[BillyG]

Greetings! The other night I finally got to lower the subframe on my 2007 328xi with the N52K engine, as part of replacing the oil pan gasket. I was expecting to find my oil pan coated with oily dirt and generally disgusting, as I have been losing oil recently, but I was unnerved to see one the same filthy residue around one of the bolts on the front of the engine block, above the oil pan:




Is it possible that the seal at that bolt is leaking?!

My uneducated guess is that nothing leaked at that seam, rather the oil that leaked from the oil pan traveled up the engine block, perhaps aided by the air currents from the radiator fan and the drive belt. I saw smaller upward smears elsewhere. Here they are near the water pump:



I am just surprised to see this one travel so high up and coat that bolt so well.

Can someone please comment on whether my guess is correct, or am I really in trouble? In addition to the oil pan gasket, I am in the middle of replacing the the water pump / thermostat combo, the starter, all the control arms, the engine mounts... So for that I also removed the radiator, the intake manifold, drive axle and power steering ... One thing led to another, you know... What I am trying to ask is, is this a real problem, because the car is as much apart as it will, hopefully, ever be, and now is the best time to deal with it. Better still, if there is a quick and dirty (but effective) solution involving, for example, replacing a single bolt (BTW, it's not loose) and spraying some RTV sealant on the outside or something of that nature, I would much prefer that. Please advise!

[nsjames]

OFH is not leaking?
it generally drips down the face of the engine in around that region.

[BillyG]

Nope, everything above it looks clean

[nsjames]

suspect you're right that it's just oil being blown around or slung by the dampener.

maybe front crank seal?

only way to know is to clean it up and ru nit and see.