The Mystery of the Disappearing Oil.

[jonesfam]

My D3 has never used more than a tiny bit of oil since I bought it in 2009, so like most people I got out of the habit of regularly checking it.
Last time I drove home I thought I had better have a look &
'Hell's Bell's" it was very low, like off the dip stick low.
So, not being keen on taking the girl back to the local dealer due to some bad experiences I phoned around & found a LR specialist independent fellow in Cairns & booked her in.
While waiting to take her down to Cairns I checked for leaks, none, I checked for smoke or soot/grease on the tail gate, none, very strange.
Anyway, finally got her to Cairns & the man checks her out, all he could find was a really, really, really dirty air filter, so dirty he thought no air would get through. So he replaces that & checks everything again, can't find any other engine problems.
Now this bloke is pretty good. He asks when the last service was, I tell him, he asks what sort of driving I do, I tell him, he then goes ballistic that the dealer was under servicing it (they insisted once a year was enough) & gives her a full service.
While doing the service he finds I have 2 stuffed wheel bearings but he only has 1 in stock, he phones around & finds a near new 1 at a wreakers & still replaces both. I thought the new tyres I put on were just noisy, apparently they aren't.
So, since then she has done the 897k run back to work & only used a tiny bit of oil, the new tyres have suddenly become quiet, she goes around corners a lot better & generally runs like she used to.
I'm very happy with my new found LR specialist, he is very passionate & knowledgeable, was reasonably priced as well, so no more Dealer for my Land Rover.
BTW, if you are in Cairns or there about & need a real good LR specialist just ask me.


Jonesfam
PS I should have twigged to the dirty air filter because my fuel consumption had gone to hell, it's back to normal now.

[Ean Austral]

Glad to hear you found a good indy in Cairns, always handy to have options. How did he pick the wheel bearings, was there excessive movement in them or where they just noisy ?


I would have thought 1 service a year would be light on in most circumstances as its usually every 6 months or XXXX km's .


Cheers Ean

[jonesfam]

Excessive movement in the front 1 & noise in the rear bearing.


I agree, when the dealer told me I only needed 1 service a year I questioned him about it but he insisted. Stupidly I thought he should know what he was on about.
Jonesfam

[vnx205]

The title of this thread justifies a comment about how it is possible for oil consumption to appear to change dramatically.

It may not happen with your engine and in your circumstances, but it seems that under certain conditions some engines can appear to use no oil at all then suddenly use a lot.

If an engine spends most of its time doing very short runs so that the engine is rarely up to operating temperature, the fuel that condenses on the cold cylinder walls can find its way into the sump. That unburnt fuel compensates for the small amount of oil that is consumed.

If that engine is then taken on a trip or a series of trips where the engine spends a lot of time at operating temperature, the unburnt fuel that has been accumulating in the sump evaporates and the oil level drops dramatically.

That is why some city cars break down when taken on the family's annual holiday trip.

You probably knew that, and as I said, I don't know if your engine could do that with the driving you normally do.

[jonesfam]

Thanks VNX
Probably not that in my case.
The D3 usually gets used for the longer drives it hardly ever does the 10k in to town. It usually does the 60k to Atherton & the 800 odd k to work & the same back every 4th or 5th week.
The rest of the time it sits looking dirty & forlorn.
Jonesfam

[Davehoos]

That is why some city cars break down when taken on the family's annual holiday trip. had a parking spot for the tow trucks at the Newcastle dealer ship to unload the holiday makers.


having loads of trouble with modern common rail diesels. never yet had a warranty claim as they are always within specs. landcruisers we now using expencive oil, lot cheaper to fit an oil level gauge in the sump.


the last group of issues we have are with after burner 05 engines. some have a X on the dip stick that when its over that you change oil. The only way to get an accurate level is to park on level ground over night. other wise it can easily be out 15+% +/-.