Am I In Trouble? (1 Viewer)

[J.A.P]

Well I picked up my '92 LC @ 2 weeks ago and brought it into the shop today to have the valves adjusted. The mechanic said there was sludge build up in valve area indicating poor maintenance. I'm having the engine flushed (BG QUICK FLUSH) and will do a few oil changes in a realatively short period of time (maybe every 2500 miles?) to try and help it out. The truck has just over 102000 miles. I would like some of your opinions on how bad this may have hurt my engine and what problems I may be in store for. I know I'm a little late on finding this out so please don't flame me to bad. Thanks in advance for the help. Joe.

 

[Digger276]

Hey Joe, I bought a 91 with 140,000 and in the same shape as yours. Well you know know that the maintaining was slack. So check everything now. My 91 didn't have any grease in one of the birfs, so check everything. The good thing is that the engine is tough. One caution on the flush, some of the "gunk" that you will be flushing out may "unclog" a seal and cause some leaking. So be on the lookout for that, my rear main seal is now leaking some. I too am changing my oil at about 2,000 to 2,500 to "catch up" it still comes out black as can be. I add an oil treatment that has extra detergent in it to help. Some have suggested to change the filter half way through the oil change to assist. I have not tried that yet. It is a tough engine, but the more I drive it the more "little" things come up. So keep an extra eye on it and check it out throughly, replace all the lubricants a must. Including break fluid, power steering fluid, axles, trans, oil, grease points, differentials, radiator fluid (with a really good flush). Good luck. Cris

 

[erics_bruisers]

don't flush it --

-- just change the oil more often, and do it when the engine is warm --



e

my 91 has 200K on it and has no sludgery -- and the PO was a POS

 

[Gumby]

I just had to deal with this same thing today. Our secretary took her nearly new Cougar in and the guy showed her the oil cap with crusty stuff on it. he tried to convince her it needed a flush.

The only thing that gets flushed is your wallet. It is a money making scam. Don't do it. Don't listen to anything that any mechanic tells you that tries to sell you one.

After she refused, he tried to sell her brakes she didn't need either. Apparently he had a boat payment due and thought she should help him out.

 

[Scamper]

Joe -

Believe what Gumby says...he's a mechanic

All kidding aside, it sounds like you've already done the flush. Now you'll just have to live with the possible ramifications. Post back with any problems.

 

[J.A.P]

I haven't done the flush yet. It's only a one can treatment, a product by BG called quick flush. The concesus here seems to be it's a bad idea. What harm does it cause? How else can I get rid of the sludge? Am I screwd? I just want to get the engine clean without more damage. You guy's have me as scared as little girl!

 

[semlin]

the potential problem is that a flush cleaner that is basically a solvent might reduce lubciraction at startup and cause metal damage and then could also free up a lump of sludge that migrates into a narrow oil passageway and blocks it. There is a website called www.bobistheoilguy.com where they debate this endlessly. A lot of them support a product called autorx which involves a 2 oil change flush procedure..Also do a search on posts by "Cary" here. He is an oil nut. If anything I say here is contradicted by him listen to him.

I think a gradual approach is better. Just change it more often, use a quality filter (toyota OEM) and a better brand of oil. One option is synthetic, in which case I would say mobil 1, 0 or 10w40. You may leak a bit for a while, but it certainly worked for me starting at 122k. 20k later my oil is clean and i don't use as much as I did when I bought it. Cary recommends some regular dino oil brands based on additive packages. Can't recall if it is rotella or delvac he likes best.

 

[Digger276]

Agree

In all the years I have worked on cars the best flush is diesel fuel. Right before you yake the engine out to rebuild it, pour in a quart of diesel and run it then drain and remove the engine. The inside will be clean as a whistle. That is the only time I have ever seen a flush needed. I think everyone is right about changing more often and doing the mobil 1 switch, just remember it is not a good idea to switch from synthetic to regular oil, once you have done the switch stay with it. you will be fine, it is a tough engine, just keep your eye on the little things

 

[Kalawang]

JAP,


A long long time ago I used a little trick to quiet my tappets. I put a can or two of grease under the cylinder head cover. It made the motor run quiet instead of tapping along. It actually made my old motor sound as if it was in perfect shape.

Please look carefully at your sludge if it comes from that same place. If it's grease, there's a chance you have a motor that doesn't have the compression it should have. You could also do a compression test as more than enough kids have those instruments in the U.S.A. , and it's easy to do. Some high school shop class nearby would probably have one.

I don't know if that is the case with your new ride, but it's possible the seller just wanted the engine to sound better prior to sale and that is one of the old tricks with Gas engines.


Kalawang