Catastrophic engine failure on a TD5

This is one of the most frightening things that can happen with a diesel.
Usually more likely in a very worn engine,but an over full sump with fuel dilution,or even just very overfilled can cause it.
Because it is self-sustaining a fuel cutout doesn`t work.The only way is air starvation.
If you are lucky enough to have a fairly large CO2 fire extinguisher on hand and can blast it down the air intake,it will stop it.
If it`s a full blown runaway you may have 30 secs before self-destruct.

An air cutoff is fitted to some trucks which works well as a last resort.

On a TD5 if you have a piece of timber,nice and flat and about 100mm square,and you can seperate the intake at the joint near the MAF,overcoming a massive suction and whack the wood in place all in 30 secs.You might just save your engine.

Trev.

Did you ever notice the oil level going up gradually previously?
When I worked for a dealer have had a few that would slowly increase oil level. They were leaking from the plunger on the injector and there was a modification on on the return system to lower the return system pressure. This slowed the process down dramatically to where the fuel dilution was to no effect between servicing.

So the only warning signs of this about to happen is a raising in the amount of oil/Diluted oil?

this is prob more common than you think. its down to diesel leaking down past the injector 'o' rings, filling the sump and causing this sort of problem. have a look on UK forums for "leaking injector seals"

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Originally Posted by Aaron40

So the only warning signs of this about to happen is a raising in the amount of oil/Diluted oil?

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Only if it filled slowly. if you blew a injector O ring it will fill in a matter of minutes.

On the last oil change I did note an increase in volume but I figured I hadn't let it cool down enough before checking. I wasn't aware that this was a known issue. My guess is confirmed by some of the posts here that it was a slow leak from the injectors with an unfortunate surge at the end. However the amount of wear to the engine was disproportionate to it's menial 72,000kms so I figure I would still have had to replace all of the items anyway regardless that it burned itself out for all of 30 seconds.

The comment about LR's post warranty service is very true. They were great for the first three years but the LR dealer's only two suggestions after this incident were;

1. replace the injectors at a cost of $7,000 and "see if that fixes it" or
2. rebuild the engine for about $22,000 which is the cars current market value.

At no point did they suggest testing it. The diesel specialist I sent it to simply charged $200 to run it through the mill with compression tests and sending cameras in to assess the actual damage. Why would LR not make this offer and keep me as a lifelong customer? And $7,000 for five injectors? I bought Delphi injectors from the UK at $1,375 for a set.

This was a very real and serious danger as I was close to the edge of a menacing drop off when it happened. My priority was to secure the car and get out of it pronto. TD5 owners please check your oil levels weekly as I would not wish this on anyone.

p.s. Thanks again for all the posts. These forums are akin to group therapy and very useful :)

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Originally Posted by Rayor

2. rebuild the engine for about $22,000 which is the cars current market value.

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Not trying to sound nasty but it's a pity this didn't happen a month ago. Then you could have snapped up a brand new Td5 long motor for around $2500. Unfortunately, someone else on here grabbed it.

Even now, a new motor is nowhere near $22k :eek:.

It is a pity. As it is I'm in for about $5,000 (so far) including parts and labour. Still, $2,500 is a bargain for a long engine.

In the underground coal mines where I work we have strangler systems fitted to the intake on all the diesels. This prevents the engine running on should you get into a methane rich atmosphere and the engine still keeps running even with the fuel shut off. Guess something like this would have helped. :(Many years ago I experienced a runaway engine on a Mack truck, we had just had the pump serviced and after installing it back on the motor we started it and it immediately revved out. Managed to stall it by crimping the intake hose shut. Turned out to be an assembly fault. Repair shop was very apologetic but luckily it didnt destroy the engine.

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Originally Posted by Rayor

. However the amount of wear to the engine was disproportionate to it's menial 72,000kms

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the damage youve described earlier in this thread is about the minimum ID expect to see in a diesel thats had a decent run on. the fact that it didnt chuck a big end out of bed or spit a piston sideways and you can reuse the block is impressive enough. Ive seen tougher engines than the td5 post runaway that have distorted every part from the sump to the rocker in the process.