Thread: how often is too often (servicing) - some questions

Originally Posted by scarry

Ok,drop of oil on white piece of cardboard,then what

Please explain she said....

Google Fuel dilution blotter test, you'll find heaps of info

Originally Posted by rick130

Umm, no.
That's the sort of thing blokes did when I was a kid, (early seventies) and I still remember Dad's 'greaseologist' (that's what it said on his wall) telling him "that Shell oil was no good as it went black really quickly"
No, what that colour change meant was it had better detergency and dispersancy than the Castrol GTX we put in our Jeep and Holden's, it was doing it's job and cleaning and suspending stuff.

Colour with diesel oil for the most part means absolutely nothing, it generally goes black pretty quickly, even with the TD5, and as for texture, I was joking re soot %'s, but I'm damned if anyone can feel the difference between 0.5% (ok) and 4% (well past most peoples condemnation limit) and either is as black as night.
Yes, we can all smell diesel, but if it's at the point you can smell it in engine oil it's waaaay past the point it's doing potential damage.
No oil, regardless of cost nor pedigree nor additive level nor base oils can cope with fuel dilution (or coolant for that matter, glycol is an oil killer too)

A business card and a drop of oil will give you a quick and dirty visual reference.
If it spreads fairly quickly and gives a lighter outer ring like a 'halo' that's probably an indicator of fuel.
This is a great one for when you suspect but aren't sure (and you're waiting for the lab results)
Soot levels can be indicated in the outer ring, I'll try and dig up an example, there used to be an excellent Cummins reference I've posted before.

Old school GP's could tell a lot by grabbing your wrist, looking in your eyes and looking at your tongue, but looking at and feeling engine oil I don't think you can pick up too much.

Totally agree with your comments there Rick.

Originally Posted by trout1105

When I pull the dipstick out and run it between my fingers to check the texture, smell the oil and look at the colour I can pretty much tell if the oil needs changing.
Next time you check your oil use one hand to check the oil in the engine and put some new oil on the other hand to see, smell and feel the difference

I check my oil by pressing a few buttons on the steering wheel - from that perspective the oil always looks pretty sweet

I assumed the oil analysis would give early indications of the wear on various components in the engine - the same way it does for a caterpillar haul truck, for example.
I had the romantic notion that you could, for example, know that some widget in the back of the block needed changing long before you found out the hard way, after a catastrophic failure half way along the canning stock route...

I check my oil by pressing a few buttons on the steering wheel - from that perspective the oil always looks pretty sweet

My Disco didn't come fitted with that option in 2004, all I have got is a dipstick to check the oil

Originally Posted by trout1105

My Disco didn't come fitted with that option in 2004, all I have got is a dipstick to check the oil

Be glad - I would prefer that. In order to check the oil you need to have the engine warmed up, but turned off for ~ 10min. Sounds simple, but it makes checking oil a long process. And if you miss the checking window of opportunity, you need to start again.

Originally Posted by veebs

Be glad - I would prefer that. In order to check the oil you need to have the engine warmed up, but turned off for ~ 10min. Sounds simple, but it makes checking oil a long process. And if you miss the checking window of opportunity, you need to start again.

Doesn't the D4 have a dipstick?

Originally Posted by veebs

Be glad - I would prefer that. In order to check the oil you need to have the engine warmed up, but turned off for ~ 10min. Sounds simple, but it makes checking oil a long process. And if you miss the checking window of opportunity, you need to start again.

There was a previous thread about this. Pop the bonnet and you can check it straight away.

Martin

Originally Posted by trout1105

My Disco didn't come fitted with that option in 2004, all I have got is a dipstick to check the oil

Dipstick any day for me,nice and easy,and shouldn't fail🙂

My L322 is the last RR diesel with a dipstick, which is also my preferred way of checking the oil.