nitroman58 Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 I have owned this 2011 Forester since March of 2011. This car has always had a burnt oil smell when I shut it off. There has also been some oil consumption as well. During the first oil change, I asked the dealer about it, and I was told it is normal for these cars. Today, I had the car in for the brake line recall and they also checked out my complaint of the burnt oil smell. The service technician found that both left and right side camshaft carrier seals are leaking and would be repaired under the power train warranty. Does any one have a picture that could illustrate this for me? This sounds like a major engine overall, with the dealer removing the engine from the car. Will they have to replace other commonly repaired parts while they are in there? Currently, I just under 40,000 miles on this car. I feel that the leak was probably there from the start. Should I be concerned once the car is beyond the 5 year/60,000 mile warranty? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ford'ssubaru's Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 Hello, Mine does it too......LOL. 130,000 miles and runs great! I just never worried bout it. Cheers, Eric Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olnick Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 nitroman--not sure what the tech means by "camshaft carrier seals." Do you see oil leaking from the bottom of the timing belt cover? There are camshaft seals that would require opening up the front end as you would to replace the timing belt. Normally that would not require removing the engine. Also there are O-rings (at least there are on the older EJ22!) on the front end of the left (driver's side) head and at the rear of the right (passenger's side) head. To access the left one requires opening up the front end. The right one is a piece of cake--two bolts holding a cap on the backside of the head. If the dealer is willing to change seals under warranty, I'd say go for it! Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nitroman58 Posted January 16, 2015 Author Share Posted January 16, 2015 As far as I can tell, I do not see any oil leaking. I am quoting what is stated on the service paperwork. Perhaps the service advisor did not state in correctly? They want to allow at least 3 days to perform the work, so it must be somewhat involved. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairtax4me Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 (edited) The newer 2.5s heads are split into two sections. The lower section houses the combustion chamber and valves and has half of the camshaft bearing surface machined into it. The outer section (the carrier) is basically a plate that sits on top of the cylinder head. It has the other half of the bearing surface for the camshaft, and when bolted down holds the cams in place. The rocker arms attach to this plate, and the valve cover bolts on top of it. It is major surgery to remove, clean and reseal that carrier. If I were the one doing it, yes I would pull the engine. The engine has to be partially lifted in order to get access to the bolts that hold the carrier anyway. 3 days sounds life a safe timeframe in case they need to order parts they don't normally carry in stock. Both sides makes that a full 2 day job easy. Be glad they're offering to do it under warranty! That's a $3,000 repair if it had to come out of your pocket. This is the only halfway decent pic I can come up with right now. http://opposedforces.com/parts/forester/us_s12/type_4/engine/cylinder_head/illustration_2/ Edited January 16, 2015 by Fairtax4me 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nitroman58 Posted January 16, 2015 Author Share Posted January 16, 2015 Fairtax4me, thank you for the reply. Which area of the exploded diagram that you linked will the work be done? Does this involve replacing the head gasket? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairtax4me Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 The area is between that thinner outer section to the far right in the diagram, and the cylinder head which is just to the left. The two parts are labeled NS in the diagram. NS just means the two pieces are not sold separately. The two sections are sealed together with RTV from the factory. The head gaskets will not need to be touched, just that outer section removed and resealed with RTV or other sealant. I did a quick search and this seems to be a fairly common leak, though it's generally a very slow leak, but the area of the leak is right next to the exhaust manifold, which is why you smell the oil burning, and why you don't see any leaking. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silent Bob Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 Fairly common on '11 FB engine. It is sealed to the head with RTV, and the earlier ones like to leak. The engine has to come out to reseal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nitroman58 Posted January 16, 2015 Author Share Posted January 16, 2015 Thanks for the information. I have to respect Subaru for owning up to this. Do you expect the engine to hold up after the warranty period? Could this be the cause for piston slap during the summer months? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairtax4me Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 (edited) No relation to piston slap. My GFs 06 Forester has 178k. Keep up with regular maintenance and you'll get plenty of life out of it. If it has the FB engine you have even less to worry about because it doesn't have a timing belt. Edited January 16, 2015 by Fairtax4me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandi Posted July 16, 2015 Share Posted July 16, 2015 The service technician found that both left and right side camshaft carrier seals are leaking and would be repaired under the power train warranty. I have a 2012 Subaru XV which I have just been told today has this exact engine leak. I took it for its 3 year service today, 4 days before the warranty runs out and as told this. It's going to take 3 days and the engine has to come out, but Subaru will be paying the bill. Lucky for me that the dealership at Glen Waverley detected the problem before my