Subaru Repair: Persistent oil leak, clow valves, oil leaks

Question
Hi Frank,
I have a 99 Subaru Legacy 2.5L.  My car was smoking under the hood and I could see oil on the exhaust plate and on the ground.  About 7 mos ago, Subaru repaired this oil leak at the rear separator plate.  This involved taking out the transmission to repair at $600.  The oil leak persisted and a month later they fixed the front crank seal for another $300 because it wasn't related.  Immediately I could tell the oil leak was not fixed but they assured me some would have to burn off to tell if it was truly still leaking.  It's six months later and my car is now really smoking.  I took it back in and was told it is the "clow valves" (I think).  This is another $500 repair.  It all appears to be the same leak to me and I am wondering if they misdiagnosed the oil leak and I keep paying for their mistakes.  They guarantee their work for one year but keep finding unrelated new leaks. How many possible scenarios can I go through before this is fixed? I'm tired of getting smoked out at every light. Thanks.

Answer
The biggest problem with subaru's are their oil leaks. The separater cover is very know for leaking. There is an updated cover that I hope they put on. If the crank seal was leaking, then the oil pump should have been taken off and the o-ring behind it replaced and resealed the pump back to the block then put in the new crank seal. Also the cam seals should have been done at the same time, to save you some labor time. Also make sure the axle boots are torn. Also make sure the headgaskets are not leaking. Once all the seals have been replaced you should be ok, for the rest of the cars life.