Oil leak..... !

yes car just had its MOT (probably about its 23rd one!) and it did very well.... just a failure on front brake pads... that's good.... took me about 4 hours to change, as the sensors grounds had snapped off/ cleaning etc.... well, it wasn't as fast as I have heard some of you do them, by a long shot! Anyway.. they are all all clean and good now...

some other probs...

advisory note... OIL LEAK... seems it is coming from the top cover... probably has a name but I am far to stupid to know! Well the main plate before the spark plugs... about 10 weird star shaped screws... I got the star shaped socket that fits it but still very difficult to get to... the cooling hoses are somewat in the way and the angle is bad... what do I have to do? Remove all the coolant hoses and any other obsttructions I should imagine... probably so.. anyway any tips from you experts is highly appreciated....... as always.

It's a pity to have the car running so well and this oil leak.... Am I right in thinking it is not a big problem and it is just this top cover (the weird 10 star shaped screws) ?

Also, I am no expert for sure but worth tightening the sump oil/ gasket screws if you have minor leaks.... made a difference to mine.. about 20 11mm bolts but nice easy job?

The rocker cover bolts should be the same as the sump ,sounds like they've been replaced with some torx drive bolts .The lower and rear bolts are awkward to get at with normal sockets but doable .With a torx bit it may mean taking the water pipes off to get at them .I'd certainly persevere before taking to much off .
Try and replace them with the proper bolts if you can ,they are a stupid M7 though so you will struggle sourcing from anywhere except Renault .I may have enough lying around in jars to make a full compliment .
Are you trying to just tighten them as per the sump ? If so I wouldn't bother ,it'll still leak and you may end up stripping a thread .
Take the cover off and replace the gasket ,put a smear of liquid gasket in addition along the bottom and rear faces .

On my Atmo, the rocker cover bolts have a fairly large head, with a six sided hole for an Allen Key, the hole being quite small. You can get to the difficult ones with a right angled allen key.

yes thanks for replies-
think I will whip the hoses of and have a proper inspection and as you say maybe replace the gasket etc. Where can I get a new Gasket? Off Renault? Would they still stock them?

I bought gaskets from Renault a few months ago so you should have no problem getting hold of them, Not too expensive either.

Probably worth doing both sides at the same time.

or try your motor factor- Espace's have Z7X (610) and other GTA engines in them. If you get a friendly person you can get the rocker gaskets for as little as £1.50 each. Mine still had silicon in addition to gaskets from its original build, so be prepared with both!
If its an Atmo, it should be a doddle, if its a Turbo, allow quite a bit of time for dismantling (a day or so). You might also want to consider doing the tappets at the same time. It really quietens the engine down.

Cheers
lee

For M7 fixings try

www.namrick.co.uk

They have a limited supply of nuts bolts, washers etc, but no studs, if you need the manifold studs then go to Simon, they seem to give the best prices

Cheers
Mark

cheers all and thanks...