Oil in Aircleaner - can't work it out?

subius · Post by **subius** » Mon Dec 12, 2005 8:54 pm

I've got a 89 L wagon with a carbed EA82 and when i bought the car one of the breather pipes for the sump wasn't connected to the air filter because it was blowing oil (didn't know this when i bought it as the engine bay had been steam cleaned). I soon realised it was probably caused by compression in the sump as the exhaust was blowing a bit of blue smoke too.

So i eventually bit the bullet and had the motor rebuilt, bored out, oversized pistons etc. But i'm still getting oil coming up throught the breather pipes and into the airfilter. Had it back to the mechanic 4 times and he's running out of ideas and reckons he's never seen anything like it and has worked on subys for 20 years. Checked all the hoses that lead in and out of the air cleaner and they're not blocked.

Has anyone had this problem or got any ideas on what it might be?

Cheers.

steve_rising_sun · Post by **steve_rising_sun** » Mon Dec 12, 2005 9:14 pm

I have had it before, on the l/h/side of the engine the PCV and rocker cover run in to a small pipe at the air cleaner. Do away with it and using the 5/8 inlet on the same side of the air cleaner, vent the left rocker box to the 5/8 tube- T piecing the PVC valve at 1/2 way.
I bit hard to explain with my one finger so ring if you want 0883496960
Steve

subius · Post by **subius** » Thu Dec 15, 2005 6:42 pm

Thanks Steve, i think i get what you mean. Just join it at a T so the oil dumps out the back while still allowing the PCV to breath? I tried dumping the pipe from the PCV straight onto the ground and once the oil started coming out it had a kind of cyphon effect and started to suck it out. Was going though about a litre a week at that stage.

What i'm trying to work out is what is wrong with the breathing system so i can fix the problem and have it hooked up normally, rather than keeping the problem and having oil dump out the back the whole time.

Any ideas what might be causing it?

Cheers

chubby37 · Post by **chubby37** » Fri Dec 16, 2005 7:22 am

sounds like blow by....this is when the crank case (sump) builds pressure.means a compression ring problem

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Fri Dec 16, 2005 7:36 am

Yeah, for sure, but you shouldn't be getting blow-by in a freshly rebuilt engine. They probably put a new PCV in when they built the donk yeah?

Could be a blocked breather or vac line. Have these been checked?

steve_rising_sun · Post by **steve_rising_sun** » Fri Dec 16, 2005 5:26 pm

When that small T piece stuffs up the motor builds up crankcase pressure.
You must reroute to achieve -ve pressure in the sump.
Steve

subius · Post by **subius** » Sun Dec 18, 2005 7:28 pm

I'm not too familiar with exactly how the breathing system works but are you saying that by putting a T piece in the pipe between the rocker cover and the air cleaner negative pressure will be restored in the sump?

Not sure if the PCV valve was replaced when the motor was rebuilt but it definetly works, it was the first thing my mechanic checked.

Had all the breather and vac lines checked several times and it still blows oil.

Another thing that's strange. Everytime a go round this one particular corner i get a huge oil surge up into the air cleaner and huge clould of blue smoke out the back as a result. This has happened 3 times on exactly the same corner. Very strange. It's a long sweeping left hander which turns onto a straight. And its when i get to the straight bit that the blue smoke starts.

Weird huh? what you guys reckon?

smoov · Post by **smoov** » Sun Dec 18, 2005 9:36 pm

How's this for ULTRAWEIRD?

i was driving on a straight (the new M7 motorway to be precise)
doing about 100km/h @ 3000rpm.... nice straight road... in fifth gear.

cruising.

all of a sudden, mass drop in power, and the cabin fills with smoke. look in the rear view mirror, and the whole world behind be is clouds of white fluffy smoke

"damn..." i mutter, "f**king rings!!". Having been quite shirty about this, I decided to hell with it all, and floor it.

well, whadya know....

the motor responded. no funny noises. exhaust still blowing smoke, but she was still pulling. check gauges. oil pressure, and temps were A-OK.
"Whats wrong??" I asked myself.

keep flooring it, and I was really expecting the worst.

Pulled over about 30km later, and decided to investigate. I found nothing unusual, except about 1/2 litre of oil missing on the dipstick, and the air filter housing bracket pooled with oil.

what would have caused it in my situation? After test driving it over the last few days, and retracing my steps considerably (about 5 times) under the same conditions, I couldnt get my car to reproduce any similar symptoms....

steve_rising_sun · Post by **steve_rising_sun** » Tue Dec 20, 2005 9:37 pm

My finger gets sore, so phone 0883496960
Steve

Outback bloke · Post by **Outback bloke** » Wed Dec 21, 2005 6:49 am

Another thing that's strange. Everytime a go round this one particular corner i get a huge oil surge up into the air cleaner and huge clould of blue smoke out the back as a result. This has happened 3 times on exactly the same corner. Very strange. It's a long sweeping left hander which turns onto a straight. And its when i get to the straight bit that the blue smoke starts.

I had exactly the same thing as this happen to me. A piston was cracked in behind the rings. Only one corner would do it but when it did it used to put James bonds smoke screens to shame.

No harm in trying what Steve has said. If it works then you know where/what has to be fixed.

I would say to do a compression test on it. It could be any number of things, like a cracked ring or piston, bad seating head gaskets, cracked head.