Welcome to the forum!

Pedestal leaks are typically caused by o-rings ($5) going bad where the pedestal mounts to the block. It is a pain to pull the turbo the first time on these trucks (took me 2 days) but once all the crud is cleaned off and you know where all the bolts are, it's not as big of a deal moving forward.

There is another source of leaks which is the EBPV actuator. Rebuild kit will run you ~$100 and you still have to pull the turbo. You could also delete the pedestal and do away with the leak point (and also do away with the option of hotwiring it for an exhaust brake)

As long as you're comfortable with turning wrenches and getting dirty, and you're getting a good deal on the truck, an oil leak around the turbo is not a deal breaker in my opinion.

 

I just had my turbo off for the first time to do up-pipe gaskets. It's a PITA but not so hard if you can turn a wrench. The EBPV delete from Riff Raff is what I went with. Getting the turbo on and off will be a breeze from now on without all that hardware. If you go with the pedestal delete from them, get the collector that connects to the downpipe also. They have the o-rings too.

 

 

I bought mine with a leak

leaks a lot less now except the dipstick bung

 

I just did that Strictly Diesel? billet one, works great. Worth the $300 to me, I did not have to fart with cleaning and reusing my OE inside part. It had also been overtorqued by my awesome PO!

My only grip is that the cap screws were Standard while the rest of the engine is Metric. That seemed a bit odd.



FWIW, my truck leaked everything from every hole. Pull the turbocharger and delete the EBPV nonsense. Do uppipes while in there, it needs them. It probably needs a rebuilt turbo, do not worry it is easy - https://www.spturboost.com/collectio...ombo-1994-2003