Engine: Is my Pajero engine still after an overhaul

Hi Paul,
I bought a Pajero from Kampala and it cost me a fortune but its engine had too much oil and a funny sound when I drive, the mechanic decided to do an overhaul in my absence. Is it still safe? Apollo

Hello Apollo, too much oil in your Pajero engine can cause severe damage. An engine over filled with oil will suffer poor lubrication which results from ‘foaming’ of the same oil. When you over fill the engine oil, the oil pump will fail to handle the oil pressure build up. Subsequently, it pumps foam mixed with oil instead of a clear lubricant with sufficient pressure.

This will cause oil starvation, a limitation of lubrication which leads to engine metal sheer, overheating and damage. This explains the noise the engine has been making as its internal metallic components were running dry.
This might explain why your mechanic carried out some repairs. It would be interesting to see the defect and repair report to ascertain the extent of repair.

To allay your anxiety you could seek another opinion. An engine compression test with a good test kit should be carried out to confirm that the engine has sufficient compression and the overhaul was done properly.
Should the test fail to meet the nominal compression vales of each cylinder, then it warrants revisiting the overhaul.

Going forward, you need to choose your engine oil carefully. Each car manufacturer recommends an engine oil grade and viscosity which works well with the vehicle. Also choose engine oil that is blended with additives to clean, protect (from metal sheer damage, corrosion and sludge) and improve efficient performance of the engine. That is crucial to avoid the relapse of your engine damage.

Hi Paul, I drive a toyota premio model ZT 2002. My gears take long to change so I was told to get CVT oil because it needed gearbox oil change. I only found it in one place where it is sold expensively. I tried elsewhere and failed to get it. If they used ATF, would there be damage to my car engine?
Zachary.

Hello Zachary, a CVT (Continous Velocity Transmission) gearbox does not work like your conventional automatic gearbox which shifts in steps. The CVT gearbox adapts its continuous shifting pattern to the engine rations and driving conditions.
This results in better fuel efficiency. As such the CVT gearbox uses unique CVT oil which is composed differently with lighter viscosity and special properties. This results in delayed flow of the ATF oil. You ought to visit the Toyota manufacturer representative who is likely to have the recommended CVT oil in stock.

Hi Paul,
I appreciate the great job you are doing in educating all car owners.
My car is a Toyota Noah model 2004 and the problem is that when I engage the D gear, it moves at a high speed even when I am no stepping on the accelerator.
It does the same when I engage R; it moves back very fast with my foot off the pedal. It also moves backwards on a slope when it’s in D.
When I turn corners, I hear a clanging noise in the front tyres as well. What could be the problem?.
Jackie

Hello Jackie, thank you for appreciating. Some older vehicles with automatic transmission will actually crawl when you stop in traffic. However, a vehicle crawling is generally a result of momentum or a poorly tuned engine with high revolutions (rpm).
A mechanic needs to observe the vehicle’s rpm counter to determine if the engine throttle needs adjusting. You have the clanging noise in your front axle when you turn. This check will help you determine the cause of noise because of a wide range of possibilities.

Hi Paul, I drive a Toyota Corsa and although I replaced the oil seals, the engine now produces dark smoke. What could be the problem?

Hello, the ‘dark’ smoke you see should be clearly identified. If the smoke is colour blue that will mean your engine is burning oil. In case the colour is black it will mean that there is unburnt fuel emitted in the exhaust smoke. Given the history you mentioned, that is replacing engine oil seals, my hunch is your engine is burning oil and the smoke is colour blue. Here is why.
When an engine has had a poor oil lubrication maintenance regime (irregular or poor quality engine oil and filter maintenance) the engine piston rings and valve seals will get damaged.
The damaged piston rings which ordinarily prevent engine oil from intruding into the combustion chamber, will allow oil to seep and get burnt with the fuel air mixture to produce the blue smoke.
Some of the oil will exit the engine through the positive crankcase ventilation system. If someone is not observant they may instead replace the valve cover seals.
My suggestion is that a good mechanic looks at the engine again and gives you a repair plan.

Hi Paul, My Toyota Ipsum model 2002 speedometer is not working and the check engine light is showing. The problem started when my automatic gearbox started shifting poorly from time to time. What could be the problem, my mechanic can’t explain what is wrong.
Alex

Hi Alex, the failure of your speedometer, poor auto transmission shift quality and check engine light is more than a sheer coincidence. My hunch is you have a faulty Vehicle Speed Sensor.
Most post 1998 vehicle models employ Vehicle Speed Sensors (VSS) which use hall effect (magnetism) or gear drive to track transmission or differential rotation and relay the information as vehicle speed.
This information is used by multiple vehicle components such as the transmission computor, engine computor, speedometer and on some newer models the anti lock brake as well as speed sensitive steering systems.
Driveability issues on different cars will depend on how many functions rely on information from the VSS. The presence of a check engine light displayed on your dash board means that if you can access a garage with a computor diagnostic tool, a reading should find a diagnostic trouble code which will confirm if the VSS is faulty.

Ask the mechanic / By Paul Kaganzi (0772316145)
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