Cars Poorly :(

[happydude]

hi all...was driving the car today 02 plate t-spirit and the oil pressure light started flickering so stopped at the petrol station and chucked a litre of oil in it but its still the same and now i have a horrible noise from the belt side of the engine and and a tapping sometimes from the top end ..ohh its also really down on power. please help. :(

[Jamesbelfast]

Cpuld be the engine has lost oil pressure with resulting engine damage. What oil was showing on the dipstick before topping it up. Time to lift the cam cover off for a looksee inside. When was the oil last changed??:)

[happydude]

Cpuld be the engine has lost oil pressure with resulting engine damage. What oil was showing on the dipstick before topping it up. Time to lift the cam cover off for a looksee inside. When was the oil last changed??:)

it had a service about a year ago...dont know what the oil level was because ive been an idiot and not checked it :( this is gonna be expensive isnt it. :(

just let the car sit for a while and checked the oil level...its now bang on halfway between the two dots and ive only put a litre in it...do you reckon i could have let it run dry???

[Jamesbelfast]

Cpuld be the engine has lost oil pressure with resulting engine damage. What oil was showing on the dipstick before topping it up. Time to lift the cam cover off for a looksee inside. When was the oil last changed??:)

it had a service about a year ago...dont know what the oil level was because ive been an idiot and not checked it :( this is gonna be expensive isnt it. :(

just let the car sit for a while and checked the oil level...its now bang on halfway between the two dots and ive only put a litre in it...do you reckon i could have let it run dry???

In the words of a certain insurance company "Oh Yes"!!!:)

[happydude]

can anyone gimme any pointers as to best place to start to find out exactly whats wrong?

[Mick24]

First place to start - Beg/Steal or borrow an oil pressure gauge to check your oil pressure.

Remove the oil pressure switch and fit the gauge there - you should have more than 3 psi at idle and 43 - 78 psi or more at 3000 rpm.

It does sound like the engine has been starved of oil, so engine rebuild or replacement time :(

Mick

[reece]

Sounds like driver error and not the oil pump :(

This maybe of use...

[dailey87]

oh dear... hope you get it sorted and it doesn't cost the earth to fix.

On the plus side if it needs a new engine, it's a good excuse to put a 2zz in there!

[happydude]

this is very strange...just took the car out and no oil light...drove ok for about 15 mins and then the oil light came back on and strange whirring noise and tapping its !Removed! off!!! so i stopped,turned it off and left it for a while. then started it back up and no light again. any ideas fellas???

[Jamesbelfast]

Obviously something serious seems to be amiss so why keep driving it. At the moment it may be possible to fix the problem but if you continue to drive it then you could end up with a much bigger bill for repairs. As already suggested get the oil pressure checked out before it goes BOOM!!!

As a matter of interest Happydude when did you last check the oil level - before it began to rattle that is??

[happydude]

Obviously something serious seems to be amiss so why keep driving it. At the moment it may be possible to fix the problem but if you continue to drive it then you could end up with a much bigger bill for repairs. As already suggested get the oil pressure checked out before it goes BOOM!!!

As a matter of interest Happydude when did you last check the oil level - before it began to rattle that is??

oil hasnt been checked for a while:(

[happydude]

can anyone gimme some things to check so i can locate the problem please chaps???

[Mick24]

can anyone gimme some things to check so i can locate the problem please chaps???

YES - Check the Oil Pressure otherwise it might ....

.

.

If the oil pressure is ok as in my previous reply, then start looking at a faulty oil pressure switch or a blocked VVTi solenoid causing an intermittant rattle.

Mick

[Black Knight]

Big end bearings will be shot due to low oil level. The tapping will be the conrods smashing around against the crank pins.

Since there's excessive clearance around the bearings when the car warms up and the viscosity drops there's no back pressure to create oil pressure hence why the oil pressure light keeps coming on.

If you want to check it get the car up on a ramp and take the oil pan off. You'll find you can move the rods on the pin.

[happydude]

thanks for your replys chaps. ill have a butchers tomorrow. anyone wanna buy a mint t-spirit with knackered enginge??? :-(

[Jamesbelfast]

When oil pressure drops dangerously low or fails the components farthest from the pump usually suffer first or worst. Guess what components are farthest away from the oil pump. Yes you've guessed correctly - it will be the camshaft and followers, etc. So start by removing the cam cover for a looksee. Lack of oil usually show burn marks which result in steel componets turning slightly blue. Look for excessive wear and excessive valve clearnaces. Also dropping the sump and feeling if the conrods move is totally pointless. In fact to check the big-end bearings you will need to remove the bearing caps for close inspection.:)

[Black Knight]

Not true. The eccentric loading of the rods means they go first as the oil pressure drops. If you don't believe me search any of the celica, avensis and corolla forums on here for oil consumption problems. You'll find in any case where the engine has gone it is always the big end bearings that have gone. Engine will already be so far gone at the bottom end before you have an issue higher up. 2 second search flagged these ones up (note there's a comment by a guy "fazzer" in one or two of the links who then fixes one in the third so worth paying some attention to):

http://toyotaownersclub.com/forums/index.p...oil+consumption

http://toyotaownersclub.com/forums/index.p...oil+consumption

http://toyotaownersclub.com/forums/index.p...oil+consumption

Also since the clearance between the bearings and the pins is less than the thickness of a human hair you shouldn't be able to move them on the pin (you might feel a slight movement in the axial direction but around the pin you shouldn't feel anything). The bearing is a couple of mm thick so if it's shot enough to make a lot of noise chances are you can move it on the pin. Granted for a thorough check you'd need to remove the con-rod caps but for a rough check feeling for movement should be enough.

[Jamesbelfast]

I think if you read the first post it clearly states tapping from the top end. That's why I suggested checking the top-end first.

I have worked at engines for over 40 years and know my way about them and checking for play (in the up and own plane) is not a good test as it is well known in the engineering world for damaged Shell bearings to be come scuffed or corroded(causing a raised surface) thus reducing clearance.:)

[Black Knight]

I have read the original post very carefully. However the explaination covers three items.

1. Oil Level was low - fact explained and a known issue with this engine

2. Oil pressure light is coming on - fact combined with item 1. that points towards the pump drawing air rather than oil

3. Noise from the engine - description is coming from the top of the engine. Subjective and I know from experience it can be hard to localise noises on this particular engine.

There is a clear and well documented issue with this design of engine that causes oil consumption issues and the OP has stated that he let the oil get low. Based on that fact the known result of this is oil starvation to the bearings (and illustrated by the previous links I posted) is that the big end bearings will be damaged.

The OP asked for ways to confirm this. If the bearing has picked up and been damaged then it can raise up against the surface as you state, at which point it gets scraped across causing further damage to the bearing as it gets worse and worse. As this issue gets worse and worse then the clearances start to open up THEN you hear the noise. Therefore if you are hearing noise due to failed big ends then you will be able to move them on the crank pins. I've done this a number of times on this engine type and it works a treat.

Finally I've 25 years of experience of engines and significant experience with this engine type but that's just willy waving until we have more information

[happydude]

well thanks for all the replys guys but all a bit academic now because ive traded it in for an alfa 147........cue the abuse :)

[KPARRIS-JONES]

well thanks for all the replys guys but all a bit academic now because ive traded it in for an alfa 147........cue the abuse :)

So am I correct in saying that you sold your broken car, for another car that will soon be broken too? :P :lol2: ;)

Just kidding mate, good luck with the new ride and your time with it! :D

[happydude]

cheers matey :-) the corolla was a decent enough car but totally boring compared to the alfa!!!