I've found fuel in my engine oil...
Discussion
Y'day I've decided to restart my Griffith 500 after about 6 months of garage parking, as I always do first thing I've checked the oil level and I found out that it was well above the max level on the stick...What has happened?? Geeezzzzz, I suddenly thought some SOB had poured something into my engine blk so I took the car with a trailer and took it into a pro garage, I took the oil out of the engine and it strongly smelled fuel.
How could it happened? The oil level was ok just before I left the car in the garage...and after 6 months the level went 2 inches above the max level.
Is there an explanation or the only reason might have been the evil SOB pouring it into the Griffith crank??
Pls need some help, thanks.
How could it happened? The oil level was ok just before I left the car in the garage...and after 6 months the level went 2 inches above the max level.
Is there an explanation or the only reason might have been the evil SOB pouring it into the Griffith crank??
Pls need some help, thanks.
The most likely reason for fuel in the engine oil is an injector that has stuck open.
When you turn your engine off there is still significant pressure in the fuel rail, if an injector is even partially stuck open fuel will pass through it and find it's way past the inlet valve to the top of the piston.
From here it will seep past the rings and end up in the sump.
The first thing you need to do is remove the contaminated oil sitting in the sump, petrol significantly degrades engine oil & it's lubricating properties.
Do not start the car until you have a fresh oil filter fitted & new uncontaminated oil in the sump.
You then have two options.
1) Run the car with a good quality injector cleaner in the tank & hope this resolves the stuck injector
2) Remove all the injectors & have them professionally reconditioned by an injector specialist
Option one is cheaper, easier & faster, but it may or may not work.
Option two is the right way to deal with the problem, you can't rebuild a worn injector by tipping a bottle of magic potion in the tank.
The original Lucas disc type injectors are an archaic design, if you want to replace them with the better pintle type you can use the injectors from a 2.0 litre Vauxhall Vectra.
Most injector specialists will be able to supply you a fully reconditioned set of used Vectra injectors at a reasonable price as they are very common.
When I did this I paid £130 for a set of 8 fully reconditioned Vectra injectors, when you consider it will probably cost you £80 to get your old Lucas ones reconditioned in my opinion it makes sense to update to the better pintle type.
Just be sure to ask your injector specialist to flow match the reconditioned Vectra injectors as a set of eight.
Good luck with it.
When you turn your engine off there is still significant pressure in the fuel rail, if an injector is even partially stuck open fuel will pass through it and find it's way past the inlet valve to the top of the piston.
From here it will seep past the rings and end up in the sump.
The first thing you need to do is remove the contaminated oil sitting in the sump, petrol significantly degrades engine oil & it's lubricating properties.
Do not start the car until you have a fresh oil filter fitted & new uncontaminated oil in the sump.
You then have two options.
1) Run the car with a good quality injector cleaner in the tank & hope this resolves the stuck injector
2) Remove all the injectors & have them professionally reconditioned by an injector specialist
Option one is cheaper, easier & faster, but it may or may not work.
Option two is the right way to deal with the problem, you can't rebuild a worn injector by tipping a bottle of magic potion in the tank.
The original Lucas disc type injectors are an archaic design, if you want to replace them with the better pintle type you can use the injectors from a 2.0 litre Vauxhall Vectra.
Most injector specialists will be able to supply you a fully reconditioned set of used Vectra injectors at a reasonable price as they are very common.
When I did this I paid £130 for a set of 8 fully reconditioned Vectra injectors, when you consider it will probably cost you £80 to get your old Lucas ones reconditioned in my opinion it makes sense to update to the better pintle type.
Just be sure to ask your injector specialist to flow match the reconditioned Vectra injectors as a set of eight.
Good luck with it.
Defcon5 said:
2 inches above max on the dipstick would be several litres wouldnt it?
Its not quite such a big amount, my ready reckoning results in 5 x 30 x 20 cm ~= 3 litres. Yet if it has risen to the fuller part of the sumpso the crank is practical sat in oil, I guess it could be closer to several litres. I'd then reckon that to be in the order 100 discharges of excess fuel in the fuel rail?Hi, thanks for all the interesting replies.
Here I answear to your questions:
The Griffith has been parked in a pubblic garage for 5 months, it was all the time close to the cashier so it had a tad more ''security'' then the other cars but, still, plenty of people went by to have a look and I coulnd't guarantee that none of them with bad intentions, BTW somebody robbed the coolant reserve conteiner tap...for what? Who knows? Just to be a pain in that place...
My garage buddy told me today that there was about 1.5 ltrs then usual in the crank, the oil badly smelled of fuel, no traces of coolant were detected.
Every time I use the car I always check the oil level which is kept a tad below the maximum, so the last time before put her to sleep it must have been on the proper level otherwise I'd noticed it.
I took the car with a trailer to a garage buddy, I've changed the oil, oil filter and battery (it was dead).
The injectors have little time since I changed them for a new set, they have no more then a couple of thousands miles on the clock.
Thanks.
Here I answear to your questions:
The Griffith has been parked in a pubblic garage for 5 months, it was all the time close to the cashier so it had a tad more ''security'' then the other cars but, still, plenty of people went by to have a look and I coulnd't guarantee that none of them with bad intentions, BTW somebody robbed the coolant reserve conteiner tap...for what? Who knows? Just to be a pain in that place...
My garage buddy told me today that there was about 1.5 ltrs then usual in the crank, the oil badly smelled of fuel, no traces of coolant were detected.
Every time I use the car I always check the oil level which is kept a tad below the maximum, so the last time before put her to sleep it must have been on the proper level otherwise I'd noticed it.
I took the car with a trailer to a garage buddy, I've changed the oil, oil filter and battery (it was dead).
The injectors have little time since I changed them for a new set, they have no more then a couple of thousands miles on the clock.
Thanks.
Could it be a build up of pressure in the tank (Italy climate) causing fuel to be forced through the evaporative/purge canister and straight into the inlet manifold/plenum 
just a thought, I know theoretically its possible with this system just never known this to happen on a Tiv 
if done slowly enough and over a long enough period the car would not even appear to be flooded when started as the pressure as subsided and the fuel as seeped past open inlet valves and past piston rings and into the sump 
just a thought, I know theoretically its possible with this system just never known this to happen on a Tiv if done slowly enough and over a long enough period the car would not even appear to be flooded when started as the pressure as subsided and the fuel as seeped past open inlet valves and past piston rings and into the sump Edited by Simon says on Thursday 23 February 13:03
Simon says said:
Could it be a build up of pressure in the tank (Italy climate) causing fuel to be forced through the evaporative/purge canister and straight into the inlet manifold/plenum just a thought
The purge valve by default cuts the connection between tank + cannister and plenum. It's only opened up when the ecu grounds the purge valve & the fuel relay powers it up. Tank to carbon can should be an open 2 way pipe so the only pressurization is down to clogged cannister just a thought
(I think of it as little else but a sealed cooker hood & the purge valve just a vacuum cleaner switched on every now & again to clean it up)...but the weird & wonderful 'improvements' folks have attempted due to neglect / non-maintenance of a fairly simple system....?
That is all very interesting as I have the same problem with my TVR 350i. I got the TVR as a none running project and was getting unusual fuel pressure readings. On turning the engine over it locked up so took plugs out and cranked engine over by hand, petrol pored out no2 cylinder spark plug port! Checked oil level and 3inch too high on dip stick, drained oil and obvious petrol in oil. So I am thinking injector problem, and will do a compression test incase piston rings worn. Also the spark plugs sown signs of running too rich.
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