Is this area being wet a bad sign?

I noticed what I assume is moisture of some sort here on the engine. What am I looking at?

 

I'm going to say "likely condensation". In which case no issue.

Fingers crossed I'm right.

 

hard to isolate from that pic......
that is oil residue...
doubletful that the upper intake gasket is leaking & running down all over your oil cap.....
but possible if your front of engine is clean & dry...
What does your timing cover area look like....
look from under the front, looking up at the front of the engine...
you have oil all over the front & possibly getting flung around by the turbulence / airflow from the fan???

Cant determine what's leaking or not leaking from just that isolated shot, when in doubt, zoom out....
Nobody can tell you what leaking from that image, cant see many things that may be a source & blowing back, getting slung around, etc...

 

condensation from what?????
look at his oil cap......
Thats not condensation....

 

It's oil leaking out of your intake. Your plenum gaskets need replacement (maybe you could get away with tightening them a bit more).

Honestly almost all of these trucks with the V6 will eventually do this (mine does), and it ain't going to hurt anything to just leave it be.

 

Got it, ill buy that...
I still would confirm the front is dry & not getting slung around from the fan & blowing back, look at the big picture...
Only oil that really goes through the intake is from the pcv system.
What youre saying does make sense....

I dont see oil accumulating on backside of those 2 larger 3/8" hoses so thats promising...

 

I should add he may want to replace the PCV valve if it hasn't been recently. It may be stuck open (the usual way they fail), and therefore there's a decent amount of oil coming through the intake.

Astute observation that the throttle cable and vacuum lines aren't greasy at all. That's a good sign that this ain't all that serious

 

this

and yes, replace the $5-10 PCV along with the gasket that isn’t sealing properly anymore.

 

Yeah, I'd inspect the PCV valve and just replace it along with the grommet if it's original. Be careful no bits of grommet break and fall down into the valve cover. When I did my VC gaskets, I did replace both upper and lower intake plenum gaskets. For you, I suspect either one or both of those is the cause of the oil seepage, and/or the PCV valve itself.

 

Probably coming from the PCV, as others have said, as well as the “fresh air inlet” hose that vents the driver’s side valve cover. Both of those will introduce oil into your intake and throttle body, which is then coating the inside of your intake manifold and seeping out of the joint between the two halves of the manifold. I bet your throttle body and idle air control valve are totally caked in that stuff.

Do you notice any idle issues? High idle at startup or fluctuating idle once it’s warmed up, etc?