flyguy

No, this isnt a food thread.

But it does describe what my oil looked like when I just drained it. light brown and THICK. not quite mayonaise just yet, but definitely on it's way there. Funny thing is that there's no trace of oil in the coolant. I did notice a SLIGHT bit of smoke coming out the tailpipe, but not enough to linger past about 2 feet, so I never saw it while driving. It does puff a bit when the throttle is blipped, both on the up and down swing of an RPM spike - almost no smoke when RPM is steady high.

To me, this says my HG is on the way out, but are there other possibilities too? There's a good bit of oil in the x-over pipe going from the turbo to the intercooler, and I've suspected my turbo of being on it's last leg for a while now - still pulls strong, just seems to rattle a bit as it's spooling up.

Anyway, looking for other ideas of what the problem might be before I go spend a few hundred $$$ for the HG and 'other same-time items." Anything I can do to test theories without possibly doing more damage?

Oil and coolant are currently out waiting for direction.

Thanks,
Ian

David Floyd

A leakdown test would tell you if the headgasket is or is not the problem

Porsche-O-Phile

Another milkshake. Either headgasket or oil cooler seals. Either way, it's a whole bunch of work to fix (not terribly expensive fortunately if you DIY). You'll have to thoroughly flush your coolant system also to get all the oil out and off the walls of the block inside it. Chances are if you've got coolant in the oil, you've got oil in the coolant (the oil is more pressurized so it tends to force itself into the coolant).

flyguy

I specifically checked the coolant when I drained it, and there's no (zero, zip, zilch) trace of oil in it. That's one of the reasons I was surprised to see milkshake when I drained the oil.

Porsche-O-Phile

No kidding? That's very odd. Is it possible a REALLY bone-headed PO might've added coolant into the oil fill neck? I'll have to think about that one and how you could only get it going "one way" like that. . .

Porsche-O-Phile

Is it possible the contaminant is something other than coolant? Gasoline perhaps? Do you blow blue smoke and have bad rings?

Maybe it's worth having the thing sit for a while just in case it's aeriation, although (again) I'm not sure what would cause that in such a large quantity. . .

flyguy

I do have a bit of a 'fuel - rich' smell at the exhaust, but I dont recall the oil smelling particularly. You might be onto something with aeration though... I'll have to check into that... it might explain why the few times before when I checked the oil it always looked clean. I usually checked the oil dipstick after letting it sit for a day or two. think the air would come up by then? I'll let the oil sit for a few days and see what it looks like in the jug. would the water separate eventually too?

If it is aeration, what would caus that? I've had the car since 2001, so I dont think it was the PO that did it, and I definitely didnt pour H2O into the oil neck

flyguy

leakdown would show bad rings right?

Porsche-O-Phile

Yes. I'd put some of it in a glass jar and let it sit for a day or two. See what settles out.

flyguy

OK, put the oil into clear bottles to see if anything settles out. Nothing settles, just stays milky brown. When compared to oil from a time before, it's much more viscous (thick) and brown, whereas oil from a 'good' change is black and still fairly runny.

Tried to take pics to compare the two, but it didnt really show the difference with my little digital camera.

My next question is what tests can be done to determine where the water is getting into the oil. As far as I know, the 3 possibilities are headgasket, oil cooler and turbo. Mine's an 86, and I feel retarded for not knowing, but I dont believe the 86 have an oil cooler like the newer models. (Please educate me).

TIA,
Ian

TaylorSea4

Hmmm. You never added any Slick 50 or Super Lube crap did ya? Not that I think that's what it is, but I've heard tales about that junk. Rotsa ruck, man. Any Dallas Greaseslingers able to chime in??

flyguy

Mobil 1 15 / 50 is all I put in

KLR

You have a couple of options. You can do a compression test, which would rule out the HG if your numbers are good or you can buy a kit at autozone etc. to test your coolant (you kept it, right?) for exposure to exhaust gases (which would tell you that you have an HG problem). If it's not the HG, it pretty much has to be the oil cooler seals, unless you have a very strange issue, like a cracked block or head. If your numbers are poor on a compression test, then a leak down would be in order to identify whether you are losing compression past the rings (would not explain your coolant in the oil issue, but would be a problem) or the HG/valves.

flyguy

I'll go see if I can get someone to do a compression and a leakdown test tomorrow.

Thanks so far guys... I'll keep you all posted

Frank@Work

@flyguy: Did you find what was causing the mocha-chino oil?

I have a problem where my oil catch can fills up with a creamy substance. I think it's oil mixed with coolant, but I haven't found any traces of oil in my coolant.

I am going to do a leakdown test.

My engine was rebuild one and a half year ago. The turbo however has been sitting in the car for 125.000 miles. Would it be possible that the turbo causes coolant to get into the oil?

I will post pictures of what I have found in my oil catch can later.