[ajslave]

hello guys. my first thread here, so forgive any noob-ness :P. also mods, request you to move this thread to wherever/if necessary

Car: Maruti 800, MPFI, 5 speed, 76000kms done.

A couple of days back, i topped up the coolant as it was below the half way mark. Then after 3 days, the engine started sounding very 'rough', and seemed to make too little power. Noticed that the coolant was now at the 'min' mark on the tank!

Next up there was a little oil spilled all over the engine bay. Looking under the car, noticed that most of the oil has 'splashed' on to the front tires, shafts, etc. Took out the dipstick, even that was wet almost throughout. Wiped it, put it back in, but still the same. There seems to be some oil leaking from somewhere around the dip stick...

Haven't driven the car since this happened, but when revved it feels like when only one cylinder is firing due to screwed spark plugs or something.

Is this case of the cylinder gaskets/valves needing replacement, as the maruti SVC people told me over the phone??

Looking forward to some help.
TIA

[.anshuman]

Time to rush to M.A.S.S to get the car checked, please post whatever they say about the car and Let the BHPians recommend the best for you.

[CrackedHead]

Do not drive it! 76K km's is a bit too early for major engine trouble unless you ran it with very little oil in the engine.

If you are located near silk board then call Suraksha (Maruti Service Masters outlet on Hosur Road). Post where you stay in Bangalore and people should be able to guide you to a reliable MASS nearby.

Did the car ever overheat while driving ? Its hard to say what's gone wrong without looking at the car.

Is the color and texture of the engine oil normal (pull out the dipstick and check) ? What is the current engine oil level (is it between the maximum and minimum levels) ?

[ElantraGT]

This seems to be a clear case of blown gasket. I would recommend you not to drive your vehicle this way. Please contact a authorised service center right away.

[CrackedHead]

^^ That was my first guess as well - but that doesn't explain the oil all around in the engine bay.

[abhibh]

ajslave can you post the picture of oil around engine bay ?

[MileCruncher]

I dont think that blown gaskets will lead to so much of oil splash but will result in compression loss. I have a feeling that there is a leak somewhere. But all said and done 76k is a bit too early for engine job unless you have done many high speed runs.

[ajslave]

@everyone, thansk for the replies guys.

CrackedHead

Post where you stay in Bangalore and people should be able to guide you to a reliable MASS nearby.

Did the car ever overheat while driving ?
Is the color and texture of the engine oil normal (pull out the dipstick and check) ? What is the current engine oil level (is it between the maximum and minimum levels) ?

the car never overheated before i noticed this, and we changed the engine oil a week prior to this. so the oil is still Brown and thick.

On the dipstick, the oil level is waaaaay above the MAX mark. it is smeared almost till about 3/4ths.

And i stay in basavanagudi. I used to give it to Kalyan motors on kanakapura road for service, wouldn't mind changing the SVC with any suggestions from you guys

abhibh ajslave can you post the picture of oil around engine bay ?

i wil put up the pics later, after comin back from bloody 'CAMD' exam

[pramodkumar]

Originally Posted by ElantraGT

This seems to be a clear case of blown gasket. I would recommend you not to drive your vehicle this way. Please contact a authorised service center right away.

Could you please explain this. If the head gasket is blown the colant reservoir tank will have soap like flakes.

The colant going to the minimum level is not at all an issue, just need to top it up. Remember water expands when it boils, and all that expands flows off through the over flow valve in the colant reservior. And when it cools off the level will be lower than earlier, also when you fill the reservoir you dont fill the lines, there must be a lot of colant in the lines which is absolutly normal, no need to panic. There is no engine oil reduction, so no chance of any major leak, to spill oil all over the place.

Its great being little extra cautious about the car, because proactive prevention always saves the big money spent on the cure. Get the car engine bay throughly washed using diesel, and also get the spark plugs/timing checked. Run the car for 100Kms and see if the issue persists. Taking the car to M A S S would be great but doing these few troubleshooting steps you can find where is the issue, and will put you in a better postion when you will take the car to M A S S.

Pramod

[sumeethaldankar]

Originally Posted by ajslave

@everyone, thansk for the replies guys.



the car never overheated before i noticed this, and we changed the engine oil a week prior to this. so the oil is still Brown and thick.

On the dipstick, the oil level is waaaaay above the MAX mark. it is smeared almost till about 3/4ths.

And i stay in basavanagudi. I used to give it to Kalyan motors on kanakapura road for service, wouldn't mind changing the SVC with any suggestions from you guys




i wil put up the pics later, after comin back from bloody 'CAMD' exam

Maybe the oil splash is due to overfilling of oil in the engine.The ideal quantity is around 3 litres.How much oil was poured in at the time of service?

[manek]

looks like a clear case of more oil in the engine than necessary. this may be moving up the rings considering the car has done above 75 k kms. suggest you drain the oil and refill the required 3 litres ,clean the spark plugs and see if everything settles down

[bullock-Car]

In my case, due to malfunction of temp sensor, temp used to overshoot then the gasket was torn and coolant was going in the cylinder, with starting problem for a day or two and complete stoppage.Had to tow to MASS and replace the sensor and gasket and replaced all fluids (engine Oil,coolant) etc. Keep an eye on the temp sensor and oil indicator and immediately take to MASS for servicing.

[pramodkumar]

Originally Posted by sumeethaldankar

Maybe the oil splash is due to overfilling of oil in the engine.The ideal quantity is around 3 litres.How much oil was poured in at the time of service?

The oil doesent spill out, the engine is a sealed compartment.

Originally Posted by manek

looks like a clear case of more oil in the engine than necessary. this may be moving up the rings considering the car has done above 75 k kms. suggest you drain the oil and refill the required 3 litres ,clean the spark plugs and see if everything settles down

Same as above,

But more oil means froath creation, and this would harm all the oil seals, and one would have a leaky engine as a result. It is advisable not to put as much as the manufacturer recomends but to use the dip stick as the correct reference.

As i earlier said wash your engine bay with diesel and then run the car for ~100 Kms and check for the source of leak.



Pramod

[Psycho]

Originally Posted by ajslave

A couple of days back, i topped up the coolant as it was below the half way mark. Then after 3 days, the engine started sounding very 'rough', and seemed to make too little power. Noticed that the coolant was now at the 'min' mark on the tank!

First sign of an over heating engine

Originally Posted by ajslave

Next up there was a little oil spilled all over the engine bay. Looking under the car, noticed that most of the oil has 'splashed' on to the front tires, shafts, etc. Took out the dipstick, even that was wet almost throughout. Wiped it, put it back in, but still the same. There seems to be some oil leaking from somewhere around the dip stick...

Oil from the dipstick and breather pipes point to blown piston rings

However I still wonder what is it doing on the tyres unless the main oil seal is gone.

Originally Posted by ajslave

Haven't driven the car since this happened, but when revved it feels like when only one cylinder is firing due to screwed spark plugs or something.

Confirmation you have a blowby (blown rings)

Originally Posted by ajslave

the car never overheated before i noticed this, and we changed the engine oil a week prior to this. so the oil is still Brown and thick.

On the dipstick, the oil level is waaaaay above the MAX mark. it is smeared almost till about 3/4ths.

Did you clean the dipstick and then check? else it points to excessive oil in the engine... did the svc center drain the old oil in the forst place?

Answer: You had excessive oil that led to failed piston rings, that caused a blowby and got the oil to spill all over.

[CrackedHead]

Blown piston rings causing overheating (coolant loss)! How ?