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See attached picture. It leaks right down the front of the engine where the engine and transmission meet. I already replaced the cam seal and that did not fix the leak. My only other two thoughts are VTEC solenoid gaskets and the head gasket. But I would expect the leak to go down the back of the engine if it was the VTEC solenoid gaskets. And I would expect the engine to have some issues if it was the head gasket. The car runs fine and there are no “red flag” signs of a leaking head gasket. Doesn’t appear to be leaking from the valve cover either. As you can see from the markings, this is a used engine from a salvage yard. It has 140k miles on it. My mechanic said he checked it out before installing it. He replaced the timing belt and water pump prior to installation. It’s leaked here ever since. I’d prefer not to spend more money taking it back to the shop as the engine and labor is not warrantied. I am quite handy myself.
*if this is important: there is a mild exhaust leak and it has a relatively new (inexpensive) catalytic converter as well.
My guess would be VTEC solenoid, clean it really well and see if you can pinpoint the leak better
Thanks for the reply. I’ll take off the air box tomorrow and get a good picture around the VTEC solenoids. Just on visual inspection with the air box on they don’t appear to be leaking.
Here's a diagram from member BrotatoChip on location of VTEC solenoid. Also there is an O-ring in the top portion of the VTEC solenoid that can leak as well.
Thanks everyone for the help. I drove the car around with the valve cover vented to the atmosphere to check if I had blowby from high crank case pressures causing a leak from the head gasket. It still leaked when vented to atmosphere. It has snowed quite a bit where I live so I am going to replace the VTEC gaskets in the next day or two and I’ll update the thread if that fixes the problem.
Bump - I replaced the VTEC solenoid gaskets and it’s still leaking. It almost looks like it’s leaking right in between the engine and transmission where one of the bolts connects the two on the front. Or from the head gasket and seeping down slowly. Could this actually be the head gasket without having any symptoms of a head gasket?
Solved - hi all, I wanted to update this thread now that I have solved the oil leak in hopes that it helps someone else. I took off the top part of the VTEC solenoid (the triangular piece with the actual solenoid on it) and even though the thing looked totally dry, it looked like there was oil leaking out from the actual solenoid itself. Not from the gasket that I had already replaced. I’m not sure if this is even possible but that’s what it looked like. So I went to the junkyard and pulled a used solenoid from another car, replaced the gasket, and it doesn’t leak at all anymore. It doesn’t make sense to me how that could cause oil to leak down the front of the engine but that was the cause. I hope this helps someone else.
Bump - I replaced the VTEC solenoid gaskets and it’s still leaking. It almost looks like it’s leaking right in between the engine and transmission where one of the bolts connects the two on the front. Or from the head gasket and seeping down slowly. Could this actually be the head gasket without having any symptoms of a head gasket?
I had the gasket move and I crushed it and had to put in another . This repair is not beginner level . Your leak looks just like mine did. WARNING dropping a bolt can get lodged in the engine and you will have room to barely find it or not find it at all . This did not happen to me, but I dropped a bolt and it landed on the driveway fortunately ,but an extendo magnet would be wise to have.ONE TRICK when tightened the bolts that hold it on , use a nut driver socket for a screwdriver, and a 1/4 " open wrench . I did not have a small enough articulating socket extension that would fit on the one bolt . Don't drop the socket or the wrench . One thing about this type of leak is that your oil stays clean since you have to continuously add a little . Almost like an old Oil loss Harley engine
Re: 2001 civic oil leak unknown origin [solved - VTEC solenoid leaking - uncommon]] 
