Mysterious burning smell (oil) '05 LGT

Ok. My car has been at the shop for 2 days now. It's not the valve cover gaskets, head gasket, torn cv boot, clogged pcv valve, or oil return line to turbo.

I first noticed it a few weeks ago after driving then coming to a stop. The burning smell resonates through the vents but if I put on re-circ mode, the smell is gone. It seemed to come from the passenger side.

It's also not the cabin air filter.

Before the shop closed today, I was told the intercooler was off and they were still trying to pinpoint where the leak was coming from.

I don't have any spots on my driveway and my car runs strong (stage 2), 73K miles.

 

I'm stumped and I think the shop is to. Any help or suggestions are welcomed.

check the oil seal on the turbo. i had the same issue with the smell thats where it came from. it obviously leaking near something hot enough to burn the oil of. look for residue and follow the trail. did u recently change the oil?

I had a slow drip from a cracked oil line to the turbo. In the process of replacing this line right now.

I get an oil smell from my 09 too. It seems to happen most after a little aggressive driving. I haven't found the culprit yet. It must be a very minimal leak somewhere as I keep checking and very seldom have to add any oil.

 

I'll be interested to know where yours is leaking when you find out.

 

P.S. I don't smell it until I get out of the car.

 

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Another possibility is ringlands. Have a leakdown / compression test performed.

Power steering pump/lines?

Our 05 lgt has a leaking pump. Thought it was the valve cover gaskets, but couple of times I did see oil it was red.

On mine it seeps from behind the pump and heads toward the back of the block where it drips right onto the exhaust manifold on the passenger side.

have you checked your turbo seals? or in and around your turbo? when I had mine replaces acouple months ago hose was crack and leaked oil...

Well, this isn't an oil smell but some people can confuse them: 2 of the most common leaks and smells are caused by:

1. Broken CV boot on passenger axle (causes grease to smear on cat)

2. Some people have leaking gas lines (especially during cold weather)

Thanks for all the ideas. The power steering leak sounds possible.

Verdict: oil found in intercooler and the shop recommended I take my car to dealership. Hope the turbo isn't dying. Could it be just a turbo seal leaking?

Verdict: oil found in intercooler and the shop recommended I take my car to dealership. Hope the turbo isn't dying. Could it be just a turbo seal leaking?

 

It most likely is going to blow if its leaking. Same thing happened to me. I took my car to the stealership for the 105k service and timing belt job and the told me i had an oil leak that looked like coming from my turbo. they told me they would charge me $250 to tell me what it is. i told them no thanks. i then search on here and asked my mechanic friends what they thought about it. they told me that my turbo was basically on death row waiting to blow. i didnt have money for a new turbo so a kept running it and 8k miles later, pop goes my turbo!

 

that, again is just my experience but i hope yours aint nothing like mine, cause if it is be ready to drop at most $2k for a new turbo with instalation.

Great...guess I will wait to see what they say. If it's blown, time to start searching for a used turbo.

well mine wasnt blown..... it was just on its way there. I still drove it like i stole it and when 3500 mile road trip to cali, then after 8k it just gave out. if its nothing serious ill atleast give you time to save up...

Oil in intercooler does not equal turbo failure. There is normally a small amount of oil in the intercooler. If there is an excessive amount of oil, then consider the ringlands or turbo.

Update- it wasn't much oil so the tech didn't think it was any sign of turbo issues. Speaking with the tech, he said he cleaned the pcv valve, it had some blockage. Drove 30 minutes home and was bringing outside air in and didn't smell the burning smell. Still going to subaru dealership on wednesday just in case.

Where is the pcv valve located on these cars?

Underneath the intercooler I believe.

http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/pcv-valve-replacement-95003p7.html

 

http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/pcv-valve-replacement-95003.html

I had a similar issue....I got lucky...when I removed the oil filter from the banjo bolt the second crush washer slipped out of place. A very small amount of oil was leaking, just enough to send smoke into the cabin when the air was turned on.

Thanks for the info jhawk22.

I had a slow drip from a cracked oil line to the turbo. In the process of replacing this line right now.

 

I did also, it dripped on the UP and burned off before it hit the ground.

Oil lines to the turbo are fine and there are no signs of oil near the turbo.

Have you checked the oil cooler yet? My oil cooler to block gasket is leaking and I get the exact same smell as you. It only occurs when I come to a stop after driving on the highway. I'm just waiting until my next oil change to replace the gasket.

Have you checked the oil cooler yet? My oil cooler to block gasket is leaking and I get the exact same smell as you. It only occurs when I come to a stop after driving on the highway. I'm just waiting until my next oil change to replace the gasket.

 

 

Interesting...that's a possibility. Anyone know anything about this oil cooler to block gasket? First I heard of it.