SLUDGE!!! I think I need a hug...(pics)

[Leeer73]

Well, I just bought my new,used Mercedes 230 1.8 last month and before I bought it, I checked everthing out as best I could and everything seemed good. No dip-stick so I wasn't able to check the condition of the oil, but I open the oil filler cap and everything looked alright and since the car was clean and had 88k miles I figured all was good.

The first thing I did was an oil change/flush. I noticed the original oil I drained out was pretty dark so I did the flush then oil change and I did the same thing one week later just to be sure.

After the second oil flush on the second week, I decided to change the oil 1 more time just because I am anal like that and I wanted to see the condition the oil was in. All seemed great!

Now I went to work and I figure since we had the v/c gasket in stock, I'd go ahead and buy it so I can pull the valve cover and look for signs of and sludge, kinda hoping for the best but still expecting the worst...

So here's what I saw...

NOT PRETTY!!!!

Now I've seen worse looking at pictures online, but I have NEVER had a car with sludge! So my obvious question to you guys is....Do you think it's real bad? Is my car running on borrowed time???

I'm wondering if you think that there is sludge like this in my oil pan asa I am worrried about my pick up getting clogged and I'm am worried about sludge getting stuck in the oil passages and stopping my poor engine from getting the precious lubrication it needs and deserves!!!

Here are some after pictures:

 

[190E26FTW]

Small kine sludge brah. Use Mobil 1 10W40 High Mileage which is pretty good at removing sludge and clean it out. You dont have to keep changing your oil, but you should change your filter a little more often. Living in Hawaii you got the heat to help clean it out. Just drive it until clean!

 

[electrolover]

thats not too bad. try running Pennzoil Ultra with 3000 mile ocis to clean it up.
thanks for the pics

 

[Leeer73]

Thanks guys! I guess I can un-clench my butt a little now!

So what about my oil pan? You think this [censored] is in there as well?

 

[electrolover]

it looks like the sludge accumulated in places where oil cant really splash so i bet the pan it good. if your worried about it pull the pan but i see no reason to.

why doesn't the car have a dipstick? how do you check the oil?

 

[Leeer73]

@ electrolover, thanks for the reply! My car is a 2005 mercedes C230 1.8 ltr supercharged. The way this [censored] was made, I need to remove the steering rack and lift the engine in order to remove the oil pan.

Also, alot of these cars didn't come with an dipstick, they come equipped with an electronic oil level reader. You just push a few buttons on your instrument cluster and it give you a very accurate reading. Still, nothing beats a good old fashioned dipstick! I just need to get one from the dealer!

 

[electrolover]

wow another case of new tech gone wrong like deleting a throttle cable for an electric gas pedal and throttle body for 10 times the price.

well i wouldnt worry too much about dropping the pan, just do a couple short ocis with a good oil and it should clean right up.
what kind of oil are you running now?

btw flushes can be harmful, i would not use them. check the additive forum lots of stuff on good cleaners in there

 

[mongo161]

You could run a few OCI's of PYB Dino and some MMO. That might really help in liquefying and cleaning up any unseen areas that need to be reached.

 

[ARB1977]

Chances are your pan will be the same. Run what ever is recommended and some MMO. It's going to take alittle time and should get better each time.

 

[01rangerxl]

You definitely want to keep a close eye on the oil level with this car. One of my roommates has the same year/make/model/engine with about half as many miles and it burns a lot of oil...as in blue smoke coming out the exhaust.

 

[Rob_Roy]

Do you have idea what kind of oil and drain intervals were previous used?

 

[demarpaint]

Originally Posted By: mongo161
You could run a few OCI's of PYB Dino and some MMO. That might really help in liquefying and cleaning up any unseen areas that need to be reached.


That's what I'd do. I'd lay of the flushes now, keep the OCI with the MMO to about 3000 miles. I think two in about 2 OCIs you'll be GTG.

 

[rg200amp]

OOOk. Your OoOok. Most people would buy that car, give it 10,000 mile, if not longer OCIs, and get years out of the motor.

You caught the sludge. You can act and get the engine back on track.

I would steer away from the flushes, solvents, MMO, ect. . . .

I would use Penns Ultra 5w40 and I would change it every 2500-3000 miles. I would do this for a year. Then I would extend it to 5000 miles and leave it there.

This will do two things. This will slowly remove some sludge over time.

And it will pretty much 100% guarantee no new sludge will accumulate.

 

[hate2work]

Nice job on the cleanup, it looks better for sure. Some short runs with PU should finish the job.

What brand of flush did you use?

 

[The_Eric]

I agree with electrolover... The pan is likely pretty clean. It only appears to have congealed in the "stagnant" areas.

 

[eljefino]

That's not bad. I think the valve cover got sludged because it's cooler, it's plastic right? I'd call it "thick varnish" on the motor guts compared to sludge though. Probably should throw a factory PCV valve on there for giggles.

 

[OVERKILL]

What oil does this engine call for?

 

[ARCOgraphite]

Originally Posted By: mongo161
You could run a few OCI's of PYB Dino and some MMO. That might really help in liquefying and cleaning up any unseen areas that need to be reached.
Nothing special about PYB as a cleaning oil. Guaranteed Mobil clean 5K has More detergent in it than SM PYB - and less cheap VII that cause gum. Do not pay attention to ANY advertising claims printed on the oil bottle - they are absolutely meaningless.

 

[cchase]

Originally Posted By: ARCOgraphite
Originally Posted By: mongo161
You could run a few OCI's of PYB Dino and some MMO. That might really help in liquefying and cleaning up any unseen areas that need to be reached.
Nothing special about PYB as a cleaning oil. Guaranteed Mobil clean 5K has More detergent in it than SM PYB - and less cheap VII that cause gum. Do not pay attention to ANY advertising claims printed on the oil bottle - they are absolutely meaningless.


I agree with this, other than some marketing claims and knowledge that PYB keeps engines clean there's no "proof" it keeps engines any cleaner than anything else on the market.

Since this a supercharged Merc I'd be looking for a synthetic that meets applicable specs instead of throwing in some conventional (which I would guess does not meet spec) just because it says "46% cleaner!" on the bottle...

 

[Chris Meutsch]

That's not that bad at all. Like others mentioned, the sludge is in places that aren't really moving. Everywhere else looks OK.

"You just push a few buttons on your instrument cluster and it give you a very accurate reading." That is, until that sensor fails.....