Polo 1.4 oil leak

[chornyloshad]

I have a 1999 1.4 Polo which, if I'm not going anywhere, I start every morning in the cold weather and run for 20-30 mins. Last week when the temp was -11C I started the car and when I went back out there was a pool of oil on the ground. On opening the bonnet I found the oil coming from the dipstick tube. When it had stopped pouring out I moved the car back a couple of feet and put some more oil in to see if it would happen again. It didn't, and the engine runs fine, without any noise or smoke. I wondered if it might be the severe cold and have since put a rug over the bonnet every night. Last night the temp plummeted again and the rug had come off in high winds, and on starting the engine this morning the same thing happened. I was told by a friend that it could be pistons but I should be getting noise and smoke. Any ideas please?

[zollaf]

all i can think of is that by running the car each morning you have washed the bores, which has created too much crank pressure. it could also be a blocked breather.
personally, i would advise against running the car just to warm it up, then not use it. not only is it costing money, but is doing more harm than good. if you are not using it for a few days, just bring the battery indoors to stop the cold getting to it, and give it a charge (in garage or shed rather than house)