Slight cam damage on my car :(

It turns out my oil pump is a bit lazy and doesn't circulate the oil properly round this area when the engine is cold. My mechanic said its not a problem and has known Fiesta's to go on to 1000's of miles in this condition and the best thing to is not rev the engine when cold.

He said the rest of the car is in very good condition including the bodywork, gearbox, clutch etc so if the worst comes to worse he said it would be quite cheap to put a new engine in it as he can get good Fiesta engines from a scrap yard for virtually nothing. He said there isn't much work involved in changing in an engine in a Fiesta.

He's checked the tyres, steering gaiters, suspension etc and reckons the car will pass the MOT no problem .

I guess for £400 I haven't done too badly as I can live with the cam shaft rattle.

 

typical mechanic, advising an engine chnage when a new oil pump would do..

 

He was saying the damage is already done though

 

Ahah.

 

Yep To make matters worse I only ever do 2-3 miles in it when I drive because I am still learning, so the oil never gets a chance to its job as it is.

 

AT

Many years ago i used a product called slick 50 onthe recomendations of a mate.

The idea was that it put a v.hard teflon coating around mating surfaces....I don't know if that would help your engine ( I'm not eve sure its still available)?

The only thing is its not(or wasn't ) cheap.....15 quid back in the days of my mk1 astra.....late 80s...so not sure now.

I should add I DIDN'T notice the benefits (smoother running) my mate reported....but could still be worth a go

 

Could well be "gunge'd up" oilways - I'd clean the engine with flushing oil - or add flushing additive to a warm engine, let it run for a while before draining. Then add slick 50 (or Molyslip or similar) to the oil you use. Don't bother with synthetic or semi-synthetic just cheapo stufff is fine (unless you spend most of your time above 5000 revs, in which case go for a better oil...). But change it every 3000 - 5000 miles. In a lot of years of motoring I had plenty of mega-miler old cars and regular oil changing is the very best thing to keep the engine trouble free.

 

Yes

NO!

NO!

You've got these things the wrong way around. Slick 50, Pro-long, etc all do NOTHING. They don't add anything over the additive package that's in any reasonable multigrade oil. That's why the Federal Trade Commission have taken most of the companies selling such additives to court and won.

Synthetic oils, however, are very effective. They resist breakdown and "gunging up" and can help a great deal. A decent PAO (class IV) or Ester (class V) based synthetic can easily go 25000 miles without being changed (filter changes required). Some have even run over 400000 miles (filter changes and oil analysis. And no, that's not a typo on the mileage).

 

"1.Yes, 2.NO, 3.NO" - a bit harsh surely?
Advice was context related - older engine / cold starts + short journeys. I'd offer very different comment for other situations!

I'd say :
1. Yes;
2. Perhaps - probably do no harm but might duplicate some of the manufacturers additive packs, they are generally vi index improvers, to thicken the base oil - OK for a loose or worn engine I'd have thought;
3. Perhaps - A petroleum based 10w-60 will shear to a 10w-40 within 2-3000 thousand miles but I'd be changing it about then - & using it's flushing qualities!
I certainly won't argue with the science regarding longevity of synthetics - my partner's new car will be filled with nothing else at oil changes, and my old gtv currently has silkolene pro S in it.
I do however speak with some experience (racing as well as road) - the cars I have covered large milages with have all had 3000 mile O + F changes, using a "Castrol GTX" type of oil (I'd not use that in a new / modern engine btw) and have included a 260,000ml Ford Granada, a 190,000ml Alfasud Ti (a bloody miracle though I say it myself!!) a 280,000 BMW 316 all having the majority of miles clocked up by me - the record is a 480,000 SAAB 9000 but that had little to do with the oil. When stripped down the Alfa engine( after a front wishbone failure and resultant off-road excursion put it beyond economic repair )was surprisingly clean - I guess down to the oil changes.

