Hi

i bought a 14 plate focus 1.6 tdci last month, the dealer said he had put clean mot on with all advisories done. It had advisory last year for " oil leak but not excessive " I've taken it in for a service today and the oil leak has not been fixed i have attached the photos the garage took of the leak, does anyone have any idea where it could be coming from ? any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

 

 

Hi,

This is a leaky engine, I wouldn't expect to see a totally dry one at this age, but yours does look particularly bad.

It's coming from high up at the rear of the engine but we can't see precisely where from on those pictures unfortunately.

If you can get any photo access from above that could help.  With that much oil I'd suspect the turbo drain, but that's on the front of this engine, so not the issue here.  Potentially cam carrier gasket, or even headgasket.

That auxiliary belt looks well worn too.  Do you have any evidence of a timing belt change?  That's overdue if not.

Hi 

Thanks for the reply there is no documentation that the timing belt having been done, this is a link to the report the garage sent me https://external.mycarsvhc.co.uk/tyrepros/18054921/17864909-f5b4-4e7f-ae95-23607ff6ba44

( Hope it works).

They seem to think the leak was coming from somewhere above the sump if that helps, the leak was an advisory on the 2024 mot. The mot station that did the test for the dealer i bought it from passed it with no advisories which is odd. I will try to get some pictures from above tomorrow and put them on here. I'm hoping it is nothing to expensive to sort as I doubt the warranty will cover the fault. 

 

You need to get the engine and chassis steam cleaned and then it will be much easier to spot where the leak is coming from.

Hi unofix

I figured I would need to get it steam cleaned,  i had to do the same on the golf I had a few years back turned out to be the timing chain cover on that one. I'm wondering if its a similar issue with this one as I doubt its been changed.

My 1.6 is leaking from the cam carrier... The back of the engine is covered in oil...

Photo three looks to me like it could be coming from the drain hole between the engine and gearbox. This is bad news as it means that the oil seal for the crankshaft or gearbox input shaft has failed.

These seals cost around £20. Unfortunately the entire gearbox has to be removed to replace them. This is around five hours work. Some garages may not even want to do this job. 

Wipe the drip of oil onto a piece of clean white tissue paper. Compare the colour and smell with oil from the dipstick. This will show whether it is engine or gearbox oil. 

I have had the same problem with a failed crankshaft seal. The leak looked exactly like this. It is surprising how far and high it can spread. 

I watched them put it on the lift and leave it idling with the front wheels raised so they could freely turn. 

They washed everything down with degreaser so it was completely dry. The drip appeared from there again within a few minutes. 

There could also be another leak elsewhere on the engine at the auxiliary belt end. 

12 hours ago, paula dawson said:

Hi unofix

I figured I would need to get it steam cleaned,  i had to do the same on the golf I had a few years back turned out to be the timing chain cover on that one. I'm wondering if its a similar issue with this one as I doubt its been changed.

This engine uses a dry timing belt, so there is no oil behind the cover and the cover itself is not sealed.

It could be coming from the crank seal, behind the crank pulley, which they will see when changing the timing belt.  But I don't think that will be the only leak in this case with so much spread.

38 minutes ago, TomsFocus said:

This engine uses a dry timing belt, so there is no oil behind the cover and the cover itself is not sealed.

It could be coming from the crank seal, behind the crank pulley, which they will see when changing the timing belt.  But I don't think that will be the only leak in this case with so much spread.

I've managed to get some photos from above not sure if they will be of any help. I've also just rang the warranty claim line and its looking like they will cover upto £500 towards repair fingers crossed.

Well, that suggests there's at least one leak at the top end as well, though again can't see anything specific to pinpoint.  I think there are going to be multiple points of leakage here.  Hopefully the warranty will cover most, if not all, of it.

They won't cover the timing belt change though as that's part of regular maintenance.  I would be budgeting around £500 for that nowadays.

3 minutes ago, TomsFocus said:

Well, that suggests there's at least one leak at the top end as well, though again can't see anything specific to pinpoint.  I think there are going to be multiple points of leakage here.  Hopefully the warranty will cover most, if not all, of it.

They won't cover the timing belt change though as that's part of regular maintenance.  I would be budgeting around £500 for that nowadays.

