slihp Posted April 21, 2014 Share Posted April 21, 2014 So my oil level was rising, after some investigation on here it was suggested TD5's are prone to the injector seals leaking. So last Saturday i took out the injectors replaces the seals and washers and a new loom, fitted them back in and did an oil & filter change. So far the oil level has risen a few millimeters above the full mark which i topped up to just below when doing the oil change. Now i had a VERY VERY good look at the injector bores to check for any cracks and for the life of me could not find any and i had a very good look (i took some pictures but they are a bit blurred) I noticed the coolant level was below the cold fill level yesterday so ive topped it up and will keep and eye on that, i don't see any milky oil in the dip stick or residue in the coolant tank. My main questions are 1) What possible causes are left IF the levels are still rising, new cylinder head gasket, cracked cylinder head? 2) There are no performance indications that anything is wrong, Can you test the oil to confirm if its contaminated with diesel or coolant as i cant tell by smell? 3) Given that its got new oil in it now, can i still use the truck without damaging, planning that im going to get this fixed as soon as i get it diagnosed. Truck dose not get hammered only used for small commutes really. thanks Guys Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ibex94 Posted April 21, 2014 Share Posted April 21, 2014 Visual inspection of injectors is unlikely to reveal any cracks in the body, they are likely to be very fine and significantly affected by the pressure they operate at. The easiest way to look for these type defects would be using die penetrant which will search out any defects and capillary into them. After a period of time you clean die off and spray on a "developer" to soak the die out the crack. Die used to be red so these tell tales are called bleeds. Found a couple of suppliers online if you want to do it yourself. Alternatively look for a Non Destructive Testing company local to you there's a few around but can't remember who we used when I was working at Hunterston. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boydie Posted April 21, 2014 Share Posted April 21, 2014 Engine oil can, (especially synthetic, - which is basically modified domestic soap-- and will absorb water, if your daily commutes are short this will not give the oil temperture enough time to "boil" off the contaminants, so take it for a long run , say 100 miles or so, and check the oil level after the engine has cooled down, chances are that the oil level will have returned to normal. In a diesel engine diesel will always bypass seals, piston rings etc., thi is what turns nice clean engine oil to black ink after only a few kilometers (miles) but these combustibles will also boil off if the motor has a decent run, so, take it for one and see what if any change is noticed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve b Posted April 21, 2014 Share Posted April 21, 2014 It sounds like the HP fuel rail drilling has micro-cracks allowing diesel into the engine oil . It happened to a mate of mine and it dumped enough diesel into the sump to kill the bearings and crank . I'm not sure how you would test for it ? Maybe head off and test at a diesel inj. specialist? hth - er sort of Steveb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slihp Posted April 21, 2014 Author Share Posted April 21, 2014 Engine oil can, (especially synthetic, - which is basically modified domestic soap-- and will absorb water, if your daily commutes are short this will not give the oil temperture enough time to "boil" off the contaminants, so take it for a long run , say 100 miles or so, and check the oil level after the engine has cooled down, chances are that the oil level will have returned to normal. In a diesel engine diesel will always bypass seals, piston rings etc., thi is what turns nice clean engine oil to black ink after only a few kilometers (miles) but these combustibles will also boil off if the motor has a decent run, so, take it for one and see what if any change is noticed. Very interesting. most of my drives are 20-30 minutes really so its possible there was nothing wrong and like you said just contaminants not being burned off? Im away for a long trip this weekend so ill pick this up after that. Thanks i Hope its this... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snagger Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 Smell the engine oil - it'll probably have a hint of diesel. I doubt you have significant water content in the oil as you'd have mayonaise on the filler cap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neonovice Posted April 27, 2014 Share Posted April 27, 2014 I had an issue with rising oil levels. We changed the injector seals - no difference. We were told we had to be very particular about the cleanliness of the seals, so we changed them again - no difference. We replaced the head (not cheap) - no difference. At our wits end we removed the head (injectors still fitted) and took it to a local machine shop who fitted an airline to the fuel rail and submerged the head. Immediately you could see a leak at injector 2. On closer inspection you could see slight wear on the injector (wouldn't have spotted it without knowing it was broken), either from overtightening or undertightening. Replaced it now and all is well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slihp Posted April 28, 2014 Author Share Posted April 28, 2014 Engine oil can, (especially synthetic, - which is basically modified domestic soap-- and will absorb water, if your daily commutes are short this will not give the oil temperture enough time to "boil" off the contaminants, so take it for a long run , say 100 miles or so, and check the oil level after the engine has cooled down, chances are that the oil level will have returned to normal. In a diesel engine diesel will always bypass seals, piston rings etc., thi is what turns nice clean engine oil to black ink after only a few kilometers (miles) but these combustibles will also boil off if the motor has a decent run, so, take it for one and see what if any change is noticed. So took it for a good run at the weekend 140 miles round trip