SaltySkoda

In real life, it is impossible to keep the crankcase 100% clean of small hard particles that may come from outside or as a result of normal engine wear. It may be a very small amount here and there, but in this particular case the damage had a chance to accumulate over 23 years and nearly 300,000 km of almost daily driving in all possible conditions. The pump needs all its clearances to be within range, in order to provide pressure. Otherwise, surface tension can't keep the oil from running around the gears, effectively reducing pressure and output flow. After a lot of searching, I managed to find a Belarus-based merchant that still has a new set of gears for this pump. I'll take the backplate to a machinist. That seems to be a good advice, I'll check that for sure. The pressure valve spring was strong and I didn't notice any problems with the mechanism.

Yeah, well, the timing chain was replaced by an authorized Skoda service shop some 10 years ago. Nobody else had any need to touch the oil pump. The pump should be factory original as far as I know. Keep in mind that the pump runs on unfiltered oil: any debris could have caused the scuffing. Only the strainer assembly is available as a new spare, not the pump gears. I can only buy a pump backplate (as a part of the strainer assembly). I called several parts distributors today. So, should I just resurface the pump backplate (or buy a new one) and hope for the best? There doesn't seem to be much alternatives.

This weekend I finally found the time to take a look what's going on. It seems the pump is fairly worn. The strainer assembly is heavily scuffed by the gears. The pump casing is not as worn, as you can see, but it also shows some concentric scuff marks. I forgot to take a photo of the gears, but they seem badly worn at the strainer side. So the pump is definitely up for a change. The problem is, as is seems, nobody is manufacturing these pumps anymore. Any suggestions, beside trying to find a good used one?

Thank you all for a constructive discussion. I couldn't find a new strainer or oil pump gears at my favorite Czech parts dealers, but decided to renew the sump altogether because the plug threads are shot. And I imagine the old sump is covered with gunk. I intend to remove the oil strainer and give it a good wash. Then check for flatness at the mating surfaces between the strainer and the engine block, and try to check the pump gears for wear. Also give the bearings a shake to check for excessive clearance, but without unbolting any of them, at least at this stage. My father was the first owner of the car, and he has kept good care of it. I took over the maintenance about 10 years ago. There were really no serious problems with the engine, only repairs that were done to it apart from regular maintenance was a coolant pump replacement and I switched the carburetor for a manual choke Weber. The plan for this car is to keep her going as long as possible, using a generous budget but trying to do everything myself. I think of it as a hobby: there's always something to do with the car especially at this age, while using it as an almost daily driver. Replacing the engine would be an interesting project, but knowing the full history of the car I don't really believe it would be necessary in this case.

1997 Felicia 1.3 Carburetor About a year ago I started noticing the oil pressure warning light go off at idle. Changed the oil pressure switch, still the same. The engine has 275,000 km (cca 170,000 miles) on it and it was never opened: it still has its factory head gasket. But it still works really good. I upgraded to 10W-50 engine oil as a temporary fix, but it still has oil pressure issues at idle on a really hot day after a highway drive. No clicking or ticking noises from the engine, at least no more than usual for a pushrod Skoda ;) I'm preparing to drop the oil pan because of its gasket leak (that is still factory too). While the pan is down, I might as well check for wear in main and big end bearings or other wear points. Now, my Haynes manual describes doing this with the engine on a mount. Is it possible to use standard measuring tools and maybe Plastigauge to check the crankshaft bearing clearances with the engine still in the car? Has anyone done this? Are there any other things to check while the pan is off, related to the oil pressure issue?