I had planned to do the timing belt in the new year I think it's now gonna be a case of  get the leak sorted first then get the belts done. Hopefully there's not to many leaks on it. Thanks for all the help and advice im feeling a bit more optimistic about it now. I will post an update once I've had it diagnosed.

Sounds like a dodgy MOT and dealer. Frankly I'd take it back demanding a refund and report to police and DVSA if they don't take it back. 

October 2025 MOT Mileage
124,793 miles but no advisories after having oil leak on MOT for 2 years, and now you definitely have a leak? Doesn't add up to me. Have you seen paperwork which evidences the leak being fixed? Not an MOT test but an actual invoice from a garage for the work?

Just for reference, advisories have no legal backing, they are simply the testers opinion.

An oil leak only fails MOT if it creates a pool in the floor during the test.  (Not likely to happen with an undertray fitted).

Dealer taking the mick, yes.  But nothing illegal has happened here.

The dealer may be shady but it's unfair to claim the tester is, the dealer could easily have used brake cleaner before the test to remove the signs of the leak then had it tested. 

On 12/1/2025 at 10:18 AM, paula dawson said:

I've managed to get some photos from above not sure if they will be of any help.

Looks like you have the 1.6 TDCi engine with the optional self lubricating chassis option 😉

2 hours ago, TomsFocus said:

Just for reference, advisories have no legal backing, they are simply the testers opinion.

An oil leak only fails MOT if it creates a pool in the floor during the test.  (Not likely to happen with an undertray fitted).

Dealer taking the mick, yes.  But nothing illegal has happened here.

2 hours ago, TomsFocus said:

Just for reference, advisories have no legal backing, they are simply the testers opinion.

An oil leak only fails MOT if it creates a pool in the floor during the test.  (Not likely to happen with an undertray fitted).

Dealer taking the mick, yes.  But nothing illegal has happened here.

 

 

On 12/1/2025 at 10:45 AM, paula dawson said:

I had planned to do the timing belt in the new year I think it's now gonna be a case of  get the leak sorted first then get the belts done. Hopefully there's not to many leaks on it. Thanks for all the help and advice im feeling a bit more optimistic about it now. I will post an update once I've had it diagnosed.

 

2 hours ago, TomsFocus said:

Just for reference, advisories have no legal backing, they are simply the testers opinion.

An oil leak only fails MOT if it creates a pool in the floor during the test.  (Not likely to happen with an undertray fitted).

Dealer taking the mick, yes.  But nothing illegal has happened here.

2 hours ago, TomsFocus said:

Just for reference, advisories have no legal backing, they are simply the testers opinion.

An oil leak only fails MOT if it creates a pool in the floor during the test.  (Not likely to happen with an undertray fitted).

Dealer taking the mick, yes.  But nothing illegal has happened here.

2 hours ago, TomsFocus said:

Just for reference, advisories have no legal backing, they are simply the testers opinion.

An oil leak only fails MOT if it creates a pool in the floor during the test.  (Not likely to happen with an undertray fitted).

Dealer taking the mick, yes.  But nothing illegal has happened here.

 

 

On 12/1/2025 at 10:45 AM, paula dawson said:

I had planned to do the timing belt in the new year I think it's now gonna be a case of  get the leak sorted first then get the belts done. Hopefully there's not to many leaks on it. Thanks for all the help and advice im feeling a bit more optimistic about it now. I will post an update once I've had it diagnosed.

No idea what this quote thing does pressed it by mistake lol. Car booked in for next fri at independent ford dealer who we've used in the past, they said same thing about mot advisories so going to wait on results and take it from there. In regard to dealer once I have all evidence and facts then will contact them see what they have to say.

If the gearbox does have to be removed, it is worth having the clutch assembly and slave cylinder replaced while it is out. 

The kit should be around £200. Replacing these won't add much more labour time to the job.  

 

3 minutes ago, AntonovAN12 said:

If the gearbox does have to be removed, it is worth having the clutch assembly and slave cylinder replaced while it is out. 

Yes !!

Never put a gearbox back in with a part worn clutch, it's false economy.

The slave cylinder is down to individual choice but personally I would say replace it.

33 minutes ago, unofix said:

The slave cylinder is down to individual choice but personally I would say replace it.

I was told by a few places that they would only offer any guarantee if both clutch and cylinder were replaced.

They also said they would only use the same brand of parts for both.