has about 20mm inside diameter.
Throw away the bling filler, fit an original filler and breather pipe and use an oil jug with a long flexible spout.

Easier to fill up and the oil stops blowing out the back or up the dipstick tube.
Happened to me. Fix worked for me.

When vw fitted breathers to the rocker covers in the Type3 engine the air went IN to the rockers and OUT from the main breather. So your rocker breathers might be partly the cause. Section 7.1 of my vw aircooled engine manual.

Try the fatter standard breather...

 

Does sound like your aftermarket stand is causing problems.

 

I'm on the look out for an original oil filler now, i don't want a reproduction one though.
The reason why i changed to this aftermarket one was because the jubilee clips on the manifold were touching the oil filler (put on by PO and i never noticed the problems), because the oil filler was thinner less robust metal the friction of the slight movement of the two differing metals caused a hole to form, so spitting oil out.
Thought change to this and all be good - how wrong i was.

Any way back to looking for a decent Original oil filler and cap

 

Will hopefully do the trick. The aftermarket ones really do restrict the passage of crankcase fumes. If they can't escape, they start chuffing out from behind the front pulley.

 

But it still shouldn't be chuffing like that, I think you may have more problems.
However, whichever way you look at it, escaping the aftermarket restricted breather is the first thing to do as you'll want to anyway.
If you can find one with the drip pipe that goes down through the tin near the dipstick, all the better.

 

Dam, just bought one without the drip pipe. I thought the ones with the drip pipe were for the older 1600 engines. The one i bought was advertised as the later model thought there may of been a difference

 

The drip one just has more blowing engine possibilities. It's supposed to drip condensed oil out the bottom, but this, I think, became frowned upon (if not technically illegal) and was probably superceded for that reason. A good thing to keep an eye out for, but a standard one is going to be far better than the typical billet ones. I have one on the coffee table in front of me, the breather hole can't be more than 6mm dia. I think the og is 12mm. Areawise that's a huge difference. approx 30 sq mm compared to over 100 sq mm