checked the oil when i got back and it still looks to be rising . The coolant level was down again so its lost just under a liter of water over 250 miles. head gasket? but still no milkyness on the dipstik or on the filer cap. I did notice a small smear of oil on the join of the sum and the transfer case this seems to go all the way up the join but there is never any residue on the ground .. are these all unrelated issues? so to recap oil level was rising, injector seals have been replaced, still seem to be rising, cant say i can smell diesel in the oil, no milky residue anywhere coolant seems to be going down and oil leak from somewhere?? HELP :-( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mongrel Posted April 29, 2014 Share Posted April 29, 2014 I'd go with a small head gasket leak if it's losing water that fast and you can't see any water leakage. Combine it with the rising level and it makes it even more likely. Sorry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dailysleaze Posted April 29, 2014 Share Posted April 29, 2014 The June issue of Land Rover Monthly has a large technical section on Td5 injectors. They've cut a head in half and you can see quite well all the places that could leak. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bowie69 Posted April 30, 2014 Share Posted April 30, 2014 Before you start pulling the head off, check all the hoses and header matrix for water leaks, normally easily to spot by an accumulation of crystalised antifreeze. Your diesel in the oil issue may be just an injector as above, making the head removal and the expense there unnecessary. You could get a 'sniff' test done at a local garage to determine head gasket failure, a lot less expensive than a complete strip down to find out there is no problem.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slihp Posted April 30, 2014 Author Share Posted April 30, 2014 Before you start pulling the head off, check all the hoses and header matrix for water leaks, normally easily to spot by an accumulation of crystalised antifreeze. Your diesel in the oil issue may be just an injector as above, making the head removal and the expense there unnecessary. You could get a 'sniff' test done at a local garage to determine head gasket failure, a lot less expensive than a complete strip down to find out there is no problem.... There was a bit of crystaline on the block but im sure that was old residue. I cleaned the engine in anticipation of seeing any coolant or oil leaks and currently nothing is showing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slihp Posted May 5, 2014 Author Share Posted May 5, 2014 So took the truck to my mechanic. said it docent have the symptoms of head gasket, no milky oil or steam, usually if its water it is very obvious, also couldn't smell any diesel in the oil. Suggested putting some steal seal in just in case as its very good stuff, so have plopped that in for now and will keep my eye on water level and the oil. he did show me a vectra that loses oil every week but has no oil leaks. nothing is every easy :-( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jocklandjohn Posted May 6, 2014 Share Posted May 6, 2014 I had a very similar problem - the oil level on my dipstick seemed to be continually over-level, and rising. Cause - the brass olive on the dipstick was migrating up the dipstick tube with engine vibration, and causing the tube itself to drop further into the sump thus indicating that the oil was over-filled when in fact it was the opposite. I doubt this is your problem, but it's something to be aware of. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slihp Posted May 8, 2014 Author Share Posted May 8, 2014 I just laughed in disbalife. But really shows the value of this form to get so many symptoms to a problem. So this olive is inside the tube? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g647415 Posted May 8, 2014 Share Posted May 8, 2014 Sorry, I am a newbie to all kind of Landies so I really dont have a clue, but do you have a lift pump? It it looks like mine; L90-1984 N/A Diesel, then I could imagine that IF the membran cracks and the gasket between the liftpump and engine is tight, fuel could enter the engine via the hole to the cam. Not sure how well the gasket will keep leakage away....... Just a thought. Not sure how realistic this is..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jocklandjohn Posted May 8, 2014 Share Posted May 8, 2014 I just laughed in disbalife. But really shows the value of this form to get so many symptoms to a problem. So this olive is inside the tube? No, outside. Basically the block has a big hole in it. The dipstick assembly is a simple tube with an olive and nut on the end, and the actual dipstick sits inside this. You shove the dipstick tube down the hole until the attached olive (which was fitted at the factory) is sat tightly in the hole, and then the bolt that slips down and over it is nipped up, pulling the olive down into the hole and effectively sealing it. However over time the olive can loosen and allow the tube to migrate down (I was factually incorrect in my previous post - the olive doesn't move - the olive stays put but the tube moves). My engine needed almost 6ltrs of oil according to the book, but was showing 'full' with only 3.5ltrs. because of the dipstick drop. See this pic - olive is just visible at the end, with bolt just above: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slihp Posted May 9, 2014 Author Share Posted May 9, 2014 Thanks Jock So a good way to eliminate this as an issue would be to measure the length of exposed dipstick? could you measure yours by any chance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dailysleaze Posted May 9, 2014 Share Posted May 9, 2014 So a good way to eliminate this as an issue would be to measure the length of exposed dipstick? could you measure yours by any chance. *insert joke here* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mo Murphy Posted May 9, 2014 Share Posted May 9, 2014 Blimey do they still use an olive on Td5s ? I have this trouble on my 200 Tdi. Mo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slihp Posted May 12, 2014 Author Share Posted May 12, 2014 *insert joke here* lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.