Inside the car, it smells of oily engine

It's a Golf C 1982. Especially when the engine is warmed up, driving along with the fan blowing. Smells like "very old car".
I have tried cleaning the engine bay several times There are no oil leaks. May the problem derive from the fan/ heater?          

What size engine is it?

There should be a seal running along the top of the scuttle panel and touching the underneath of the bonnet when close which should keep the fumes/smells from getting to the heater blower.

honning57 said

It's a Golf C 1982. Especially when the engine is warmed up, driving along with the fan blowing. Smells like "very old car".
I have tried cleaning the engine bay several times There are no oil leaks. May the problem derive from the fan/ heater?          

It's a 1,5 litre engine, 120' km on the meter.  i have checked the seals on the scuttle panel and the small rubbers on each wing panel. They seem OK, but I'll check again. Are there other explanations, such as the heater system having accumulated pollution during the last 35 years? Perhaps I should put a wunder baum behind the scuttle panel?

mark1gls said

What size engine is it?

There should be a seal running along the top of the scuttle panel and touching the underneath of the bonnet when close which should keep the fumes/smells from getting to the heater blower.

It's a 1,5 litre engine, 120' km on the meter.  I have checked the seals on the scuttle panel and the small rubbers on each wing panel. They seem OK, but I'll check again. Are there other explanations, such as the heater system having accumulated pollution during the last 35 years? Perhaps I should put a wunder baum behind the scuttle panel?

If you remove the seal and carefully remove the plastic scuttle cover there is 3 metal clips at the back then clean around the blower, there may be a plastic cage over the blower so may be worth trying to remove that so you can clean closer to the blower. There will lots leaves etc around there.
The other cause is a leaking rocker cover gasket on the engine, oil drips around the back of the head on to the hot exhaust manifold and burns off making a smell so check around the back of the head.