leaking oil bad out blow by tube. Need help!

[CBrabec]

Ok, let me start off by saying this just started today. I noticed a large spot of oil on the ground after I got done mowing one of my customers yards. I looked under the truck and noticed that the side of the oil pan is covered in oil, the back of the front differential is covered and the cross member that holds the transmission up is wet. I cleaned off the underside and its done this at every account since. Finally, I let the truck sit for about 30 minuets and checked the dipstick and it was WAY past the safe mark. I havn't added oil since my last oil change back in december. I also noticed that my oil pressure guage in the truck drops below the 40 mark when i come to a stop and then goes back up when i acclerate. Here are the questions I have:



1) Is it safe to drive my truck?

2) Could the oil pump be bad?

3) What else should I look for?



I need help. This is my only vehicle and I need it for work everyday. Thanks in advance.



Chris

 

[lmills]

check the oil to see if it has fuel in it. sounds like an injector

 

[Missouri Mule]

I think that he means his oil is way below the add mark. But in case I reading it wrong I will have to agree check out the injectors. But if an injector sticks open there is usually noise ( Knock I believe).



If you are getting diesel or coolant in oil it is not safe to drive!



If it is low on oil you need to find out where the oil is leaking from.

 

[CBrabec]

i just rechecked the oil and it is still way above the safe line and it does smell like diesel fuel. I'm wondering if the fuel has caused the dramitic rise of oil on the dipstick. Also, I've had a bad injector before and the truck doesn't run now like it did when i had the bad injector. The truck runs very smooth. What else could cause fuel to get into the oil? i'm gonna drain some of the oil to get it back to normal levels, and then change it this weekend.

 

[ata]

When an engine makes oil (comes up on the stick) and the oil stays the same color it's Fuel getting into the oil. If the oil turns milky or carmal color it's water. In your case you have fuel getting into the oil and in either case don't drive it.

 

[GaryOwen]

Yeah, sounds like a cracked injector. Had one on mine and it still ran okay, but got fuel in the oil.

 

[JWesthoven]

yup. def sounds like a cracked injector to me. i think we all have been down that road. i know i have with my stockers and even with my helfires. the injectors are the biggest money pit on these trucks!!

 

[mikeshauling]

dont just drain the oil to the safe mark, drain it ASAP and get your injectors checked out.

 

[CBrabec]

I drained the oil this morning and put in new. I sent in a sample to be tested. I'm taking my truck to a local diesel shop to have them bench test the injectors. I usually drive to see john at Floor it Diesel, but he is currently away form the shop due to family issues. If I due have a bad injector, this will be my second fix of F1's products. Not blaming don, but seriously how do these things go bad. I use my truck for work, only. No racing or sled pulling. Very disappointing.

 

[lmills]

How do these things just go bad???


EZ

Ditch the pressure for starters.

 

[HBarlow]

CBrabec,

You stated you use your truck for work not for racing and seem to be surprised that you are experiencing injector problems.

The cause of your problems is easy to detect. It is hidden in the long list of modifications included in your signature. Adding electronic black boxes that increase HPCR pressure destroy injectors which destroy engines.

OEM injectors in unmolested engines provide excellent service for hundreds of thousands of miles. I put 230,000 miles on an '06 and never experienced any injector problems, whatsoever.

 

[CBrabec]

Sorry guys, I wasn't trying to start a blaming game. All this diesel stuff is new to me and i'm still learning. Now that you guys point out the obvious things, guess i should ditch the ez and just run the smarty? I usually run my ez on level 1 all the time and the smarty occasionally. This sucks, i took off the tst box cause it was causing problems and now the ez. Man bombing isn't all its cracked out to be. Guess i'll ditch the ez then.

 

[HBarlow]

Uhhhhh, I hate to say this . . . it's probably too late to start removing black boxes . . . on this engine. You've used up two or three hundred thousand miles of normal Cummins life expectancy already. Driving it hard even a few days with the engine lube oil thinned by diesel fuel has probably already done major damage to internal parts like rod and main bearings, camshaft, cam bearings, rings, etc.

 

[CBrabec]

Man i hope not. I'm having the truck towed to floor it diesel next week. I'm gonna have john do a tear down and inspect things as best as he can.

 

[GaryOwen]

You probably are okay on your engine. I had the same problem about 200k miles back, and have had no problems arise. Was very leery of possible damage at first, but much less so now. Maybe I will only get 800k or 900k miles on the engine now, but I would be happy with that. Avoiding increased rail pressure is a good idea though. Sounds like you are on top of getting the problem fixed. Good Luck!

 

[HBarlow]

... ... ... ... ... [snip]. . Man bombing isn't all its cracked out to be. ... ... ..... [snip]...

There is a lot of emerging wisdom based on lessons learned from expensive mistakes contained in that brief comment!

Your words should be considered by all new and enthusiastic Dodge-Cummins owners studying the brochures of aftermarket parts for "performance enhancements. "

 

[Kday]

Why is every post I read from you (HBarlow) the same old rhetoric? I get it that you don't want/need to mod your truck and love it bone stock but give it a rest already! You are on a site where most every post I read is about bombing, don't you feel like your banging your head against a wall with this crowd. I agree a 700hp 5. 9 is crazy if your looking for longevity but marine 5. 9's are rated up to 425hp out of the factory. Sorry for the rant but we get your views on modding already so please let it go we are all grown ups here and will make our own choices good or bad.

 

[rbattelle]

marine 5. 9's are rated up to 425hp out of the factory.

There are very significant differences between a marine 5. 9 and a non-marine 5. 9. It's not meaningful to compare the two.



Ryan

 

[Kday]

Agreed, just making the point that you can turn the wick up a bit and still be reliable.

 

[sag2]

Don't let them scare you about engine damage with fuel in the oil. Sounds like you noticed it in plenty of time. These engines are very tough on the oiling end of things and diesel is a fairly good lube as well. Not ideal, but sure better than coolant or gasoline in the crankcase. If it makes you feel better have them pull a couple of rod bearings down. Not that expensive and it will give you a good picture of the overall health of the engine. I suspect they will still be perfect.