Does anyone know what this part is and what it does? (the aluminum part above the oil filter cover) (see photos) Is it known to leak oil? As you may be able to see in the photos ... oil leaks out of this part and then travels down the black cable harness and oil has been pooling around the blue harness connector below. Any suggestions? What is this part? Should I replace it?

I've been having a burning oil smell issue and hope this may be the culprit ...

 

That is the vacuum pump. Mine is leaking oil too. There is an o-ring between the pump and the engine that costs about $5.00. An easy repair. Some people are deciding to replace the entire pump as a precaution. I haven't decided which way to go yet on my low-mileage MINI.

 

Thanks for the info. Looks like a job I could tackle myself and try to replace the O-ring.

 

Update. I replaced the O-ring between the vacuum pump and the engine but that did not fix the leak. I wound up replacing the vacuum pump and that solved the problem. Just recently I replaced the gaskets on the oil filter housing which is another common source of oil leaking down the front of the engine.