Hyundai I20 - Hyundai I20 Oil Leak

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Wed 12 Oct 2022 15:50
Hyundai I20 - Hyundai I20 Oil Leak - nx4737

Hi all,

On Saturday, I took a 2012 i20 with 50k miles on the clock for a test drive, it drove fine, sounded normal, tidy inside and out, went home and slept on it, took it for another test drive on Sunday morning, when I returned it to the dealership, I opened the bonnet again and spotted a bit of oil on the alternator housing and on the aux belt, I couldn't tell where it had come from and I can't say if it was there on Saturday when I first looked at it or not.

I've put a deposit down on the agreement that I'm happy the oil leak has been resolved, I can be informed of what has been repaired or replaced and I can take it for another decent test drive.

EDIT - The garage are selling it with an MOT which looks like it has just been done according to the MOT Check Gov website, the cause of the leak looks to be as below, not being a mechanic I'm not 100% sure how serious this is and how they would repair it, can someone help me out here?

  • Oil leaking excessively from engine front timing cover (8.4.1 (a) (i))"

I'm hoping it's nothing serious as the car is a decent price and ticks all the right boxes, but I'm willing to walk away if it's serious.

Thanks in advance

Adam

Edited by nx4737 on 12/10/2022 at 15:56

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Wed 12 Oct 2022 16:04
Hyundai I20 - Hyundai I20 Oil Leak - _

The thing to think about here is.

Was it clean oil... after a top up..

But, bear in mind if bought from a dealer any wattanty on a 10 year old car will be useless.

or post a link to the advert for more advice.

Edited by _ORB_ on 12/10/2022 at 16:05

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Wed 12 Oct 2022 16:23
Hyundai I20 - Hyundai I20 Oil Leak - nx4737

It wasn't clean oil but wasn't overly dirty either.

Here is the advert but it had just come in when we took it out for a test drive so no photos and little information as it hadn't been prepared yet, just spotted the milage in the ad is wrong it's actually 53k

2012 Hyundai I20 Comfort £4,199 (scottmotorcompany.co.uk)

It's supplied with a new mot, full service and 6 month warranty but if I go for it will make sure I know what is covered by the warranty.

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Wed 12 Oct 2022 17:12
Hyundai I20 - Hyundai I20 Oil Leak - Andrew-T

not being a mechanic I'm not 100% sure how serious this is and how they would repair it, can someone help me out here?

  • Oil leaking excessively from engine front timing cover (8.4.1 (a) (i))"

If the description on the MoT advisory is accurate, replacing the timing cover gasket may be all that is needed - which should cost little and would be easily done at any indy garage. If you are otherwise happy with the car, I don't see much point in another test drive unless you want to find out if the seats are still comfortable after an hour's driving ?

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Wed 12 Oct 2022 17:29
Hyundai I20 - Hyundai I20 Oil Leak - nx4737

I get what you're saying in regard to another test drive, but given I'm going to be parting with £3500, I'd rather be sure, mainly for my own piece of mind that the leak has been fully resolved and not just cleaned up.

I have no reason to doubt the dealer but I'd rather play it safe.

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Wed 12 Oct 2022 17:52
Hyundai I20 - Hyundai I20 Oil Leak - badbusdriver

I get what you're saying in regard to another test drive, but given I'm going to be parting with £3500, I'd rather be sure, mainly for my own piece of mind that the leak has been fully resolved and not just cleaned up.

I have no reason to doubt the dealer but I'd rather play it safe.

I'm not sure how taking another test drive would determine whether or not the oil leak (if there is one) has been fixed?.

Has the dealer explained why there was a significant oil leak noted on the MOT?.

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Wed 12 Oct 2022 22:34
Hyundai I20 - Hyundai I20 Oil Leak - bathtub tom

If you've paid a deposit, then you're committed to buying the leaky, old, oil dripping machine.

How do you think we can help you?

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Thu 13 Oct 2022 03:41
Hyundai I20 - Hyundai I20 Oil Leak - nx4737

Refundable deposit.

I wasn't asking for help; I was asking for advice and opinion on the issue and how serious it had the potential to be, which is what I thought a motoring discussion forum was for? For clarity, I'm more than happy with the car and the price and understand 10 year old cars aren't going to be spotless, doing research into potential issues though is just a sensible precaution.

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Wed 12 Oct 2022 23:16
Hyundai I20 - Hyundai I20 Oil Leak - Andrew-T

I get what you're saying in regard to another test drive, but given I'm going to be parting with £3500, I'd rather be sure, mainly for my own piece of mind that the leak has been fully resolved and not just cleaned up.

It's a 10-year-old car and not very expensive. 10-year-old cars commonly have oil leaks which are probably more annoying than serious, and it sounds as if yours may be a cheap fix, in which case you should take the cheap hit and get it sorted to prevent oil spots on your driveway. Or check the dipstick regularly and top up when needed.

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Thu 13 Oct 2022 08:47
Hyundai I20 - Hyundai I20 Oil Leak - FoxyJukebox
If it was me I’d walk away and continue my research for something else
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Thu 13 Oct 2022 09:57
Hyundai I20 - Hyundai I20 Oil Leak - Adampr

Not sure what triggered the pile-on on this occasion, but you get used to it.

Anyway, it all depends on the diagnosis of the problem and quality of the repair. It sounds like it's probably the gasket in the timing cover has gone. It's a cheap and easy fix to repair.

A dodgy trader may well attempt to find ways to get around with some kind of sealant, wiping stuff up etc, but there's little point because it's easy enough to fix properly. However, as you've done, I would ask for details of what had been done and, if possible, evidence.

My bigger concern would be how long it's been leaking and what started it in the first place. Normally, not always, issues with a gasket come from the case being opened, so I would be interested in what's behind it and whether it's been replaced or repaired. Are there any bills with the car?

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