Bloody 'ell, what a long post - guess that's what happens when you come back to ZG at 1.00am after a night on the tiles.
Anyway AT if you'd like moderated advice use a semi synthetic oil with a low 'w' number (the cold crank viscosity) so that it can reach that cam quicker on short cold start journeys!

 

Sorry, it wasn't meant to seem aggressive. I'm a little sensitive about oil right now since a garage did me a "favour" this week by giving me a "free" oil change, draining out my 2000 mile old PAO-based oil and replacing it with run of the mill hydrocracked base semi-synth. That, and I've been down the additive road before (and it caused half the problems itself).

Regular oil changes can't be argued with for an older car like AT's, but for the cost of rubbish oil and the slick 50, you can buy some decent oil that will last longer and work better anyway.

 

Absolutely no offense taken Isaac! Just trying to put my suggestion in the context of ATs problem!
Some favour from your garage btw!!

 

"Slick 50, Pro-long, etc all do NOTHING"

....its quite posssible.

You gentlemen sound as though you are speaking from a position of knowledge....

The lad who sold me my previous van, when I tried to show him the Ford service schedule, he said ...."service them once a year and change the oil every 6 months an you'll never have any trouble with them".

Its working so far.

For my money, I would use a good quality oil regardless of age of engine.

 

So, it is "slight" cam damage, whats the panic?
I have run engines with more than slight cam damage.
take reasonable care and it wont be any problem.
Stop the panic AT.

 

Just done 8 miles in it, the longest its been run for two weeks. When starting in the cold it was rattly but very little smoke, after 8 miles the rattle stopped but there was quite a lot of smoke. There was black deposits on the exhaust as if the car is burning oil

Although the engine is clearly on the way out I guess if I get 6 months safe motoring out of it for £400 I can't complain, especialy if I learn mechanics on it.

 

Slick 50 is brilliant stuff.

I definately noticed it when I used it, smoother running, better MPG return, more power avaliable for car movement, car felt lighter and more responsive to drive.

STP and Wynns is also excellent stuff.

 

I've used Slick 50 on two cars, and Wynns and STP once or twice each each on others. I wouldn't buy any of it again, as I noticed zero improvement in anything for any of them. Slick 50 made no discernible difference on my cars, and I tried Wynns and STP gunk to treat noisy or smokey engines, and they too made zero difference for me. Maybe all my cars have been too buggered to be redeemed by oil additives, but certainly slick 50 seemed expensive and ineffective....at least the other two are cheap!

Like you say AT, if the car is at least safe to drive then sub-£500 cars are cheap motoring if you can keep them going for the best part of a year. I've had a handful of proper bangers that I've bought with a long MOT then scrapped when they've failed the next one.

 

Unless I can fix the smoke I am afraid June will be its death

 

I have been speaking to an old machanic mate (who lives in Scarborough) and he reckons the wrong oil is in my car. Its currently got 10/40 in there and he reckons its heating up and getting into the combustion chambers and this is what is causing all the smoke when the engine is warm.

My dilemma is if the oil pump is faulty (we don't know it is) will thicker stuff not work properly?

 

I would just use whats recomened in the hand book(if you have one).

Failing that you won't go too far wrong with a good, named, multi grade; eg Duckhams 15/50

I was always told to look out for the "SF" rating on the side of the can as a sign of a good quality oil.

Only thing is, (I know this has been discussed) I wouldn't use a synthetic (good as they are) oil in a worn engine........."it'll p**s out....".

 

AT - exactly what colour is the smoke and exhaust deposits? this will help you identify problems.

Blue smoke under load = worn engine (worn bores and rings, typical of low-mileage-for-age cars only ever driven around town which never get properly hot)

Blue smoke only when you lift-off the throttle is worn valve guides/stem seals.

Black smoke is the engine running rich, typically due to a blocked air filter, dead oxygen sensor, but most often just a dead coolant temperature sensor, so the ECU ' thinks' the engines cold and gives it too much fuel - for cold-start enrichment. These would give black, dry deposits* in the exhaust tailpipe - and poor fuel consumption!

*Mid-to dark grey is 'normal'