RISING DIP STICK LEVEL?

[bobspark]

Looks like I might have diesel fuel getting into the sump ,of my 1.9 PD engine.

A short while after giving in an oil change ,I noticed that on two foot to the floor moments I seemed to be leaving a faint smoke trail.

Suspecting I had overfilled the sump, I checked the dipstick and it was a good half inch over the top mark.

Pumping out the excess I thought all would be well, but on  checking the other day. the level seems to have risen slightly.

Will let it rise to top mark to prove ,before acting .

And if proved then it seems its either injectors or the tandem pump, letting fuel by

Ah well cannot complain too much after about 9 years of trouble free motoring.

[KenONeill]

I'm thinking either you're right or you have Head Gasket Failure.

 

So:-

1. Does the oil smell of diesel fuel?
2. Do you have any signs of mayonnaise and/or a falling coolant level?

[Ootohere]

I think the OP is right, and the head gasket will be perfectly fine.

Take care because a diesel engine running on is a scary thing.  Do not put off dealing with a resolving.

[bobspark]

Been sniffing dipstick,oil filler cap and comparing with smell of fuel filler cap,and cannot smell diesel on first two.

First thing I checked was coolant level ,and for mayonnaise on oil filler cap,and all OK, thank you.

Not happy though might give the problem to local garage to check out.

To much going on in my life at the moment for any car complications.

Happy days.

[RichardatWakefield]

Good luck with this, heard of it happening to an (ex) Roomster 1.6tdi CR owner, namely injector leaking into sump, they traded it in for a 1.2tsi Yeti.

What is the tandem pump? Is that what I think of as the servo vacuum pump? What is its tandem function? Does it act also as a low-pressure fuel pump to raise fuel from the tank and supply the Electronic Unit Injectors?

Richard.

[aubrey]

On 29/03/2019 at 11:21, RichardatWakefield said:

What is the tandem pump? Is that what I think of as the servo vacuum pump?

Yes, top right of the engine. The unit bolted onto the right hand end of the camshaft. It is driven by the camshaft and contains 2 pumps, hence tandem, one pumps diesel fuel into the fuel rails in the cylinder head. You will see the metal fuel pipes along the top front of the engine going to and from the pump. The from is just the unused fuel return, the actual fuel to be used pumps into the head itself. The 2nd pump is the vacuum pump with the vacuum pipe attached to the rear.

I had to change the gasket once on mine due to it leaking oil down the rear of the engine block. I managed to swap the gasket without removing all the pipes. I just got enough clearance to remove the old gasket, clean up the surfaces and place in a new gasket as this picture I took shows. You can also see the drive slots here that engage in the camshaft. Once the gasket was replaced the oil leak was gone.

[Skoda_newby]

On 27/03/2019 at 09:52, bobspark said:

Been sniffing dipstick,oil filler cap and comparing with smell of fuel filler cap,and cannot smell diesel on first two.

First thing I checked was coolant level ,and for mayonnaise on oil filler cap,and all OK, thank you.

Not happy though might give the problem to local garage to check out.

To much going on in my life at the moment for any car complications.

Happy days.

How did you get on? 

[VWD]

On 27/03/2019 at 09:25, Skoffski said:

I think the OP is right, and the head gasket will be perfectly fine.

Take care because a diesel engine running on is a scary thing.  Do not put off dealing with a resolving.

Isusu engines were prone to this if the oil level got high. I had it on an ASTRA, after a main dealer service. Breakdown service blokes tell me it's a common problem. Certainly scary when it happens. Only cure is get out of traffic, get into a high gear whilst parked and stall engine. ( the way we used to stop old time Derv vans)

[bobspark]

Yes Im afraid Ive got nowhere with this one, and I may end up with egg on my face.

My independent VW garage Id been going to for years has closed down. So I have just started using a local family run garage for any problems that are beyond my expertise.

They asked several times if I just used the car for short runs only.

I explained that it didn,t have DPF.

They had the car in ,and rang to say the oil level was below the minimum, and said they would top it up to the correct level ,reset the trip milometer ,and then see where we are after 300miles. They only charged me a nominal sum.

This completely threw me, and on having the car back checked it in my garage and the level was a smidgen below the top mark!!!

So presuming they filled it correctly to mid point, are my garage levels adrift. The front wheel area seems level according to my builders level.

And I know my concrete drive being on a clay soil, has been affected by last years hot weather, with slabs rising and falling slightly, and  I always change the oil anf filter out there.

So it may be a case of false alarm with good intent, and will have to see where we are after 300 miles.