Well I am sure that most people have oil leaks in their VWs, but the question is - how much is too much? At what point should I start worrying seriously about the quantity? My '69 bug has lost probably somewhere around half to one litre of oil in a month, how does this compare? When should I start worrying?

How much do other people lose?

I know it will depend on the car but what are the common areas that leak, and how easy are they to have seals, etc replaced? Do you have to pull the engine or are some able to be replaced from under the car?

Well it depends on how much u are willing to spend on oil and if it becomes a safety issue. I i was loosing more than a 1L a week I would probably start to worry.

are you talking about oil dissapearing or leaking???

How much do you drive???

Oil useage should be no more than say 1/2 a litre per 1000 kms.

As for leaks -

If you park on a pristine floor - then one drop is too much.

If you leave enough to have to wipe it up it is too much.

If you are LEAKING 1/2 to one litre in a month and driving like less than a 1000kms i would say that is too much

If you leave say a couple of drops over night and burn 1/2 a litre in say 1500kms then that is ok-ish

My 2c

TTFN

Barry

If you park on the grass or different spots then it depends on how sensitive you are to leaving marks every where.

My bug has one droplet over a week but it took a complete strip down and re assembly changing all seals and gaskets, now I can park anywhere

if you do stip it down buy a quality gasket set ,my 2 cents seagull

Mine usta burn up a litre every 1000kms and it was r##ted.If mine leaked 1/2 a litre ide be r##ted.:o

I should have clarified the car details....

The Bug currently doesn't get a lot of use, certainly not daily, it loses more in oil on the garage drip tray then it does while driving. For example, in a month I might do 400 or 500 miles, however 'a trip' might be 30 mins a day. I get no smoke when I drive (apparently), just drops it in the garage. As stated, probably a litre in a month, maybe.

The bug will get more use soon when I lengthen seat belts....when I get $$.....

My '63 has been leaking oil for a couple of weeks now (I only drive it to club events due to a free-to-use-anytime company car (yay! )). Nothing serious, just a small puddle (join the tip of your forefinger to the to the tip of your thumb on the same hand ... about that size), but it would do this everytime you turned the engine off. I dropped the engine on Monday (about 20mins - I'm getting faster!) and took the flywheel off. The seal behind the flywheel is damaged (rounded and smooth where the flywheel comes in contact with it) so I will replace it - Bought the seal ($8). While I was there I also checked the input shaft seal in the gearbox, but as this is only 2 years old (remember car is only driven once a month) it is still in perfect condition. Just have to clean up the bellhousing and back of engine where the oil has sprayed and put the engine back in.

As others have said, it depends on how much oil loss you are willing to put up with. If it really bothers you - fix it, if it doesn't bother you (or cause inconveniences like running out of oil in the middle of nowhere) then leave it for now. Just keep checking your oil level and make sure that the oil pressure warning light on the dash is working (but don't rely on the light as when it comes on the damage has already been done!).

R