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Originally Posted By: 02zx9r
holey moley that is awful looking!!!
Yep. That's what happens to a grocery getter. However, after a long highway trip it tends to magically go away some.
It burns/leaks about a quart every 1,000 miles. This particular VW engine is known for it's improperly installed (backwards) oil rings from the factory. I've been dumping Pennzoil Platinum in it lately. It leaves nice oil drips on the garage floor.
Unfortunately, my mother recently got laid off, and things are only getting more expensive around here. Darn home heating oil tank costs a whole weeks paycheck to fillup. Don't really have money to get the leak fixed right now.
holey moley that is awful looking!!!
Yep. That's what happens to a grocery getter. However, after a long highway trip it tends to magically go away some.
It burns/leaks about a quart every 1,000 miles. This particular VW engine is known for it's improperly installed (backwards) oil rings from the factory. I've been dumping Pennzoil Platinum in it lately. It leaves nice oil drips on the garage floor.
Unfortunately, my mother recently got laid off, and things are only getting more expensive around here. Darn home heating oil tank costs a whole weeks paycheck to fillup. Don't really have money to get the leak fixed right now.
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To cut cost a little, use your favorite dino and change it every 4 months. Most SM oils should be able to handle this with no problem.
That is a lot of condensation on that VW.
That is a lot of condensation on that VW.
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Is the Valvoline your using in your Jetta the older SL (from a stash maybe), or newer SM?
I have a 1987 Jetta 1.8 (basically the same type of SOHC as your 2.0). In the past (1990's), I used to get some of that type of buildup "gunk" on my oil cap during the winter. It no longer happens since about the year 2000. My current oil change is 19 months (Aug.8, 2006) … ~ 4000km/ 2500 miles), through 2 winters with a fair amount of idling and many shorter type trips (5-6 miles) on mostly conventional. My oil cap is perfectly clean -- I checked it last week when I added a little top-up oil.
There are 2 changes that I can think of that happened around the year 2000.
1) I changed gas stations from Shell to Esso and now fill up exclusively at Esso.
2) The base oils in the motor oil I'm using switched from Group I to II in the late 1990's.
I still haven't figured out which of those changes made the difference.
The reason I ask about Valvoline, is that they were still using Group I oil in a fair amount of their SL formulations IIRC. I believe their was even some (probably a GI+) in their SL 5w30 according to the MSDS.
Consider changing brand of oil to another conventional for your Jetta, and try another brand of gas. I would be interested to see if those changes no longer produces "sludge" on your oil cap.
I have a 1987 Jetta 1.8 (basically the same type of SOHC as your 2.0). In the past (1990's), I used to get some of that type of buildup "gunk" on my oil cap during the winter. It no longer happens since about the year 2000. My current oil change is 19 months (Aug.8, 2006) … ~ 4000km/ 2500 miles), through 2 winters with a fair amount of idling and many shorter type trips (5-6 miles) on mostly conventional. My oil cap is perfectly clean -- I checked it last week when I added a little top-up oil.
There are 2 changes that I can think of that happened around the year 2000.
1) I changed gas stations from Shell to Esso and now fill up exclusively at Esso.
2) The base oils in the motor oil I'm using switched from Group I to II in the late 1990's.
I still haven't figured out which of those changes made the difference.
The reason I ask about Valvoline, is that they were still using Group I oil in a fair amount of their SL formulations IIRC. I believe their was even some (probably a GI+) in their SL 5w30 according to the MSDS.
Consider changing brand of oil to another conventional for your Jetta, and try another brand of gas. I would be interested to see if those changes no longer produces "sludge" on your oil cap.
Drivebelt, the Valvoline Conventional I mentioned is in use in my sister's Nissan Sentra.
The VW Jetta GL uses Shell Synthetic (Pennzoil Platinum added since last change as it burns oil). Changed at 5k miles usually give or take some.
Gasoline is usually Shell. They dominate around here.
The VW Jetta GL uses Shell Synthetic (Pennzoil Platinum added since last change as it burns oil). Changed at 5k miles usually give or take some.
Gasoline is usually Shell. They dominate around here.
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Thanks for that info -- that solves it. No way to blame the oil -- synthetics are made from pure base oils. So, the culprit looks to be the Shell gasoline (I was leaning towards that). Maybe try Exxon gasoline, which is Esso branded up here in Canada.
moisture in the oil? how did her coolant reservior tank look? I bet you have a coolant leak. short trips plus headgasket leak= those nasty pics you posted. these 1.8L from Nissan are headgasket eaters. Check out the used oil analysis section here, pretty much every 1.8L Sentra used oil analysis posted has a coolant leak. Nissan won't stand behind their product one mile out of warranty either. Sentra is hencho en Mexico, buyer beware.
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Cutehumor, the pictures are not from the Nissan, they are from his VW Jetta. The Nissan is new, I think. But I know nothing about Nissan head gaskets or their warranty coverage.
Cutehumor jogged my memory about the moisture issue. The other thing I do more these days with my Jetta during the winter is keep my gas tank fuller -- trying to avoid more moisture condensation in the gas tank. So … maybe switching brands of gas didn't have anything to do with the gunk on my gas cap in the past.
