1993 945T 167k: There is a faint oil smell in the cabin:

- nearly non-existent while moving at highway speed
- strongest when starting from a hot engine, fan on, outside air.
- strong when car stopped, fan on, outside air
- smells less when fan is off
- it seems during sharp (right hand?) turns the smell is more noticeable

Prior to this I had an intake manifold gasket leak in runner #1, which I fixed by renewing the gasket. Would it have something to do with this oil smell?

I thought oil smell should be due to: there is some oil leak, and somehow the smell goes through the firewall into the fresh air intake grille, but I can't seem to find anything wrong with either. Oil consumption seems to be normal.
Can someone help?

Thanks,
Lih-Yen

Lih-Yen:
I agree that it is probably some kind of oil leak. I would make sure there are no leaks from the following places:
Valve cover gasket
Distributor shaft (remove cap to see)
camshaft seal
Turbo oil return line
Oil filter housing extension

Any of these places could cause oil to drip on the hot exhaust and make a burning smell.

Also, a stuck front brake caliper could make a hot burning smell- make sure all the caliper slider pins are free to move and the brakes are not super hot after a short drive.
--
Rob Bareiss, New London CT ::: '87 244DL/M47- 221K, 88 744GLE- 202K, 91 244 181K, 88 244GL 145K

I bet it's related to a crankcase breather hose malfunction
no flametrap but still crankcase breather hoses, see FAQ for
this info.
check plastic boc underneath intake manifoldand trace hoses up
to intake manifold. check with car running maybe the problem will
be obvious.

Thanks! And I hope your bet is right on. This makes sense because I remember wiggling this hose while removing the manifold.

Now, what should I be looking for in checking this hose, and the breather box?

Could there be a disconnection or kink, which should be fairly obvious? (Sorry to ask but it's late right now, I will do it as soon as I get a chance.) What about the breather box, what could be wrong with it, or should I anticipate some sort of test procedure, part replacement?

Thanks again,
Lih-Yen

Thanks to everone who responded, I found the problem.

After thoroughly studying the FAQ, I went to trace the PCV hoses. The hose connecting the PCV T-pipe to breather box was pulled out of the breather box fitting. Reconnecting it solved the problem. No more oil smell.

Lih-Yen