Thread: TD5 engine life - discuss

I had an issue with diesel in the sump. The frequent oil changes were a solution to try and prevent damage to the motor until I could afford a new head. As you can see above, it took me a long time to find the $. Had some health issues. It was pretty stressful driving around all that time with a dodgy head believe me. Anyway its done now which is a huge relief.


Having said that my new mechanic just said to me on Friday that if it were his car, he'd continue to change the oil every 5000kms even with the new head.

Why? they would have cleaner oil at 5000 ks than a Japanese 4x4 would have at 1000 ks

He said that being a diesel, they dirty up the oil pretty quickly. That's all I can tell you, I'm no mechanic. Being cynical maybe he just wants the extra business, I really don't think so though, he's pretty highly regarded on here.


I do note that Landrover used to promote servicing these vehicles at 20,000kms when they were new, none of my mechanics have ever agreed with that, particularly for stop start city driving.

Your mechanic doesn't know what he's talking about,all Land Rover Diesels post Tdi can run to 12K between changes easily,I personally think 15K is a non event. Pat

With respect, I found my current mechanic on this forum, he is a highly regarded LR Specialist. I don't think that anyone who knows these vehicles and has specialised in them, could be accused of this "Your mechanic doesn't know what he's talking about".


I thought that good fuel, oil and air was "Preventative Maintenance 101"?

Oil is cheap. Well, cheap compared to an engine rebuild.
I see no problem in over servicing. On many occasions I have instructed my Commodore mechanic to service items well before the due date.

WRT life of Td5 motors, I know of one that has been declared "deceased" and it hasn't done 100,000km. Sometimes circumstances get in the way of engine life.

Originally Posted by Islandnomad

.... continue to change the oil every 5000kms even with the new head.

note : not referring to your mechanic at all. check the oil yourself ie just pull out the dipstick and see how long it takes to darken up. at 5,000km in my td5 defender it was just starting to lose the golden colour. in my triton ute 2003/4 vintage it would be dirty in well under 2,000k. the filter in the td5 is a cracker (you can hear it spinning/slowing down when you turn the motor off).

To go back to the original post subject.
I wonder if there is a significant difference in engine life between original tune vs highly tuned?