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| Posted Yesterday, 10:21 PM
I had a problem with my 6nz c15 getting oil into the radiator last summer. I pulled the oil cooler and tested it hot at the CAT dealer and it checked out ok so I put it back on. Next I replaced the bendix air compressor as recommended by my local shop owner as I was getting a lot of oil into my air tanks also. That seemed to totally fix the problem after flushing the whole system multiple times. We had a very busy but good harvest. The truck ran great the whole way through. I kept a close eye on the oil and the coolant almost everytime that I started it. The coolant stayed crystal clear red. The last time I cheacked the oil was right before new years, added about 1/2 a gallon and then drove all weekend hauling corn and put about 600 miles on it. I pulled it in the shop yesterday to fix a couple lights and figured I'd check the oil and coolant again. Pulled the dipstick and all I saw was grey oil and bubbles on the dipstick. Looked in the coolant tank and there is oil in there again. I really got a bad sick feeling when I saw that. So here I am again thinking that I might not get out of this one so lucky. When I had the oil cooler tested last time by CAT, they recommended replacing it because it was starting to crack and come apart. But dumb me put it back on because it didn't fail the leak test. Could this be my problem this time? I had about an extra gallon or two of water in the oil pan. This seems like a lot to pass in only 600 miles or one weekend of running. What else would dump that much water in the pan that quick? Any suggestions? Can you see a coolant drip at the oil filter housing with the oil filter off and pressurizing the coolant system?
I'll probably pull the pan in a week or so and pressurize it to see if I have any drips. I always thought an oil cooler could pass oil into the coolant but I guess its possible to let the water push back through with the engine off and pressure on the radiator.
Edited by IH-Harvester 1/31/2011 18:06
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Saskatchewan | Oil cooler, just changed my two months ago and solved the oil in the rad problem. As for the oil in the pan you probably have leaking sleeve o rings as well. It doesnt sound to good for the bank account. I would pull the pan and pressure it up to see if and coolant is coming out of the sleeve orings and go from there. It could also have a cavitation leak allowing oil into the rad and coolant into the pan, should be able to see this when pressured up but you might have to roll the engine over. |
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Saskatchewan | Is it blowing white smoke?? If it is, could be a head gasket, or worse a cracked head. Thus allowing antifreeze to get to your oil. |
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| Did not see any white smoke or bubbles in the radiator. |
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Saskatchewan | Let me know what you find out, seems there is always a little different symptoms that have the same outcome. For your sake i hope you don't have to rebuild your engine, that shade of yellow is very pricey. |
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West Kentucky | Our C13 was getting antifreeze in the oil and it ended up being a cracked head bolt. Recently, radiator filled up with oil and ended up having to replace the oil cooler (it had allowed some antifreeze to pass back to the oil also). I think we have both of those problems fixed. Now, if we could just get all of the oil leaks stopped. I am starting to regret the day that we saw this truck. |
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| This is the first cat I've had and it has given the most problems. I love how it runs,smooth and plenty of power, but damn it gotta stay running. |
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Leeds, North Dakota | I'm gonna shoot from the hip, wheres Catguy, I'm leaning to cooler, orings get goofed up? don't know snit about cats, pressure in radiator abnormall, build air pressure okay? oil comes normally from bad cooler, now that its gitting in pan, not good, Scott. |
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Saskatchewan | I've run 2 cats so far, fussy engines, lots of power and good fuel mileage though. Pricey to fix.
This one is an 03 Pete, 550hp c-15, 18 speed DO, with 3:55 gears, Pulling 76,500kg. Handled it very well.
Feel bad the truck is a mess in the this one.
Edited by stubblejumper 1/31/2011 18:08
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Upstate New York | Had same symptoms once, ended up putting new cylinder liners in |
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| great |
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| we've had the same problem across the board with C-15s, 3406s, and C-9s. THe larger motors are generally oil coolers. Almost all of our motors have had reman heads put on them due to a cracked head. Generally all these trucks are at the 700,000+ miles club. If your not building high amounts of pressure in the radiator it should just be a oil cooler. |
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Iowa | Well , because you have both "coolant in oil" AND "oil in coolant", it still could be the oil cooler.
