Technical Mayo - HG or...?

[LaurenceM]

Yesterday it bucketed with rain and i ended up driving through some pretty large floods - after exiting said floods, I noticed the car shudder now and again while driving at lower revs.

Today i started the car, and it felt slow to accelerate. I decided to put my foot down and the engine light started flashing (still slow to accelerate) so I drove back home (engine light stopped flashing half way back) - I was only about 5 minutes away.

I checked the oil cap, and this is what it looks like: https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B_bnAhpy_HtXZlhvVHRYbFkxYms/edit?usp=docslist_api

Worst case is im guessing the HG is gone/going? Or could it possibly be from the floods i drove through yesterday?

 

[LaurenceM]

Update:

I just cleaned out the mayo, and under it was a few mm of rock solid black oil. It's coming off like mini bits of coal. (I do many short journeys every day)

 

[MightyMutley]

im no expert and im sure someone will correct me if im wrong but you can get mayo around the oil filler cap from condensation caused by short trips, without any other signs(overheating etc) this is more likly to be the reason for the mayo andis perfectly normal.

as for the juddering after you drove through floods, this is possible due to water reaching the elecrics (coil pack and ht leads etc.)
and as it continued the next day sounds like it didnt dry off compleatly

the main thing you have to be careful of is water entering the engine via the air inlet (air filter)

 

[s and b]

cat might have been thermally shocked by the cold drench
if it was my car i would have at least a full visual inspection of the undercarriage followed by at least a basic code reader from say ebay for £20 to ascertain reason for flashing eml

mayo is probably a red herring,bits of coked oil suggest poor maintenance, poor quality oil and possibly overheating at some time

 

[oldhammer]

Just keep your eye on the cap.
also dipstick, if the mayo returns then its h/g time.

 

[fingers99]

Compression test remains the surest (and probably cheapest) was of determining whether the HG has gone.

Engine flush recommended -- some of that goo is in the sump.

 

[portland_bill]

im no expert and im sure someone will correct me if im wrong but you can get mayo around the oil filler cap from condensation caused by short trips, without any other signs(overheating etc) this is more likly to be the reason for the mayo andis perfectly normal.

as for the juddering after you drove through floods, this is possible due to water reaching the elecrics (coil pack and ht leads etc.)
and as it continued the next day sounds like it didnt dry off compleatly

the main thing you have to be careful of is water entering the engine via the air inlet (air filter)

Spot on.

The mayo and thick oil deposits are signs of short trips. Need to change the oil more regularly and it would probably benefit from a dose or two of flushing oil. See your local motor factor and follow the instructions. If short trips are to continue, do this flush every year and change the oil at least every 6 months.

 

[s and b]

some might want to read this
http://www.scribd.com/doc/39794821/GM-Say-NO-to-flush

if you do regular oil changes with quality oils and within the service regime you wont get this black coal
now ask yourself this if you add a flushing agent to remove this coal how do you expect it to get out? do you expect the addative to break it down or break down in lumps,now consider these lumps getting into oilways and travelling to all the little orifices in the engine and jamming so slowing down oil flow
a mate of mine and a full time mechanic ruined his audi engine by doing a flush it cost him near £5000 to sort
leave flushes to garages that treat customers as morons and chuck snake oil in when customers leave cars with them and they add it to the bill,its an upsell nothing more nothing less
the new kid on the block is terraclean for anyone interested in stage 2 of upselling on a franchise i believe

 

[dave]

you have to use forte flush, ignore the instructions and run it in the engine for 2 weeks or 200 miles, it will dissolve the black turning it back to a liquid, the liquid will come out when you drain oil.

 

[s and b]

you have to use forte flush, ignore the instructions and run it in the engine for 2 weeks or 200 miles, it will dissolve the black turning it back to a liquid, the liquid will come out when you drain oil.

i just saw a pig flying over the moon

 

[dave]

i just saw a pig flying over the moon

get it it will be better than your horse

 

[s and b]

get it it will be better than your horse

you havent read what i posted have you
how many sumps have you taken off over the years where the pickup pipe guaze has blocked
i assume you are aware that draining the oil on a punto will not remove all the oil so where would you expect all the debris to collect

 

[dave]

how many sumps have you taken off over the years where the pickup pipe guaze has blocked

none so the forte must work. i always also chuck a bit of clean oil in before the sump plug is put back, to get all the old stuff out

 

[s and b]

none so the forte must work. i always also chuck a bit of clean oil in before the sump plug is put back, to get all the old stuff out

so to confirm youve never taken a sump off because of poor oil pickup caused by oil starvation because the guaze is blocked
youve always used a flushing agent
and in context to this post where the person says they have heavy burnt deposits inside their engine only assessed by them by peering into the oil filler cap you would use a flushing agent without further thought

 

[Ziggy122]

I've driven through a large puddle too!

i know what you mean the sudden no power and misfire
A drowned Crank sensor
A Thermal shocked engine
Wet everything from Coils to HT's (my puddle was big and i went though it fast)

A 10min run maintaining higher rev's soon got the engine running fine again, but i didnt get an EML light

Remember Big waves are Fun till you drown the engine and it does what you do!

As for mayo - its not uncommon for short run cars where the oil isn't hot enough to evaporate the moisture from it

So clean the mayo out, when a HG blows mixing oil and water, you know about it
Its everywhere, the oil cap - inside the coil pack edge, the cams go knucks of it

I drove 300miles with a blown HG, i didnt even know, except i suspect it may have bore washed me as well

But eitherway, if your a short runner, you need todo long runs or do regular oil changes
Why? water in oil isn't good full stop

Ziggy

 

[fingers99]

My guess is that the Audi's engine was well flooked before the flush.

I've yet to see a strainer blocked by anything -- bits of tar, bits of hylomar, on there, sure. Blocked, never.

Taking off the sump and cleaning it out is the safest -- and most effective strategy. However, doing a Dave and then using some cheapo oil as a second flush (changing the filter in the meantime, in between time), should be perfectly acceptable.

 

[portland_bill]

I agree, Forte flush is the best and most reliable.

The only pickup strainers I've ever seen with lots of debris are on VW aircooled, or DAF 33/44 aircooled, where the strainer is the only filter. Although you are supposed to remove the cover and clean them at each oil change. Otherwise, only after a major engine failure, not the cause of it.

 

[Ziggy122]

A dump of old oil - fill with cheap and Flush run for 200miles then dump is probably best way too

However - i do have to agree - it'll never remove it all...

ziggy

 

[s and b]

for anyone interested heres a oil pick up pipe from a clean engine 8 valve punto ive kept this one in case of future needs
you can see bits of debris on it,can you imagine what it would be like if a cleaner was added to the engine to remove all the burnt deposits that 10 years of use creates

i remember engines of yesteryear like fords notorious cvh engines where you had to bradle the breather pipe out then clean the sump out

 

[dave]

a lot of modern oil contain a cleaner built in, so is you didnt use one then drain and just used the new oil the crud will be left in the oil until the next change.