Engine Oil in the cylinder - Uh, OH!

QuestMan · **Posted:** Sun Jul 15, 2007 12:36 pm

I just changed the plugs. The driver side went fine. The plug closest to the radiator was no sweat. However, when I pulled the center plug, passenger side, she was dripping oil! I've got 46k on her, and don't know: Is this still considered warranty?
(Please, let it be. I just spent 2k, lifting Libby, and replacing all the brakes and rotors) :shock:

tjkj2002 · **Posted:** Sun Jul 15, 2007 1:49 pm

QuestMan wrote:

I just changed the plugs. The driver side went fine. The plug closest to the radiator was no sweat. However, when I pulled the center plug, passenger side, she was dripping oil! I've got 46k on her, and don't know: Is this still considered warranty?
(Please, let it be. I just spent 2k, lifting Libby, and replacing all the brakes and rotors) :shock:

Well 3 things come to mind when a plug comes out dripping in oil--

1-The piston rings are shot

2-The valve guides are to worn

3-the valev seals are shot.If you have the 7/70,000 powertrain warrenty take it in and see,that way it's only a $100 if something major took a dump.Hope not

.

Jeepjeepster · **Posted:** Sun Jul 15, 2007 4:02 pm

I wouldnt worry about the $$, its still under the powertrain warranty.

Is it running strange or using any oil? Smoking any? Check engine light?

Are you sure its not a 2cycle engine? :lol:

Just kidding!

QuestMan · **Posted:** Sun Jul 15, 2007 4:05 pm

That's kind of what I'm thinking, too. ALL the other plugs looked fine, and I'm fanatical about changing the oil every 3k. Kind of gives me that 'sick-in-the-gut' feeling you get when you've been kicked hard enough to knock the wind out of you. I'll get an appt. tomorrow, to get her in and see what needs to be done.

It kind of took me by surprise, really. I would have thought that the mileage loss would be much more dramatic, but I'm still getting 24-25 mpg on the highway, when going 55-60. The mileage doesn't REALLY drop, until I get over 65. OR.........when I'm in city/hwy mixed. Usually, I've averaged about 19-20 overall, during the summer. The last few months, I've been averaging 18.5, which is only about a mile, to a mile and-a-half lesss. That's why I decided to change my plugs............(I suppose ignorance is bliss. On the other hand, it's better to find out now, than when I've got 70,001 miles, eh?)

QuestMan · **Posted:** Sun Jul 15, 2007 4:10 pm

Quote:

I wouldnt worry about the $$, its still under the powertrain warranty.

Is it running strange or using any oil? Smoking any? Check engine light?

Are you sure its not a 2cycle engine? Just kidding!

Nope! Not a 2 stroke! Or else I should have been mixin' my gas and oil a lot better :lol:

Also, no check engine light, no unusal blue smoke. It ALWAYS felt like it missed a beat, once in a while, but it's been doing that since she was new, and if THAT were an indicator, then when I changed the plugs last time, I would have seen it. In theory....

LiLredLibby · **Posted:** Sun Jul 15, 2007 10:45 pm

If you actually had oil in that cylinder.......You would definatly see signs of engine miss and smoking tail pipe.You may have a valve cover gasket leaking over into the plug well.If the hole gets full enough,when you pull the plug out,it will be covered and appear to be in the cylinder.But...this could be wishful thinking.Is it only wet from the hex part of the plug down?
Ron

QuestMan · **Posted:** Sun Jul 15, 2007 11:15 pm

Correct. I did NOT see any oil above the plug. As for smoke, if the leak is small, you may NOT see a any blue. For instance, if the valve seal is leaking JUST a little bit..........

However, I also saw oil in the air filter, JUST above where the breather filter is, so I'm getting blow-back of some kind. I had a Postal that was the same way - I got blow-back in the air filter, but never saw blue coming out of the tailpipe. Of course, with a 26-year old Postal, it just wasn't worth boring out and replacing the rings. Actually, at the time, I just didn't have the money to do it. I'd originally taken the 1st engine apart to have it bored out, so I could rebuild it, then found out it had a crack. By the time I bought a used replacement, I didn't have the $ left to rebuild that one too, so I lived with it. (But the top half, main bearings, and cams were in GREAT shape........ :lol:

)

Jeepjeepster · **Posted:** Sun Jul 15, 2007 11:58 pm

They should be able to tell if anything is wrong if they do a compression check.. That will tell them if anything is going on.