I'd be kinda curious about how many times was the engine shut off, DURING your last 600 miles(giving coolant pressure time to drip into oil pan); OR maybe just before your 600 miles "weekend haul", the oil cooler actually was already letting coolant into your oil pan, right at your very last shutdown, before this last 600 mile weekend.
You asked about pulling oil filter and looking for drips of coolant, with radiator pressurized; if you want to do this, then I would also remove the two test port plugs(point downward, underneath) on the oil filter base, too. They tend to be 1/4" NPT, but are sometimes inside an adapter, that is an o-ring style. With all three removed(oil filter, and two test plugs[front and rear]) then that should unsure that coolant drips should be seen from the oil cooler area.
Although, this isn't how we would be troubleshooting, at the dealership.
We would get engine hot, then pull the oil pan, with pressure on the cooling system(for your style of complaint/failure), BUT I would also be looking at the water pump weep hole, and probably stick a wire in there and see IF I got a rush of coolant pouring out, once the wire penetrated any crude/build-up in that weep hole. IF plugged; then this would only explain the coolant in oil BUT NOT the oil in coolant.
{Edit: We may also just pull the oil cooler again, too, to test. I don't know how much oil you had in the radiator?}
1. You could have just an oil cooler problem(but for that much coolant in oil pan, I would actually suspect a lot of oil in radiator, too, I mean a lot!) But sometimes the leak area "flows" one direction much easier than the opposite way.
2. You could have both oil cooler and water pump problem
3. You could have lower, liner o-rings failing and pinholes in liner problems($$$) This can explain both conditions, too.
Head gasket failure, for your complaint, doesn't really add up.(pressurized oil goes to the head, thru a hollow dowel with o-rings around it=very solid, reliable area)= wouldn't explain "oil in coolant" part of your complaint
Note: the reason we get an engine "HOT" before pulling an oil pan, is because you only get this one chance for the engine to be warmed up, before you disable it; SO if you don't happen to find the culprit "HOT" then we just let the engine cooldown, overnight, and we can test it "COLD" the next day(still disabled); with and without pressure on the radiator. [ this kinda applies for those really hard to find problems= like an oil sample states some signs of coolant in oil, BUT no visual signs]
Yours shouldn't be that difficult.
Edited by CATGUY 1/31/2011 21:52
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| Thanks CATGUY!!! I really apprieciate all the help. The truck over the weekend haul was started around 4am and didn't shut off until 11pm( long days) It did get shut off a couple times when I was waiting in line to unload corn. It was shut off every night. After the trip home the truck sat for the last few weeks.
I didn't see any bubbling in the radiator. Does the thermostat have to be opened up in order to pass the pressure? I only checked it when it was somewhat cold. |
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Iowa | When you said "bubbling in the radiator", I assume you are looking for a possible blown head gasket and looking for combustion gases entering the cooling system.
Usually, the best way to check for this, is when the engine is totally warmed up(t-stats open partially or fully open), and under a hard pull= like going up a big hill, or running on a chassis dyno.
Now, if I was a farmer and wanted to troubleshoot for combustion gas possibly getting into the cooling system, then I would purchase about 15 feet of "radiator overflow tubing" and route that tubing from the overflow tube, at the radiator neck, over to the driver's side mirror area. {NOTE: Must have a KNOWN good radiator cap or new radiator cap}
Then you use some wire to hang a glass jar or clear, plastic bottle from your driver's side mirror bracket, fill your jar/bottle with water, stick the long, overflow hose into it(after engine is already warm!!!) and go drive up a big hill, pulling a load.
Now, as engine temp slightly increases(pulling that hill), you may see a few "expansion" bubbles(normal), BUT if the engine is truly getting combustion gases entering into the cooling system, then you should see lots and lots of bubbles. Really bad cases actually blow most of the water out of the jar/bottle, and really, really bad cases the truck is probably splitting coolant out the OEM radiator overflow hose already, once he even pulls off the road or evens stops for coffee.(Those cases don't even need testing). |
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C15- coolant in oil