Originally Posted By: GMFan
My sister owns and drives a 2006 Nissan Sentra 5spd with the 1.8L in it w/ just over 20,000 miles.
She works literally down the street from our house. It's probably 2/10 of a mile she drives back and forth twice a day. (4 cold startups, 2/10 of a mile each time). She does other driving which is usually running to the supermarket, or into town. Basically, her oil rarely if ever sees hot temperatures.
Once in a blue moon, and I mean once in a few months she will do a half hour highway trip or something.
I changed her oil a few hundred miles ago with Valvoline Conventional 5w30. I checked her oil today, and on the dipstick I can already see white streaks (moisture I presume). The oil otherwise still looks clean. From looking into the engine with a flashlight through the oil filler cap, her engine is still very clean inside. It's all clean metal.
She just recently bought this car used and I did the oil change about 3,000 miles after she bought it (dealer did an oil change before sale). Are 3,000 miles OCIs too much or should I change it out every 2,000 miles?
I can talk her into taking a highway trip all I want, but she doesn't know anything about cars and doesn't really care frankly. It drives me nuts on the other hand.
Thanks for the suggestions. BTW, her sump is only 3 quarts.
[censored] if i live that close to work id ride a bike.
My sister owns and drives a 2006 Nissan Sentra 5spd with the 1.8L in it w/ just over 20,000 miles.
She works literally down the street from our house. It's probably 2/10 of a mile she drives back and forth twice a day. (4 cold startups, 2/10 of a mile each time). She does other driving which is usually running to the supermarket, or into town. Basically, her oil rarely if ever sees hot temperatures.
Once in a blue moon, and I mean once in a few months she will do a half hour highway trip or something.
I changed her oil a few hundred miles ago with Valvoline Conventional 5w30. I checked her oil today, and on the dipstick I can already see white streaks (moisture I presume). The oil otherwise still looks clean. From looking into the engine with a flashlight through the oil filler cap, her engine is still very clean inside. It's all clean metal.
She just recently bought this car used and I did the oil change about 3,000 miles after she bought it (dealer did an oil change before sale). Are 3,000 miles OCIs too much or should I change it out every 2,000 miles?
I can talk her into taking a highway trip all I want, but she doesn't know anything about cars and doesn't really care frankly. It drives me nuts on the other hand.
Thanks for the suggestions. BTW, her sump is only 3 quarts.
[censored] if i live that close to work id ride a bike.
Nissan flat out sucks in my opinion for dropping their quality and not standing behind their product. My father had an old 1984 Nissan pickup truck which rusted apart, but ran like a tank. I'm pretty sure you could have run that car into ditches every day and it would still provide loyal and faithful service.
The Volkswagen is probably the worst car we've owned in history. Blown sensors, transmission jerks, electrical issues, burning oil leading to bad catalytic converter etc. Bad idea to buy a new vehicle the first model year. Too many production bugs!
My father has sworn to stick to his Chevy roots from now on.
Thanks for all the help guys. To be honest, I'm not concerned over the VW. We've had so many issues we are not expecting much from it anymore.
As for my sister's Sentra, I'll do 3 month oil changes on it and call it a day.
Thanks all.
The Volkswagen is probably the worst car we've owned in history. Blown sensors, transmission jerks, electrical issues, burning oil leading to bad catalytic converter etc. Bad idea to buy a new vehicle the first model year. Too many production bugs!
My father has sworn to stick to his Chevy roots from now on.
Thanks for all the help guys. To be honest, I'm not concerned over the VW. We've had so many issues we are not expecting much from it anymore.
As for my sister's Sentra, I'll do 3 month oil changes on it and call it a day.
Thanks all.
Looking at the crud on the Jetta photos in this thread you need to change the oil often.
These one line replies of "extend the oci w/synthetic." and such are of NO HELP.
(and if you *read* the thread, they ARE already using it. Quote "We put synthetic in this car, in accordance with Volkswagen of USA")
Syn is not going to help the problem. EXTENDING the OCI is just a plain DUMB statement.
I can tell you the last thing Pablo or Gary would recommend after seeing those photos is a Amsoil 25k OCI. Or even a 15k one. Any they SELL the stuff.
We are here to HELP each other. Not sell stuff or push bad advise.
When you have that much moisture condensation in a crankcase that is a problem.
Two things will help.
1. Try to operate the car for a longer trip at least once a week of 20 miles or more (highway would be best).
2. CHANGE the oil. NO more than 3 months no matter HOW many miles. Use ANY SM oil rated per the manual for your engine.
Sadly, even with often oil changes this engine is not going to be a long life 300k mile motor. All the water is going to cause more wear.
But lets STOP with the one line "use synthetic oil" replies.
They DO NOT help.
Personally, I'd change the Jetta with a conventional and change it every 3 months. Change the filter same time. TRY to get it on the freeway once a week even though gas is high.
Also a used oil analysis to check if there is not a coolant leak would not be a bad idea.
Check the PCV valve too!
Take care, bill
PS: The brand of gas someone uses is not going to matter. Use fresh gas is all that matters.
