[dZired]

Yesterday afternoon I returned from a trip to a friend of mine in my 2002 ZEN. After about 2 hours of rest I decided to go to a nearby temple along with my brother. As I revved up the car, my brother who was standing behind the car waiting for me to take it out from the garage complained that the exhaust was throwing out some oil-like fluid everytime the car was revved. I checked it and yes my brother was right.
Took the car to KP automobiles but they were not able to find the cause. After some time the problem resolved automatically.
Can anyone tell what possibly could be the cause of this problem. And can I drive the car in this state or should i consider any other service station.

I am attaching the pics of the oil for your reference

[kaush666]

Wow! That doesn't look good. Does this happen only when you rev hard and lift off the throttle or every time u lift off the throttle irrespective of the RPM?
Would suggest an oil change as well if it has been a long time or you have driven a lot of kms.

[IndigoXLGrandDi]

Please check the Engine Oil level and if there are dirt (carbon) particles in it.
Also when was the oil replaced? How much has the car run (Odo reading)?


EDIT

Is the oil thrown out irrespective of engine temp (Cold or Hot)?

How is the pickup and fuel efficiency of the car?

[dZired]

Originally Posted by kaush666

Wow! That doesn't look good. Does this happen only when you rev hard and lift off the throttle or every time u lift off the throttle irrespective of the RPM?

It happens irrespective of the RPM. I first noticed it while reversing the car and the car was not revved hard.

Originally Posted by IndigoXLGrandDi

Please check the Engine Oil level and if there are dirt (carbon) particles in it.
Also when was the oil replaced? How much has the car run (Odo reading)?

The oil was replaced 2 months back during servicing. The car is about to touch the 1lakh reading on the odo.

[kaush666]

Originally Posted by dZired

It happens irrespective of the RPM. I first noticed it while reversing the car and the car was not revved hard.

The oil was replaced 2 months back during servicing. .

Check the oil level first.

Also it could be soot from the exhaust that has built up over the years and condensation inside exhaust mixing up.

Does your car smoke on revving?

If the smoke is blue/gray, it means that engine oil is leaking into the combustion chamber. If the leak is huge, it might be able to directly come out of the exhaust pipe too. Which would mean the dark liquid you observed first is actually oil but not a soot-water mix.

[dZired]

Originally Posted by IndigoXLGrandDi

Is the oil thrown out irrespective of engine temp (Cold or Hot)?

How is the pickup and fuel efficiency of the car?

As informed in my first post, the car had taken rest for about 2 hours after the trip to my friend and hence the engine was not that hot. When I took it to the service station the temperature was again normal but still the problem was persisting. The car i quite well maintained and there is no lack of pickup, FE is around 16 in city.

Originally Posted by kaush666

Check the oil level first.

Also it could be soot from the exhaust that has built up over the years and condensation inside exhaust mixing up.

Does your car smoke on revving?

Will surely check the oil level ASAP sir. The car doesnt smoke at all.

[black12rr]

Did you feel it with fingers ? . How is it , oil or (water + soot ) ? . The cat converter give out water .If its really oil ,then you should check it up.

[dZired]

Originally Posted by black12rr

Did you feel it with fingers ? . How is it , oil or (water + soot ) ? . The cat converter give out water .If its really oil ,then you should check it up.

Yes it was indeed oil. It was thick and had high viscosity so cant be water and soot. I will take it to another service station to get it checked.

Checked the engine oil too. Its fine.

[scorpian]

Have you used any fuel additives?Or changed fuel bunk recently?

If your car isn't smoking from the tail pipe and oil levels are fine then this looks like actual carbon being thrown out from the exhaust which is would say is great.A possible thing coz every time u rev your actually getting all that carbon to go out from the exhaust.

Maybe experts can say if this is the same as a italian tune-up.


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[rajeev k]

From the picture it appears to be carbon soot laden moisture. During cold start it is common to eject moisture and would be more in cold weather or during rainy season.
Check the following,

1. Engine Oil for drop in level and for water content in which case the oil will be foamy.
2. Coolant for traces of oil.
3. Spark Plugs for oil traces or thick velvetty soot.

[dZired]

Originally Posted by scorpian

Have you used any fuel additives?Or changed fuel bunk recently?

If your car isn't smoking from the tail pipe and oil levels are fine then this looks like actual carbon being thrown out from the exhaust which is would say is great.A possible thing coz every time u rev your actually getting all that carbon to go out from the exhaust.

Maybe experts can say if this is the same as a italian tune-up.

Yes the service guys used some additional additives during the last service (which costed me around 500 bucks). I dont remeber the name though . The oil levels are absolutely fine as I have checked it twice.

Originally Posted by rajeev k

From the picture it appears to be carbon soot laden moisture. During cold start it is common to eject moisture and would be more in cold weather or during rainy season.
Check the following,

1. Engine Oil for drop in level and for water content in which case the oil will be foamy.
2. Coolant for traces of oil.
3. Spark Plugs for oil traces or thick velvetty soot.

I'll surely check these points sir. THANKS. Though the oil level is fine.

[rajeev k]

What kind of an additive was used during the last service a fuel additive or a lube oil additive. There are some fuel additives which does a kind of a running de-carbonizing.

[SS-Traveller]

Did your service centre perform an engine flush?

[dZired]

Originally Posted by rajeev k

What kind of an additive was used during the last service a fuel additive or a lube oil additive. There are some fuel additives which does a kind of a running de-carbonizing.

It was a lube oil additive for sure. Will try to find out its name from the bill receipt.

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

Did your service centre perform an engine flush?

No sir they didnt. It was just a regular oil service.

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by dZired

It was a lube oil additive for sure. Will try to find out its name from the bill receipt.

Originally Posted by dZired

Yes the service guys used some additional additives during the last service (which costed me around 500 bucks).

Originally Posted by dZired

Yes it was indeed oil. It was thick and had high viscosity so cant be water and soot.

dZired, can you please recheck the engine oil level in your car? Check for overfilling. Let me explain below

What normally happens is technicians fill up sufficient oil up to the required level and add an additive over it. So if your Zen takes 2.5L max and the technician fills 2.5L + 300ml of additive, that would mean there's 2.8L of oil+additive mixture in your sump.

So, check oil level on level ground after the engine has been switched off for at least 20 minutes to let the oil drain back into the sump. The level should be between the Empty and Full mark on the dip stick but not more than 1 mm over the F mark. If there's excess oil please have it drained out through the drain plug. Excess oil is not good for the engine, not only does it lead to frothing of the oil, it will also foul the plugs and increase viscous drag on the engine. In extreme cases it can damage the engine as well.

Also, please note that if you fill in a good quality oil (what oil did they ASC fill?) you do NOT need additives. Just keep changing the oil at regular intervals as specified by MSIL.