Oil accumulation on air dam, intercooler weep hole?

[PlorkZ47]

I have a 2017 Expedition that I've owned for about 8k miles, currently has 118k miles on it. I was just under the vehicle to check the serpentine belt and noticed an oil/light sludge accumulation on the back side of the air dam on the driver's side. Upon further inspection I traced it to the side tank on the intercooler and what is most likely a very small weep hole. I attached pictures but only got pictures after I cleaned off the air dam. As I understand it, this is a somewhat common "modification" to avoid a build-up of oil getting sucked into the engine. I just changed the oil about 1k miles ago and this area was completely clean and dry then, so this must have just started accumulation.

Should I be concerned about this, and what might be causing this? Is there an easy way to check if one of the turbos is leaking or what else should I check? Thank you.

 

[Utah Driver]

Just run it. Might be related to excessive idle. IMHO

 

[jfscheck]

I would clean it and see how long it takes to accumulate - I suspect they wouldn't have a weep hole there if something was not engineered to leak occasionally (bypass, etc.).

 

[Fastcar]

I don't know of any that are designed to leak or lose oil. They use gaskets and seals to keep the oil in the engine. If you have signs of a leak just starting, then you have a leak just starting. Clean it up spray it so it's dry and pay attention to it. It won't fix itself.

 

[BlackBetty]

Ok… so, the idea of the weep-hole was to be used as a drain for oil accumulation. That system is designed to be a closed-system. So, excess air is being sucked in (which the vehicle computer can compensate for; up to a point before performance starts to fall off a bit), water, and dirt!!! Not good. Especially, if it’s forward-facing while driving at speed.

Periodically, it would be a good idea to remove the plug installed in the hole to let oil/ water drain. One culprit of excessive oil is worn rings. Another is the PCV system. An oil catch can works wonders for this. There are many on the market. Personally, found JLT (which I later swapped out because of low capacity), and Full Race oil catch cans work well. The Full Race setup gives great capacity, and easy petcock draining.

Pretty sure the 2017 Expedition resembled the same year F150 under the hood. This would mean direct fit. My 2016 Expedition required some modification to get the catch can mounted on the firewall area just in front of wiper cowl, and above the intake manifold cover.

 

[Fastcar]

Ok… so, the idea of the weep-hole was to be used as a drain for oil accumulation. That system is designed to be a closed-system. So, excess air is being sucked in (which the vehicle computer can compensate for; up to a point before performance starts to fall off a bit), water, and dirt!!! Not good. Especially, if it’s forward-facing while driving at speed.

Periodically, it would be a good idea to remove the plug installed in the hole to let oil/ water drain. One culprit of excessive oil is worn rings. Another is the PCV system. An oil catch can works wonders for this. There are many on the market. Personally, found JLT (which I later swapped out because of low capacity), and Full Race oil catch cans work well. The Full Race setup gives great capacity, and easy petcock draining.

Pretty sure the 2017 Expedition resembled the same year F150 under the hood. This would mean direct fit. My 2016 Expedition required some modification to get the catch can mounted on the firewall area just in front of wiper cowl, and above the intake manifold cover.

Maybe, but that is a bunch of oil that has been tracking and getting blown around. I'm still of the belief that spaying it and finding it's point of origin. But that's me, I'd at least want to determine where its coming from. YMMV

 

[G213]

Ok… so, the idea of the weep-hole was to be used as a drain for oil accumulation. That system is designed to be a closed-system. So, excess air is being sucked in (which the vehicle computer can compensate for; up to a point before performance starts to fall off a bit), water, and dirt!!! Not good. Especially, if it’s forward-facing while driving at speed.

Periodically, it would be a good idea to remove the plug installed in the hole to let oil/ water drain. One culprit of excessive oil is worn rings. Another is the PCV system. An oil catch can works wonders for this. There are many on the market. Personally, found JLT (which I later swapped out because of low capacity), and Full Race oil catch cans work well. The Full Race setup gives great capacity, and easy petcock draining.

Pretty sure the 2017 Expedition resembled the same year F150 under the hood. This would mean direct fit. My 2016 Expedition required some modification to get the catch can mounted on the firewall area just in front of wiper cowl, and above the intake manifold cover.

I believe the 2017/2016/2015 Expys all got the first generation 3.5L ecoboosts, whereas their F150 counterparts got the second generation 3.5L ecoboost. But the catch cans fit many different models, since the physical dimensions and layout of the engines are pretty similar.

If you cruise F150 forums for those with the first generation eco boosts, there are people who swear by the weep hole method…mostly those who live in areas of high humidity, where condensation and oil would build up in the bottom of the intercooler and get sucked up into the system, causing rough idles and misfires.

It’s a highly debated topic, with no general consensus either way. Some say it’s a must have, some say it defeats the design of the system and risks debris and water getting into the system…or causing a loss of boost pressure.

You could always seal the hole with some JB weld or similar if you think that’s what’s best for your situation. Kinda your call. I would do some reading and see what tickles your fancy.

Example: https://www.f150ecoboost.net/threads/drilled-weephole-on-my-2016-with-no-immediate-results.91065/