Where is this leak coming from? Should I be worried?

[seahawkeye]

Was getting my 2007 997 C4S teched for a track day and my indie guy found this moisture under my car--it is in front of the oil drain plug (magnetic from LN Engineering) which looks fine. Since the last oil change a few months ago I've only driven my car 3 times (total 10 miles or so), and I noticed a tiny amount of fluid in my garage underneath this same area. Oil level is completely full.

 

My indie guy is a BMW guy but thought it's maybe rear main seal? Neither he or I know though. Does anyone know where this is and should I be worried? Should I cancel my track day? What should I do?

Edited July 29, 2015 by seahawkeye

[seahawkeye]

Also, my coolant was quite low a few months ago and thanks for people on this forum, I changed the plug for it and topped it off. Level still looks good today.

[Ahsai]

Classic RMS/IMS leak. Will need to remove the transmission to check both.

[wizard]

At the risk of stating the obvious, perhaps the best idea is to get under the car and find out for sure from where the leak originates and what the fluid on your garage floor is ?

[seahawkeye]

Thans Ahsai, I read the other threads on this but just want to clarify

 

1) is a leak the same thing as RMS/IMS 'failure'?

2) if I don't fix it will it lead to failure?

3) is taking the car on a track a bad idea if it's just a few droplets I see on the garage floor?

4) is it even worth fixing this? I saw one post where someone said it was a simple leaky connector and solved the problem, and someone else said not to worry about it because the car may never be the same once transmission/engine moved

[Ahsai]

Thans Ahsai, I read the other threads on this but just want to clarify

 

1) is a leak the same thing as RMS/IMS 'failure'?

2) if I don't fix it will it lead to failure?

3) is taking the car on a track a bad idea if it's just a few droplets I see on the garage floor?

4) is it even worth fixing this? I saw one post where someone said it was a simple leaky connector and solved the problem, and someone else said not to worry about it because the car may never be the same once transmission/engine moved

1) If the leak is coming from the RMS, all you need is a new RMS seal. However, if the leak is coming from the IMS flange, that may be an early sign of IMSB failure. Unfortunately there's no way to tell for sure which one it is until you open it up and take a look. If it's the IMS, you may as well replace the IMSB.

2) See 1)

3) I personally would not take it to the track with this condition. Not so much about the small leak but more about what's the potential underlying issue of the engine.

4) There's no connector there so not sure which connector you are referring to. Also never heard of the car will never be the same once transmission/engine is removed. I've heard of that comment on body shop repair after a serious accident.