bonds1971

I just had my mechanic replace both camshaft seals. They also replaced the timing belt, idlers, tensioner unit and water pump. The oil leak under the car was still there. I took it back and they said it was a defective cam seal. There were no leaks for 2 days. On the third day it started leaking again. I'm going to take the car back to them again. What would be causing repeated cam seal leaks? The car has about 157,000 miles on it. I'm getting fed up with this car and pouring money into it. I need a certified Lexus mechanic or someone who really knows these engines to please shed some light on what the root cause would be. Thanks everyone for your help.

Mesquite77

These kind of seals have a spring inside then, and cannot just be hammered in without taking care that the spring isn't bumped out (this can happen on rear main seal too, solution is to first grease spring with assembly lube to make sure it stays in place). Also, the seal on shaft portion should be lubed on install.

1) How good are your mechanics?
2) Are you sure where the leak is coming from?

Margate330

Pulling the timing belt cover will tell everything about if the cam seals are leaking or if it was the valve cover gaskets all along.

The mystery of no oil leaks for 2 days and then on the 3rd day oil leaks returning can be easily explained if the tech did some engine degreasing and it took 3 days for the oil to slowly make its way back down.

Cheers!