Oil blow-by and a strange liquid

[hgeranium]

Hello everybody! Those with keen eyes and memory will remember that, during a road trip, I had an issue with some major oil blow by on the back and passenger side of the engine bay plus a bogging issue that turned out to be the fuel pump. 
 

Fuel pump solved one of the problems but I am still noticing some pretty concerning blow by all over the back and passenger side of the engine. I originally thought the PCV grommet had something to do with it. I replaced it and this is what it looks like now: 

 

There’s a nice fresh layer of oil on top of it, around it, and on the hose. There’s no blockages between this grommet to the fitting on the intake. 

 

there is this oily film all around the back of the valve cover that wasn’t there until recently. It’s fresh. 

 

 

This is a bit further down the valve cover but you can still see all the fresh oil.

 

This is the driver side. Bone dry. 

Oil level is fine. Color looks OK, smells ok, tastes ok. 
this is directly behind the valve cover on the firewall. It may be hard to see but there is a fresh film of oil here too. 

until I do cruisers valve cover fix, I temporarily have the CCV breather hose going to a water bottle and plug in the port on the air box to stop oil on my air filter. Usually there’s nothing in there but since I started having these problems I noticed that there is a strange clear yellow liquid that has come from it. Its viscosity is like water. It’s got a very strange smell to it but from what I can tell it’s not gasoline(?) I think after last weekend I would know what gasoline smells like. I tasted it and it is unlike any automotive fluid I’ve ever tasted. It didn’t taste bitter or sweet, but it was pure tanginess. Like a real strong buffalo sauce almost? 
 

I know everyone’s going to tell me to do the valve cover gasket, and I have one that I plan to install soon but I’m pretty sure a bad valve cover gasket isn’t going to cause all the oil in some of these places (namely the PCV grommet, since the oil sits neatly on top of it) nor explains this yellow liquid coming from the CCV hose which is what I’m most worried about. Not pictured but there are plenty of things like the coolant bottle and evap canister have dried oil spray on them, so wherever the oil is coming from, it has some pressure to get all the way over there. 
 

Any ideas? It drives great but I’m getting paranoid about it now, especially because the oil smell when driving is so much stronger than it ever was

[hgeranium]

Doing a bit of research makes me think that liquid is probably just condensation mixed with oil/whatever else is in the crankcase. I replaced the grommet but not the hose itself. It's still got a decent amount of play and is real easy to take out. Maybe I need to replace that hose to be sure. I suppose the PCV area leaking plus the badly sealed VCG could be the culprit. I'm still curious about what y'all think. It sounds like it has to be an issue with poor crankcase ventilation or excessive pressure.

[89 MJ]

I agree that the liquid is an oily condensation. 
I’d do a compression test. It might just be a tired engine that has a lot of blowby. That could even be the case if it’s a relatively low mileage engine from my experience. Keep oil in it and it’ll live forever, but it’s frustrating. 
 

If it is making excessive crankcase pressure, I’d consider leaving the bad valve cover gasket otherwise it’ll probably blow it right back out or find the next weakest link to push that pressure out of. 

[Eagle_SX4]

Yeah most likely just condensation in the crank case. Has the weather gotten colder recently? The colder it is the more condensation will build up in the engine especially if only driven short distances.

 

With your ccv hose unattached to the air box you will definitely get more oil smells in the cab.

 

Defiantly do the valve cover mod, replace the gasket and reattach your ccv hose. And while the valve cover is off clean everything really well so you can see more clearly see if you still have a leak and where the oil is coming from.

[hgeranium]

2 hours ago, Eagle_SX4 said:

Yeah most likely just condensation in the crank case. Has the weather gotten colder recently? The colder it is the more condensation will build up in the engine especially if only driven short distances.

 

With your ccv hose unattached to the air box you will definitely get more oil smells in the cab.

 

Defiantly do the valve cover mod, replace the gasket and reattach your ccv hose. And while the valve cover is off clean everything really well so you can see more clearly see if you still have a leak and where the oil is coming from.

Yep the temp dropped to the mid 30s from the 70s-80s in a few days here. I'm glad it was nothing more serious. I've never seen anything like that.

 

Since I don't want to create another thread for this one question: Do you have any recommendations for replacing the CCV hose without having to buy an entire front vacuum harness? I have an HO air box and EGR delete so I only have PCV, FPR, and MAP vacuum. The CCV hose just goes straight from the VC to the air box. The hose is so old and worn out. The grommet barely stays in place and gets plenty of oil leaks from it.

 

I realize I may not have an option but to spend the ~$25 for the harness just so I can get that hose. Surely it would last the rest of the life of the truck so it may be a worthwhile investment. I just thought I'd ask if there were any alternative options.

[hgeranium]

I wonder how imperative it is that the front CCV hose is the size that it is. Once my new PCV hose comes in, I'll have an extra brand new grommet that comes with the hose (I replaced the grommet w/out the hose on thanksgiving) I'm wondering if I could stick that grommet in the CCV hole and get a small enough vac line stick in the grommet and route it to a catch can in the meantime. It would at least fix that bad seal in the VC until I get the motivation to buy/waste an entire vac harness save for one hose. But like I said, I have no idea if that would cause too much vent restriction/pressure.

[hgeranium]

Maybe something similar to this that has the same diameter as the hose grommet?

[llhat]

couple links may help