TLDR:
I discovered metal flakes in my oil during a routine change; not chunks or shards, more like glitter. Engine has no noticeable abnormal knocking or dieseling while running, and idles very smoothly. Oil pressure gauge (no numbers, just dots) sits just above mid-line at idle, pressure raises as speed raises, like normal. Posting here for guidance and advice.
Jeep's Background and Maintenance Details:
2005 TJ Unlimited with 4.0 engine. Current mileage: 106,487.
No known open recalls.
Previous owner(s) had these oil change/maintenance notes recorded in the manual:
I'm a little taken back by the "25,000 mile /1 year change" part there. But yes, it looks like they believed the sales pitch and went 20,000 miles between changes. Routinely. (Which floors me, BTW.)
Beyond those written records, the Jeep's CarFax shows it had its oil pan gasket and rear main seal both replaced in 2011 at 64,258 miles.
There are a whole series of annual "Services Performed" and "Passed Safety Inspection" for Texas after that.
In November 2018 it was at a San Antonio dealer, and shows oil, oil filter, and oil pan gasket replaced at 101,515 miles.
There are a couple more "Services Performed" before it showed up at a dealer in Roswell, NM. That dealer among other maintenance, replaced the valve cover gasket in February 2020, at 102,478 miles.
This is where/when I bought the Jeep; taking ownership in March 2020, at 102,505 miles.
Current Details:
This Jeep is a weekly driver, so I figured I'd be fine doing 6 month/6,000 mile changes because I put on such low miles.
In April 2020 I started my maintenance schedule, using Pennzoil High Mileage 10W-30 and a Wix 51085 filter. I've performed subsequent oil changes each October and April with the same oil and filter combination.
This past April (2021) I changed my oil on the 3rd. I swapped out the original OPDA for a new Crown OPDA two weeks later, on April 17th. Prior to the OPDA swap I had not had any "laughing monkeys" or other signs of impending failure. It was (perhaps) over-cautious prevention. No issues, noises, or performance loss over the following months.
I went to start the Jeep last Friday (5 Nov) and it had a short moment of tapping/light knock noise from the top end, which considering it was cooler and the Jeep had sat a few days didn't freak me out too much. When it did it again this past Friday (12 Nov), this time slightly louder/longer, I took notice. It has only happened immediately after the vehicle started, for maybe 2 seconds, and the oil level rose like normal afterwards. I checked the dipstick's oil level immediately as the Jeep ran, it was between the "Add" and "Safe". I checked it again after getting to work and letting it sit a few minutes; it was at the "Safe" level. I checked it before leaving work for home, no change.
Yesterday I ran the Jeep up to temperature (no noise at startup) before changing its oil and noticed a few things as I let it cool before beginning work. The filter did show signs of a leak. It was slight, but it had made the side of the engine a little wet, the inside of the frame had a few signs of runs, and the filter itself had a trail and a drip hanging on it. First time I've had that happen with this vehicle. I never smelled oil while driving so it wasn't a heavy leak. (More on this in a minute.)
As I started the oil draining, it looked normal for 6 months, a see-through medium-dark brown, not milky or black. I went to prep the new filter, and then went back to watch the oil drain and took a light to look for metal particles. Because I had swapped the OPDA, I figured I'd have some metal in there as things wore in, but what I saw has now made me nervous.
This is the first time I've noticed flakes in the engine oil. Since the pan has been dropped at least twice and I have routinely changed the oil, it's not original wear metal floating in there. Whatever it is, its recent. It did not seem to be attracted to a magnet I ran along the side of the drain pan. The engine runs very quietly, idles smoothly, and has no lack of power. I finished with the used oil by pouring it back into the fresh bottles to measure consumption. It looks like it was about 12 fluid oz shy of the 6 total quarts I filled last April. To me this feels like a normal-ish consumption, not a sign of worn rings, seals, or gaskets.
Current Course of Action and Thoughts:
I've ordered a Blackstone oil testing kit, but in the meantime there's a few things I think I can do. First is to pull the coil pack and cylinder #1 plug, get the motor to top-dead center, and remove and check the OPDA and cam gear. Don't know what to expect here, but it's the least-intrusive check of the internals I know I can perform at this time.
I will still need to run the engine a bit before performing the Blackstone test to make it a decently accurate sample. So I guess keep one eye on the oil pressure gauge and an ear out for knocking/noise? Once I get a good oil sample, I imagine I should drain the oil, drop the pan, and perform a bottom-side inspection of bearings, lobes, and timing chain. I've never done all that on my own, so I'm really nervous.
I guess that's it. I'm just left with questions and doubt. I think I should do the Blackstone test and wait for the results before tearing into everything. Or do I just go ahead and order a rebuild kit; planning on doing all the bearings, lifters, etc. or is that jumping the gun? Should I just start lining up a mechanic because this is beyond shade tree-level work? I've looked over a few other threads and they've made me fear the worst. I'm afraid this can all go sideways really fast and I'm wanting to avoid total disaster.
Thanks for any help/advice you can offer.
