Thread: Catastrophic engine failure on a TD5

Id start getting worried at anything over .5% dilution that means something somewhere is leaking diesel into your oil.

As we all know Landie leaks only stop under 3 occasions
1. You run out of the fluid thats leaking
2. the fluid level runs so low that the component thats leaking destroys itself
3. you fix the problem.

The leak will only get worse not better.

My dodgy check for leaks is as follows, your going to need a nanocom or similar for reading engine temperature, a fuel return line block and a bypass for the fuel relay along with basic tools, an assistant and some damn good gloves.

Fair warning This is not a nice test, it has the potential to blow apart your fuel system and destroy the head if you get it wrong or risk too much. IF you try it and blow something apart or melt something I'm not going to let you hold me responsible

Remove the sound proofing from the engine.
Take the vehicle for a drive warm it up to normal operating temperature
place a towel over the radiator intake and plug in your nanocom
remove the bonnet.
start the engine and run it at high idle until the nanocom indicates a high engine temperature (115 degrees or so assuming your entire cooling system is in good order) the minimum temperature you should be aiming at is when the temperature gauge moves from the calibrated "normal" position to a high temp indication. IF YOU DO NOT TRUST THE GAUGE CALIBRATION USE YOUR OWN BEST INSTINCT
remove block and refit the return to tank fuel line
remove the rocker cover
bypass the fuel pump relay so the pump is permanantly on (2 minutes should be enough)
observe the oil near the tops of the injectors while the pump is running.

Undo all of what you just did and return the vehicle to its original condition.

When I had oil tests done on my vehicle (2001 TD5 Def) the analysis showed 5% dilution warning that oil viscosity was being affected.

After a head replacement injector seals twice LR finally did the injectors and this seems to have solved the problem.

To me the biggest problem is the increased long term wear on the engine caused by the effect of the oil. fuel on

G'day all.
A bit of an update on my oil level monitoring. I've done 1457km since changing the injector seals and both filters and oil (Penrite Diesel 5W40). In that time I have monitored the level fairly closely and the level has remained at or on the full arrow. I always take readings when engine has cooled. I once looked at the level and it was 5mm above the previous reading. So I started the engine and let it run for 5 min from cold then turned it off. Checked it next day and the level was back on the full arrow.
As long as it is not going up at an alarming rate an oil/filter change every 5000k's should counter the effects of fuel dilution ???. My oil test before the seal change brought back a reading of 4.4%. I would like to do another test but I used an oil system flush after the injectors were done and I am worried that traces of the oil flush will corrupt the results.
Regards
Robbo.

The leak on my engine was easy to spot, with the rocker cover off and the fuel system pressurized there was fuel bubbling out the side of the injector. The O ring must have been cut on instillation.

Originally Posted by goofyr

Hey guys,

I've been following this thread cos I've got the same problem with my 2003 TD5. I noticed it about 3 months ago. I took it to Graeme Cooper here in Sydney. I've had the seals changed and the head checked out for cracks (no problem there), but the oil level is still rising. Now they will check out the injectors by replacing them one by one (apparently they can't find a place to test the TD5 injectors).

It's definitely a costly exercise at the wrong time of the year, I just hope this will fix it.

Cheers,
Randy

My problem seems to have been resolved. I had injector 1 replaced to test which injector might be causing the problem. It's been 3 weeks I've travelled about 1500ks and the oil level hasn't changed (checked when cold). Speaking to the guys at Graeme Cooper they said they haven't seen many injector leaks, but the ones they have seem to have been affected by the oil in harness problem which I didn't get fixed until last year. Funny thing is this problem didn't come up until after I've had the the harness fixed.

Cheers,
Randy

In the UK, it is one of the commenest engine failures...its common practise to change injectior seals & the loom on a td5 before they even break now...

Originally Posted by foss

In the UK, it is one of the commenest engine failures...its common practise to change injectior seals & the loom on a td5 before they even break now...

wats a avg KM they change the seals at, they are cheap so might be worth doing,, i want to keep my td5,

id like to put my bore skope down there as well and have a look around,

mine went at 109k miles and from receipts from the previous owner they had never been done...im now on 126k and had my head gasket go at 124k so did them again for the sake of it & will probably do them again at 160k or so...

youre right, theyre mega cheap parts that save possibly a whole engine...no brainer really