Turbo Leaking Oil

[LRubus]

My Turbo Is Leaking Oil Through Intercooler And Into Motor.

Dodge Dealer Says It Is Normal And Could Not "condem" The Turbo At This Time.

Oil Film Is Showing On Both Rubber Hoses On Each End Of The Intercooler.

Doesn't Seem Right For 37,000 Mi.

Am I Being Blown Off By The Service Dept. ?



'03 H. o. - 6 Speed.

 

[Gypsyman]

In my opinion you are. If it leaks enough you could end up with a potential runaway. Find another dealer and be careful.



Richard

 

[LRubus]

Please Describe What A Turbo Runaway Is.

 

[RustyJC]

The potential scenario is an engine runaway. If the turbo seal fails catastrophically, the lube oil in the inlet system can act as a fuel source for the engine if it is ingested into the combustion chambers. Since this source of fuel is unregulated, the engine can overspeed to destruction.



Rusty

 

[ThomasLawrence]

You are absolutely being blown off. You are sitting on a time bomb (literally), and when it worsens enough to sustain a flow of oil through the intercooler, you WILL destroy your engine, completely and thoroughly.



Is your truck completely stock? If you have or had a fueling box, you're on your own. If you have an aftermarket air filter, your dealer can "technically" refuse warranty repair. If you're completely stock, you need to speak up a little more and (politely) demand that your turbo be covered under your engine's 5/100K warranty... THAT YOU PAID FOR.



-Tom

 

[LRubus]

I Can't See That The Modifications I've Done Would Affect The Turbo.

Air Cleaner Is Stock.

No Changes To The Fueling. Just Pyro And Boost Gauges.

Other Than Installing A Pac Brake, It Has The Amsoil By-pass Filter And I'm Using Amsoil And Having It Analysed.

Sounds Like I Could End Up With The Turbo In My Lap.

 

[mberry]

I have to go with ThomasLawrence on this one based on your comments LRubus. You need to be a little more assertive (but yes still polite) and ask for it to be fixed under warranty. If they still won't do it, definitely find another dealer.

 

[LRubus]

I Just Had A Complete New Rear Axle Assy. Installed.

Looks Like It's Back To The Dealer.

Thanks For The Education And Advice.

 

[SRadke]

More assertion is good but I can see where a dealer could give you trouble for the bypass filter or even blame this on shavings in the turbo from the pyro install. Neither of those would have caused it but both do relate to the turbo and dealers look for reasons to deny coverage... . even if they're not valid reasons.



-Scott

 

[Mathew Clausen]

Not sure if a new turbo will help

I have an '03 also (even the same "mods", guages and a pacbrake). I noticed a drip of oil always hanging off of the compressor housing and after taking the CAC hose off it had a very light film of oil. It obviously wasn't much oil because the drip would be sort of caked looking like it was there for a while, but at about 10k miles I talked the dealer into replacing the turbo. The new one leaks just a little bit less - but still similar? Still a drip on the bottom of the housing (although not running down onto the engine). I haven't pulled off the CAC pipe to look inside though - just figure I will run it. 36k now. I can't believe I could have two turbos that were defective - surely there are other people with a slight seep around the turbo housing? Or maybe the bearing changes that the 600's had also involved some seal changes? Wierd. I am not worried about a runaway - the amount of oil I am talking about is in the drops per 1000 miles I guess (I change oil at 7000ish miles and never see any change in level). Anybody else have slight seeping? -Mathew

 

[bpenrod]

I never saw any oil on my stock turbo. 55k with fueling boxes and extended oil changes and all was dry as a bone when I took it out last week.

 

[Turbo Kidd]

O. K. , now I have a question... . Please don't laugh too hard, I'm not the most mechanically inclined. I have an 03 HO too, and I seem to get a few drips of oil on my garage floor. It seems to be coming from a tube with no end on it??? it look like it comes from around the Turbo area? I was told by the dealer that is normal? I have never had any problems with my truck, and it is 100% stock. Any ideas? sorry for the stupid question, and even worse description!

 

[SRadke]

A tube with no end on it? Is this tube around 1/2" diameter and hanging down on the driver side of the engine about 2/3's of the way to the rear of the engine? If so, that's normal.



There may also be a tube on the passenger side that hangs down very near to the firewall. Should be outboard of the exhaust pipe and begin up above the frame rail where it comes through the firewall. This is the drain for the AC condensor and it should drip water when you're running the AC or defrost.



-Scott

 

[jwilliams3]

Maybe the pacbrake blew a seal in the turbo.

 

[Turbo Kidd]

SRADke... you hit the nail on the head... . it is on the drivers side and it is about 1/2" in diameter. So, the few drips of oil that I get from time to time in normal? What is it exactly? Thanks for educating me!

 

[SRadke]

Yep, normal. That is the crankcase vent and it's not uncommon for an oily mist to be pushed out the tube. The oil then condenses inside the tube and drips out. As the piston rings show more wear and you get a little more blowby you'll get more drips but a few drips earlier in life are not uncommon.



-Scott