warranty was up. I didn't smell any oil burning either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1 Lucky Texan Posted July 16, 2015 Share Posted July 16, 2015 they created ANOTHER (2 actually) seam that can leak oil? and 0w oil too right? ugh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silent Bob Posted July 16, 2015 Share Posted July 16, 2015 they created ANOTHER (2 actually) seam that can leak oil? and 0w oil too right? ugh If you look, that same seam is present on the EJ engines as well... '11 model fb25 seems to be a little more leak prone. I think there was a production change in the cleaning/sealing process later on and you don't see quite as much after that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1 Lucky Texan Posted July 16, 2015 Share Posted July 16, 2015 (edited) hmmm, never knew that. I guess my 06 WRX is made that way too?anyway, we clearly need some Subaru Oil Conditioner to help seal those leaks. Edited July 16, 2015 by 1 Lucky Texan 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ccrinc Posted July 16, 2015 Share Posted July 16, 2015 Dude. It's a Subaru. Eventually, it's gonna leak oil. Be glad it will be handled under the warranty and get it done! Also, I would ask if they guarantee their work for future leaks from the same place. Not all dealers do. Emily 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandi Posted July 16, 2015 Share Posted July 16, 2015 Dude. It's a Subaru. Eventually, it's gonna leak oil. Be glad it will be handled under the warranty and get it done! Also, I would ask if they guarantee their work for future leaks from the same place. Not all dealers do. Emily That's a very good point. I will certainly ask how long the repair is guaranteed for. Not that I have any comeback with that! There is a service bulletin for the problem and I believe those engines manufactured from 2013 onwards don't have the problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rezzer Posted January 6, 2016 Share Posted January 6, 2016 I'm new to this MB and impressed with the deplh of knowledge I see in the posts. I'm the original owner of a 2011 Forester with 76,000 km and yesterday my dealer informed me of oil leaking from both front cam carriers. They said it will be covered under power train warranty and will need my car for a week. They also told me the engine needs to be removed to do this repair. Like other posters advice on this thread I'm inclinded to go ahead and have my dealer make the repair but I can't help wonder what other issues may arise with a remove/remount of the entire engine. Nitroman (or anyone else in this situation) did you go ahead with the repair ? Any issues since the repair ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted January 6, 2016 Share Posted January 6, 2016 That's a very good point. I will certainly ask how long the repair is guaranteed for. Not that I have any comeback with that! m dealers are typically 12 months 12,000 miles on repairs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rghunter Posted January 26, 2017 Share Posted January 26, 2017 I have the exact same issue to a T. I bought my 2011 Forster with 40,000 miles on it. Since day one it always had a burnt oil smell to it after shutting it off but nobody could ever find the leak. I've had the same garage change my oil for two years and now there is 128,000 miles on it. Yesterday at my oil change they told me The cam carrier seals need to be replaced to the tune of $2300. I don't understand how they could never find the leak and now all the sudden it's gonna cost me that much money. This is my fourth Subaru and for the first time I am very disappointed with them. It sounds like they have an issue here and they should recognize it and do what's right for their customers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bratman2 Posted January 27, 2017 Share Posted January 27, 2017 Rghunter, was that a Subaru dealer or a garage? If it was a dealer, you had a sorry dealer. If you had that issue from day one you should have taken it to a dealer, not a garage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rghunter Posted January 27, 2017 Share Posted January 27, 2017 I have the exact same issue to a T. I bought my 2011 Forster with 40,000 miles on it. Since day one it always had a burnt oil smell to it after shutting it off but nobody could ever find the leak. I've had the same garage change my oil for two years and now there is 128,000 miles on it. Yesterday at my oil change they told me The cam carrier seals need to be replaced to the tune of $2300. I don't understand how they could never find the leak and now all the sudden it's gonna cost me that much money. This is my fourth Subaru and for the first time I am very disappointed with them. It sounds like they have an issue here and they should recognize it and do what's right for their customers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rghunter Posted January 27, 2017 Share Posted January 27, 2017 The dealer where I get my oil changed has multiple brands under the same name. Their express lube is in the Toyota garage however their Subaru dealership is only a few buildings down. Same company. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pineapple Posted September 7, 2017 Share Posted September 7, 2017 That's a very good point. I will certainly ask how long the repair is guaranteed for. Not that I have any comeback with that! There is a service bulletin for the problem and I believe those engines manufactured from 2013 onwards don't have the problem. I have a 2014 Forester, which is in the shop because of a cam carrier oil leak. Extremely thankful it is under warranty~ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brus brother Posted September 8, 2017 Share Posted September 8, 2017 The dealer where I get my oil changed has multiple brands under the same name. Their express lube is in the Toyota garage however their Subaru dealership is only a few buildings down. Same company. was this recorded as a complaint at any of your visits? subaru might do the right thing if you memorialized your complaint in writing. check your service records. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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