1 Lucky Texan

I doubt this will help, but we owned a vehicle in the distant past that had remote lock/unloclck button at the friver's position for the hatch. It started being unreliable and what I discovered was a rod was adjusted TOO LONG such that, yes, while it solidly and reliably moved the end all the way to lock, it held some xtra force as well, and when the solenoid released, it would spring back with enough force to unlock!

yeah, ran across a post where a guy said he did it 'clean'. Replies were all like "you must have little girl arms", etc. but, I suppose it could be valve cover gasket, or half-moon plug leaking, etc. both gd and nvu mentioned that drain hose early in the thread so, given how rough Texas weather and turbo heat are on polymers....I'm betting that's it. My trip to CoSpgs may have pushed it over the edge. weird in some pics how there is only 1 clamp shown.

Ugh, everything in that area that could cause this involves some wrenching I'm reluctant to do.Been reading about the oil drain hose. Youtube videos and forum posts all seem to indicate dropping the exhaust/downpipe at minimum - often turbo and intercooler removal...... Could be a $15 turbo oil drain hose that requires 4-6 hours of parts-pulling. Kinda leaning towards getting it to a shop now. Maybe next week. I have some money I can spend on it. If some of the work it needs overlaps labor, I'm sure it would feel better than me doing that hose or a copper washer , just to have the engine pulled for something else.... After I get some of the prev. maintenance and repairs done, I have some cosmetic issues to attack. I know the car isn't 'worth' a lot, but I can't really see replacing it with anything as fun.

may be a while before I can get under it. bad weather moving in and it's tricky during the week keeping my grandson....Hoping it's that return line, that looks like diy-possible. If it's valve/cam cover gaskets, or oil piping or similar, good excuse to get the car into the shop. KInda wouldn't mind getting a clutch put in, air cut valve cover plates put on and that system pulled off, maybe some other work if they pull the engine. GD has mentioned turbo intake hoses....

oil return line? I did see that in some on-line images. Need to get under the car. Took some pics with the phone, but I don't think you can see much.

also, check antisway bar mounts.

definitely no sign of oil on the top. things are tight in that area for certain. I did 'feel' underneath and my hand came back quite clean. I tried to look around with the inspection mirror, nothing obvious. Still wondering if that inboard-most tab on the shield being oily is a clue?

I may have a better view of some hidden areas when I can get underneath it. If I can idel it on ramps, I might be able to spot a drip. Seems to me there's enough vapor that the leak could be at oil gallery pressures and not just a drip from a gasket. But, yeah, doesn't take much to make some vapor. thanx to everyone for your attention. This is definitely outside my experience.

yeah, I have read about getting that lock nut busted loose on rustier cars than mine. I don't think I'll redajust it. I might pop the arm off, just to check for 'play'/ease of operation, I guess.

The heat shield below the turbo is not discolored from any burned fluids that I can see.

this is the wastegate arm. I know nothing about this. Some picks online seem to indicate this is normal appearance. Wondering if the crank or pivot need any lube???

the inboard tab with the oil didn't have a screw thru it. This is probably from the same source as the smell/vapor is from? Kinda weird how the oil is only at the interface of the shield and w'ever it attaches too. Makes me think the oil is traveling there from a bracket or maybe the tab is screwed to the back of a valve cover ?(may need to get my inspection mirror back under there.) That location had no screw in it.

thanx, they didn't really seem critical. Just a disappointment finding it like that. The shield has 8 holes, maybe same part used for different models. Clearly had marks/impressions of the original 7 screws. I have enough to match-up at a Hammerbarn, or Ace or w'ever. maybe a touch of anti-seize is a good idea if I'm the one replacing it. these are what I got out of it. I suspect the shorter flanged ones are original;

inspect throttle body, maybe it needs cleaning?

nvrmd

got the turbo shield off today. Some bad news, some may be good. I think the shield should have 7 bolts, it had 4. clearly, it was removed and re-installed, likely by the collision shop. One of the bolts was barely finger tight so, unclear if one/some may have vibrated out over the years. I have questions; should the bolts be the same length, should they just be flanged, or should they have lock washers.... uhg, too stupid to reduce image sizes anyway, got the shield out - tricky, but easier than firewall-adjacent H6 coils. There was some dark deposits near where the waste gate arm is located, seemed normal. But, the innermost tab on the shield was oily, Just right where the bolt goes through. pretty far away from the turbo so, maybe some blow-back off of valve cover? inside of my shield looked kinda like this one; the far tab, not shown well in the above 'borrowed' pic, was oily. The black area is adjacent to the wastegate arm. Should that arm get any lube? felt around and looked around with inspection mirror. The banjo bolts I can see seemed OK. Might be a coupla weeks before I can get it on ramps to pull the undercover and look around. Still, nothing on the ground, fluid levels look good, etc.

others will have better advice, just chiming in to say a coupla things; about the only item not on your list that I MIGHT consider would be a crank angle sensor - just because of easy access I guess..... you will want to be diligent about the torque converter not shifting outwards of course. and for JDM, you will need to extend the brake booster's connection - probably a length of hose, some short piece of tubing to connect and a coupla hose clamps.

severe oil leak just as bad. If it was run with minimal oil, or with the low pressure light on (which is triggered at a terrifyingly low 3 psi or something !) bearings could still have been compromised. Same is true if some issue caused excessive fuel to blow-by into the oil.....

great idea, had a similar issue with a 90 Maxima my daughter drove. Sometimes, you can experiment by swapping with another relay - what? headlight or ac comp? - often 2-3 relays are the same part# employed for different functions.

Not knowing how often, or severely, the bad head gaskets caused engine overheating is a major question mark in the chain of events. Severe overheating leads to poor lubrication which can lead to rod or other engine bearing failure.

often, starting, then dieing is due to a failed/misplaced hose between the intake and the Intake Air Control Valve.

I wouldn't surprised most of the bushings in the shift linkage are bad. Could be both that AND trans I guess. I replaced most of the bushings in my 06's shifter and it is far 'younger' than your vehicle.

get the nose as high as possible.

others will respond with better info, but everything I've read across 2-3 forums for years indicates, 2" lift is the threshold. That or less is not too difficult, more calls for some more 'intense'(as in $$$) work with axles and suspension and alignment.

user @lmdew may be able to help with some parts. glad you're OK.