I discovered metal flakes in my oil during a routine change; not chunks or shards, more like glitter. Engine has no noticeable abnormal knocking or dieseling while running, and idles very smoothly. Oil pressure gauge (no numbers, just dots) sits just above mid-line at idle, pressure raises as speed raises, like normal. Posting here for guidance and advice.
Jeep's Background and Maintenance Details:
2005 TJ Unlimited with 4.0 engine. Current mileage: 106,487.
No known open recalls.
Previous owner(s) had these oil change/maintenance notes recorded in the manual:
I'm a little taken back by the "25,000 mile /1 year change" part there. But yes, it looks like they believed the sales pitch and went 20,000 miles between changes. Routinely. (Which floors me, BTW.)
Beyond those written records, the Jeep's CarFax shows it had its oil pan gasket and rear main seal both replaced in 2011 at 64,258 miles.
There are a whole series of annual "Services Performed" and "Passed Safety Inspection" for Texas after that.
In November 2018 it was at a San Antonio dealer, and shows oil, oil filter, and oil pan gasket replaced at 101,515 miles.
There are a couple more "Services Performed" before it showed up at a dealer in Roswell, NM. That dealer among other maintenance, replaced the valve cover gasket in February 2020, at 102,478 miles.
This is where/when I bought the Jeep; taking ownership in March 2020, at 102,505 miles.
Current Details:
This Jeep is a weekly driver, so I figured I'd be fine doing 6 month/6,000 mile changes because I put on such low miles.
In April 2020 I started my maintenance schedule, using Pennzoil High Mileage 10W-30 and a Wix 51085 filter. I've performed subsequent oil changes each October and April with the same oil and filter combination.
This past April (2021) I changed my oil on the 3rd. I swapped out the original OPDA for a new Crown OPDA two weeks later, on April 17th. Prior to the OPDA swap I had not had any "laughing monkeys" or other signs of impending failure. It was (perhaps) over-cautious prevention. No issues, noises, or performance loss over the following months.
I went to start the Jeep last Friday (5 Nov) and it had a short moment of tapping/light knock noise from the top end, which considering it was cooler and the Jeep had sat a few days didn't freak me out too much. When it did it again this past Friday (12 Nov), this time slightly louder/longer, I took notice. It has only happened immediately after the vehicle started, for maybe 2 seconds, and the oil level rose like normal afterwards. I checked the dipstick's oil level immediately as the Jeep ran, it was between the "Add" and "Safe". I checked it again after getting to work and letting it sit a few minutes; it was at the "Safe" level. I checked it before leaving work for home, no change.
Yesterday I ran the Jeep up to temperature (no noise at startup) before changing its oil and noticed a few things as I let it cool before beginning work. The filter did show signs of a leak. It was slight, but it had made the side of the engine a little wet, the inside of the frame had a few signs of runs, and the filter itself had a trail and a drip hanging on it. First time I've had that happen with this vehicle. I never smelled oil while driving so it wasn't a heavy leak. (More on this in a minute.)
As I started the oil draining, it looked normal for 6 months, a see-through medium-dark brown, not milky or black. I went to prep the new filter, and then went back to watch the oil drain and took a light to look for metal particles. Because I had swapped the OPDA, I figured I'd have some metal in there as things wore in, but what I saw has now made me nervous.
This is the first time I've noticed flakes in the engine oil. Since the pan has been dropped at least twice and I have routinely changed the oil, it's not original wear metal floating in there. Whatever it is, its recent. It did not seem to be attracted to a magnet I ran along the side of the drain pan. The engine runs very quietly, idles smoothly, and has no lack of power. I finished with the used oil by pouring it back into the fresh bottles to measure consumption. It looks like it was about 12 fluid oz shy of the 6 total quarts I filled last April. To me this feels like a normal-ish consumption, not a sign of worn rings, seals, or gaskets.
Current Course of Action and Thoughts:
I've ordered a Blackstone oil testing kit, but in the meantime there's a few things I think I can do. First is to pull the coil pack and cylinder #1 plug, get the motor to top-dead center, and remove and check the OPDA and cam gear. Don't know what to expect here, but it's the least-intrusive check of the internals I know I can perform at this time.
I will still need to run the engine a bit before performing the Blackstone test to make it a decently accurate sample. So I guess keep one eye on the oil pressure gauge and an ear out for knocking/noise? Once I get a good oil sample, I imagine I should drain the oil, drop the pan, and perform a bottom-side inspection of bearings, lobes, and timing chain. I've never done all that on my own, so I'm really nervous.
I guess that's it. I'm just left with questions and doubt. I think I should do the Blackstone test and wait for the results before tearing into everything. Or do I just go ahead and order a rebuild kit; planning on doing all the bearings, lifters, etc. or is that jumping the gun? Should I just start lining up a mechanic because this is beyond shade tree-level work? I've looked over a few other threads and they've made me fear the worst. I'm afraid this can all go sideways really fast and I'm wanting to avoid total disaster.
Thanks for any help/advice you can offer.
... of your oil.