These one line replies of "extend the oci w/synthetic." and such are of NO HELP.
(and if you *read* the thread, they ARE already using it. Quote "We put synthetic in this car, in accordance with Volkswagen of USA")
Syn is not going to help the problem. EXTENDING the OCI is just a plain DUMB statement.
I can tell you the last thing Pablo or Gary would recommend after seeing those photos is a Amsoil 25k OCI. Or even a 15k one. Any they SELL the stuff.
We are here to HELP each other. Not sell stuff or push bad advise.
When you have that much moisture condensation in a crankcase that is a problem.
Two things will help.
1. Try to operate the car for a longer trip at least once a week of 20 miles or more (highway would be best).
2. CHANGE the oil. NO more than 3 months no matter HOW many miles. Use ANY SM oil rated per the manual for your engine.
Sadly, even with often oil changes this engine is not going to be a long life 300k mile motor. All the water is going to cause more wear.
But lets STOP with the one line "use synthetic oil" replies.
They DO NOT help.
Personally, I'd change the Jetta with a conventional and change it every 3 months. Change the filter same time. TRY to get it on the freeway once a week even though gas is high.
Also a used oil analysis to check if there is not a coolant leak would not be a bad idea.
Check the PCV valve too!
Take care, bill
PS: The brand of gas someone uses is not going to matter. Use fresh gas is all that matters.
Quote:
Sentra is hencho en Mexico, buyer beware.
So is Ford, Dodge, VW, Chevy and most others.
I do agree with the Buyer beware!
Bill
Sentra is hencho en Mexico, buyer beware.
So is Ford, Dodge, VW, Chevy and most others.
I do agree with the Buyer beware!
Bill
My father drove the Jetta on a highway trip as he had to visit someone. About 40 miles each way. Still has some buildup under the cap when I checked today, but maybe only a tad less.
Looking down the filler cap with a flashlight, I can see deposits. Not sludge, but caked on brown stuff. All VWs seem to have this issue. Read reports about BMWs, Audis and VWs with baked on crud inside the engine.
BTW, it may seem as though we neglect our cars, but we are pretty good when it comes to maintenance. We never let oil changes slip. This car has seen oil changes 3k with dino, 5k with synthetic.
Looking down the filler cap with a flashlight, I can see deposits. Not sludge, but caked on brown stuff. All VWs seem to have this issue. Read reports about BMWs, Audis and VWs with baked on crud inside the engine.
BTW, it may seem as though we neglect our cars, but we are pretty good when it comes to maintenance. We never let oil changes slip. This car has seen oil changes 3k with dino, 5k with synthetic.
Just got back from the local mom and pop auto place.
Had to buy a new tire wrench anyway, because my sister's spare tire did not come with the tire wrench and she needs a tire rotation. I got it for $1 because it wouldn't ring up, they couldn't find the price and I'm a frequent customer. Gotta love mom and pop stores.
Picked up a quart of Pennzoil 10w40 for the Jetta. It was low when I checked this morning. At this point anything thicker won't be too bad. I'll just throw that in with the synthetic. It already has multiple brands/weights of oil anyway and is due for an oil change in a few hundred miles.
Had to buy a new tire wrench anyway, because my sister's spare tire did not come with the tire wrench and she needs a tire rotation. I got it for $1 because it wouldn't ring up, they couldn't find the price and I'm a frequent customer. Gotta love mom and pop stores.
Picked up a quart of Pennzoil 10w40 for the Jetta. It was low when I checked this morning. At this point anything thicker won't be too bad. I'll just throw that in with the synthetic. It already has multiple brands/weights of oil anyway and is due for an oil change in a few hundred miles.
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Ok, digging up an old thread here, but I have an update.
I'm home for the weekend and I checked my sister's car. I changed the oil at 20,080 and it has 20,800 on it. It was changed in January.
I'm assuming I should dump the oil anyway, right? I'm sure it's loaded with water/fuel. The dipstick has a white streak on it when I pull it.
If so I'll head out and pickup some more oil and a filter and change it out this weekend.
I'm home for the weekend and I checked my sister's car. I changed the oil at 20,080 and it has 20,800 on it. It was changed in January.
I'm assuming I should dump the oil anyway, right? I'm sure it's loaded with water/fuel. The dipstick has a white streak on it when I pull it.
If so I'll head out and pickup some more oil and a filter and change it out this weekend.
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I would be buying the cheapest oil you can find like supertech and change it every 120 days. Put a fumoto valve on that thing and buy a good filter. Change the filter every 5000 miles but dump the oil every 4 months.
Yeah, with any kind of 'streaking' on the dipstick, I would be concerned. Oil on a dipstick should be one solid colour (even if that colour is almost black...), and not have variations.
With this being a Nissan Sentra, and the problems they seem to have recently, sending this oil out for a used oil analysis, to make sure that 'streaking' isn't actually coolant, would be a sensible idea...only have to do it once or twice to check...
With this being a Nissan Sentra, and the problems they seem to have recently, sending this oil out for a used oil analysis, to make sure that 'streaking' isn't actually coolant, would be a sensible idea...only have to do it once or twice to check...
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