oil seepage problem?

I just bought a 2000 SEL from private party. Somehow I missed the oil seepage on the metal part under the plastic plenum during inspection. Would that be the upper intake manifold seeping? Is this going to cause me problems in the short term? I'm hoping to take a long trip very shortly. Is this going to develop into the 171 and 174 code problem? I will get it fixed, but I really want to know if it's okay to take a 1000 mile trip. Other than that there's no check engine light, no driveability issues. Gas mileage seems inline with EPA estimates so far, power is good. I have not changed oil so I do not know how much oil is seeped between changes. Thanks.
andy

You're likely talking about the issues dealt with in the leckemby.net procedure, mentioned many times on this forum.

The PCV results in excess oil in the intake plenum. Personally, I haven't seen this result in oil visible from the outside of the intake manifold. Is the oil fresh? Is there very much there? Actually, I'd more suspect a seeping valve cover gasket.

For the moment, I wouldn't worry about it if you've got no Check Engine light or drivability issues. My 2000 had problems with the isolator bolts - but it first manifested itself as pinging (I never got a check engine light for the 171/174 problem; pinging went away after I did the leckemby.net fix). I could have kept driving it for quite awhile, but got tired of needing high test gas or octane booster to get rid of the pinging.

A guy at work looked at it and said it's nothing. It's over a pretty large area, but is fairly dry, so he thinks. I trust him on car matters. He said an engine can go a long time while burning/seeping oil without any damage. Just keep an eye on the oil level. After my trip I'll get the leckemby.net fix done.

Isn't the valve cover the shiny part staring at you when you open the hood with the PCV attached (and the back one)? It's certainly not leaking from there. The machined surface below it is still shiny. The leaks is coming from under the plenum.

Is your *front* valve cover a *shiny silver color* and the back one painted *black*?

If so, the leckemby.net fix has probably already been done on your van. Part of the TSB involves replacing only the front valve cover with an updated design. The original valve covers are painted black; the updated version for the front is an unpainted casting, and is a shiny silver color when new (i.e., before it gets dirty).

Please verify your valve cover (take a look at pictures in the leckemby.net procedure). For reference, note that the valve cover is also where the oil fill cap screws in.

Yup, my engine looks like leckemby's. Silver valve cover where the oil cap and PCV valve go. I did not look at the back one. If what you say is true then I'm good to go as far as the isobolts. I guess I'll clean the leaking area off and watch for new leaks. Thanks for your input phil-l.

Good news. Don't worry about the back cover - it isn't replaced or even removed as part of the TSB work.

I'm please it has all worked out well for you.

Drove 1000 miles on my trip and no problems. Of course the oil seepage is still there so I still have to figure out where it's coming from and if it's going to be a problem.

If someone has already done the intake manifold isolator bolt replacement, and you have some oil seepage: it's possible one of the molded gaskets is a bit out of place.

It wouldn't take many hours to redo the whole procedure, and this way you could make sure the latest design (green plastic) bolts were used as well as make sure the other gaskets are all in good shape.