Hi,
Very good news that the timing belt job is done now! Feels good, doesn`t it?
You`ll now have safe cruising for another 5-8 years or about 60000miles (100k km).
Though, the top speed is not an indicator of a well done and successful (=safe) timing belt job
) It`s more like that they timed the injection pump right and set the engine pretty well for you to have good results in how it starts and runs... Probably your smoke is gone too and it runs happily with good power.
Are you by the way the forumer who was looking to find `an easy solution` (or a shortcut method?) to the timing belt job?
I am hoping, for the overall future health of your car, that you found someone who really did know how to do it properly. I mean a person who definitely applied enough torque on the crankshaft 27mm bolt.
To answer your question accurately and to provide useful advice (not just random ideas), we would need to know a couple of details!
I do not know how familiar you are with this engine and IDK how long you had the car so excuse me if I write something that sounds very `beginner` to you.
I have a couple of ideas that I`ll explain later in this longer reply.
Because very often there is a tiny simple secret behind the `problem`, such as a small mistake which a worrying car owner doesnt think about (or
not at the moment when an issue suddenly pops up, right?).
First, you`d need to positively verify, what kind of fluid you are seeing?
What is the leak?
Where exactly is it, in relation to the engine or transmission?
Is it definitely motor oil, thick and darker than for example diesel fuel?
I`m asking
because if you have a diesel fuel leak, it often does look like motor oil, due to the years old motor oil stains that may have been on the side(s) of the engine for some longer times and now diluted and removed by (for example) a leaking injection pump, a fuel line, etc, even the filter housing and its hoses can do that, or a leaky injector or a hard line on it.
So please double check carefully and make sure it is NOT a diesel fuel leak that looks like motor oil.
From your post it is also hard to tell if it may be transmission fluid. And because you are saying there was engaging into reverse when it happened, I`d like to not fully close out a tranny fluid leak. Is the car automatic by the way? Would be good to know.
I`m sure though that you could identify tranny fluid if you touched and smelled it.
Is your leak really motor oil? Tranny fluid can also appear to be as an oil leak IF the leaked out fluis washes off old oil and dirt from the surrounding area on the car.
My next question is,
can you track, spot, and see the exact source of the leak? Or is your engine pretty oily and wet from other fluids leaking sometimes?
There are a couple of types of fluid that can leak, such as power steering fluid, motor oil, diesel fuel, etc, just to mention a few.
Step one is to figure out what leaked and where it leaked (from).
I`d like to mention here that in some rare occasions there is a human mistake and it may be easy to `fix`.
Some stories here...
Once I was so excited to go on a multiple day fishing trip that after doing the final pre-trip check under the hood, I forgot to put back the oil cap. Sure enough it gave me a scary situation down the road, very soon, when I stopped and noticed the mistake. As the oil started getting forced out of the by then warmed engine, thru the top filler hole, I could see and smell fume.
So never close out a small human mistake and try to not think of something very serious.
In another occasion, after doing an oil and filter change, I had a long drive and getting home I saw some dripping oil under the oil pan. I thought I had an issue but it was only that the filter was not totally turned tight enough and let out some oil later when the car got hot and the oil became more `fluid`. Another easy fix...
Another time,
after doing valve adjustments, I saw some oil leaking at the driver side of my engine. As freaky as it sounds, and it did look like it was coming from the headgasket but it wasnt. When I reinstalled the vacuum pump after the valve job, I reused the seal that was in there but it moved around enough while out and the seal never made it back to its original position so it didnt seal well. At idle I didnt notice but when the car got warm it appeared as an oil leak. Easy fix. Small details always count.
BUT,
you are saying you had a leak that looks to be half a liter. That IS a lot of oil, we are talking about half of a 1qt bottle.
My other question is/are,
When they did the timing belt,
they probably reused the old valve cover gasket. What kind of gasket did they use? Some companies still sell the two-piece gasket, that, is junk.
this one is off-topic, but in the long run, you should have the 1 piece, rubber gasket.
So the question is, do you think it is possible that the valve cover is not tight enough?
Are you able to track alongside the top edges and figure out whether or not this may be the case?
Is your leak persistent or was it a one time thing?
Please verify about the leak asap, what fluid is it?
Reversing a car often involves turning the steering wheel all the way as we try backing up into tighter places. I can`t close out a leaky steering system but I HIGHLY doubt that is your issue.
But bc IDK details about your fluid leak, from what you explained, I need to come up with some ideas car unseen.
((Do you know whether or not the mechanic who did the TB also decided to replace front and rear seals, maybe?))
I bet you already located the leak and stopped it.
Is it a TD or is it a nonturbo engine?
To answer your other question, yes, it is possible that an oil gauge is not working, but I highly doubt it.
What do you see when you pull out the dipstick to check the oil level? Is the oil `missing`?
For your information,
there is 1liter difference between the minimum and maximum marks (COLD engine!).
Best of luck, and dont forget,
we are here to help.
Even if you figured it all out by now, still reply to this post so others can also learn from your story.