There appears to be an oil like substance at one of the clamps on the little rubber elbow that connects intercooler to metal pipe. Any ideas what this is?

 

That would be oil. If you undo that clamp and oil dumps out you're probably on the road to replace the turbo.

Jason

 

i wouldnt say oil leaking out of the intercooler piping is normal, but oil inside the piping is very normal. and contrary to what ecs tuning says, i dont think its grounds for a turbo replacement. the eay the pcv system works, the oil vapors are sent from the crank through some hoses, and back into the intake, where it can deposit in intake tract. of course it can mean the turbo seals are going out, but it doesnt mean for sure. id simply clean all the oil out and check it in another 5k miles. if theres ALOT of oil, then id assume turbo. if its only moist, its normal

 

^That.

A little oil is normal.

If you never have, it's not a bad idea to pull all the intake hoses off and clean them out. A good time to check turbo shaft play as well.

 

I havent done that yet. Also how do I check shaft play? If in 5k miles theres more oil i should change the turbo? Or just wait until it craps out?

 

Sorry, but I lol'd

To check shaft play on the turbo, pull off the turbo inlet pipe and associated intake plumbing, filters, etc. You'll be able to snake your hand down to the compressor housing and grab the nut that holds the CHRA together. Grab it and wiggle it side to side and forwards and backwards. A little bit of movement is ok, and is expected for an original turbo with 100k miles on it, but you don't want to be able to clank it around all over the place. More than a few mm is too much. Also look to see if the compressor blades have made contact with the housing. If they have, it will be pretty obvious.