Unfortunately I don't have any pictures of fuel contaminated oil to share with you. The blot you've posted looks fine. The blotter paper acts as a filter for your oil drop. It tries to soak it in, leaving behind any deposits the oil may contain. That's what's left on the paper's surface. It seems that your oil is fairly fresh, because the central (black) spot isn't very large. So that's good. Now, if the oil is diluted with fuel, it'll be less viscous. It would have the opposite effect of glycol, which thickens the oil and helps accumulate soot and other contaminants. If the oil lost its viscosity it will advance through the paper easily, i.e. it will soak in faster. So you need a "control" sample of clean oil which will tell you the expected absorption time. You need to compare exact amounts of oil samples at exactly the same conditions (temperature, type of paper etc.) As I said, this is a crude method and can lead to wrong conclusions, but the difference between clean and contaminated oil will be more obvious the more severe contamination is. By the way, I also have a problem with "fuel cooking" in the summer because I couldn't fit an insulation plate between the carb and the manifold (I have a replacement Weber). It runs ridiculously rich on a hot start but it soon returns back to normal. I try to use the car only on long trips (at least 50 km) so the fuel could evaporate from the oil. But I'm also using thicker oil (15W-40), and it may help retain the fuel from passing by the pistons. So far I've had no issues with oil level going the wrong way.

Too bad we couldn't reason out the problem here. Laboratory analysis is expensive, but there is one crude (but free) method anyone can try. See this page It's about the so-called "business card test" used for testing the oil for contamination. Clean oil leaves an uniform blot on the paper, contaminated oil has a distinctive pattern (some examples here). I do this on a weekly basis, a drop of oil from the dipstick and a piece of blotter paper is all you need.

Well, if it's not oil, coolant or water then it must be the fuel. Unless the engine is somehow creating something out of nothing. In that case, kudos to Skoda engineers. I would check the carburetor. It may be boiling fuel under the heat, which then spills over into the intake manifold. Is the car difficult to start when hot? Is it running rich on a hot start, but then gets better? Also, check the idle cutoff solenoid. Has the carb mounting plate been tampered with? Is the hot air pickup (on exhaust manifold) still in place?

The engine head vents could only get that much blocked if there's a serious sludge buildup. I assume this is not the case here. But the narrow jet on inlet manifold could easily get clogged, try to clean it with compressed air or WD-40 and a needle/thin wire. Also, have you investigated the obvious possibility of someone topping up the oil without the owner knowing? Many years ago I loved to fiddle with our car while daddy was taking an afternoon nap. :zzz: By the way, the manual highly recommends against using 5W grade oil. Me too. Especially if you live in a hot climate, and I see you're in Dominican Republic. The 135/136 engine is ancient by design and doesn't like modern, thin oils. The clearances are too large for 5W grade oils. Lack of lubrication leads to bearing failure, and we all know what that means. I would suggest using thicker oil, at least 15W40. Consult the owner's manual about recommended oil grades, you'll see an outside temperature vs. oil grade graph.

Just a tought: have you checked the hose connections form rocker cover to air filter and intake manifold? If they are leaking vacuum there would be no crankcase ventilation.

Hello everyone. I own a 1997 Felicia (TMBEEA614V583351) that had a Jikov carburetor just like the one on Ricardo's pictures. It is a licensed copy of Pierburg 2E3. Three years ago the carb quit. It was impossible to find a working replacement in Croatia. I managed to get a Weber DMTL 32/34 from a Polish bloke in the UK, he used it on his VW Golf Mk2. It took me a year to find an optimal jetting. No cheap dyno here, so I had to guess and order the jets one by one. You can literally feel (and hear) the effect of Weber's larger venturis after 2800 rpm. Idling and low-end torque are not that spectacular, as expected. Thanks to the manual choke, I get around 40 MPG on a warm day. The engine has developed a slight piston slap, which I guess is normal after 240000 km (150000 miles). Still has its original head gasket. I have driven many other cars with a much stronger engine, but their driving feel just can't compare to a simple carburetor. They are faster and stronger, but it just isn't it. The car hasn't got any extras: no A/C and no power steering. I installed an old Blaupunkt radio with a mechanical tuner, doesn't even have a cassette player. I usually just listen to the engine. Wouldn't trade it for nothing.