I went ahead and bought me a gauge to check the compression. It was on sale for $20 at walmart so I got it.

Neal · **Posted:** Mon Jul 16, 2007 12:14 am

Do a compression check, if ok compared to other cylinders, it then would have to be valve guides leaking.
It might be a good idea to do compression check b4 going to dealer, just to have more idea of the problem/solution.
Strange it runs so good on 5 cylinders.

QuestMan · **Posted:** Mon Jul 16, 2007 9:26 pm

I stopped by the dealer today. The Service mgr. said, "It's probably the PCV". I mentioned that ONLY 1 plug has oil, but he insisted, "Replace it anyway. That's the cheapest, quickest, easiest thing to do. Wait a week, then remove the plug again, and see if there's any oil in it. If so, THEN we'll see what's going on".

So............I went to Autozone, spent $5 on a PCV valve, bought a new air filter, and we'll see.

In the meantime, I've got a compression checker, and will STILL check the pressure next week. (I'm going to a family reunion this weekend, and won't have the time before I go).

If he's right, then..................D'OH! :roll:

(But that's a heck of a lot better than the alternative!) :wink:

Neal · **Posted:** Tue Jul 17, 2007 1:10 am

Hope that takes care of the problem----but we all know it won't--strange you did not get a code error. My bet is on intake valve guide.
Let us all know the outcome

Rush345 · **Posted:** Tue Jul 17, 2007 2:12 am

I am not a mechanic but I did turn a wrench once. I agree on the compression check, before on board computers the compression check was a mechanics stethos scope to check an engine with out tearing it down. It is old school but it is tried and true and best of all a cheap check on the engine. Good Luck, lets hope it isn't serious or expensive. It's always more fun spending ones hard urned money on toys for your Jeep instead of maintenance. :roll:

QuestMan · **Posted:** Tue Jul 17, 2007 7:17 am

Quote:

I am not a mechanic but I did turn a wrench once. I agree on the compression check, before on board computers the compression check was a mechanics stethos scope to check an engine with out tearing it down. It is old school but it is tried and true and best of all a cheap check on the engine. Good Luck, lets hope it isn't serious or expensive. It's always more fun spending ones hard urned money on toys for your Jeep instead of maintenance.

Amen! I was JUST getting ready to order the ARB when this happened. NOW, I'm holding off to see what I find out. Forgive me for going to the 'dark' side, but I skimmed over the Rubicon on the Jeep website. :oops:

And..............What I owe on my Libby, is JUST about what the trade-in value would be worth.

On 2nd thought, never mind. I just configured options, and found out what it would cost. :shock:

In any case, I'll update everyone once I get a chance to check out the compression.

hooperswish · **Posted:** Tue Jul 17, 2007 11:46 am

Pardon my ignnorance, but how does that walmart compression checker work? Screw into the plug slot, crank, then read? :?:

QuestMan · **Posted:** Tue Jul 17, 2007 12:10 pm

Yes, and no. 1st, you need to remove ALL the plugs. THEN, you screw the checker into the hole, have someone turn the key and crank it until the pressure in the guage stops going up, then read it. afterward, you press a pressure relief button, unscrew it, and do the same thing again in another cylinder or two. I haven't used one in 15 or 20 years, so my memory may be a little foggy. The idea is, you get readings from a couple of cylinders, and check the difference. If the pressure is 5 - 10 psi difference, it's not a major issue. If the pressure is reading 30, 40 or MORE psi less in your 'suspect' cylinder than in the others, then you've got bad rings, which won't allow proper compression, wastes gas, and will only get worse with time, until your vehicle has a blue haze, and won't hardly run anymore. (Of course you can stall fixing the engine, and get by temporarily with products like 'Motor Honey', but unless it's a 20 year-old P.O.S., it's generally worth spending a thousand or two to get it fixed, vs. 20-30 thousand for a new vehicle.

Besides, IF the cylinder's bad, it should be covered under the 7/70 power train warranty. (I hope)

Engine Oil in the cylinder - Uh, OH!

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