2001 Td5 Smoke & Rattle & Over Revving & Diesel In Sump

Details are: Melbourne Australia

1. 2001 TD5 AUTO ACE LAND ROVER DISCOVERY
2. 95000KM

3. For about a month prior to event I had noticed the engine getting a bit noisier on start up every day as was the "whiring" of the fuel pump from the rear of the car.

4. Was driving from a warm start for about 20min doing about 105km/hr on open highway, just getting onto a slight incline when suddenly an almighty grinding noise eminated from what seemed like the transmission area and lasted for about 3 to 5 seconds and was accompanied by a rattle and huge billow of black exhaust smoke lasting for about 5 to 8 seconds and the engine seemed to over rev and want to keep going eventhough I had taken my foot off the accelarator.

5. Applied brake (after I s---t myself) and slowed down and noise and smoke dissapeared and kept on driving for about an hour without further incident.

6. For about a month after that I occasionally got the rattle/grinding, smoke, and over reving usually on a bit of an incline.

7. Took it to the dealer end of September where they "checked turbo and hoses, removed all fuel injectors and replaced all sealing washers, replaced injector wiring loom and rocker cover gasket, replaced the engine oil". Told me there was traces of diesel in the sump oil but they did all the above work anyway.

8. Drove without incident for about 3 weeks and then the rattle/grinding, smoke and over revving came back generally on an incline and perhaps when the transmission was shifting from 1 to 2 to 3rd.

9. Took it back to dealer, where they advised there was definitely diesel in the sump oil and this is what causes the rattle/grinding & smoke. They have repaced/drained the engine oil. Drove it home tonight without incident but expect it to become progressively worse over the next 2 to 3 weeks if what they say is right and diesel is getting into the sump oil.

10. They say its a cracked cylinder head. Someone told me that if that was the case then the symptoms would occur all the time and not occassionally.

Any ideas anyone?

Regards
Zedman from Oz

If the oil level is rising and the injector washers and o rings have been replaced then the head needs checking very carefully - possibly removing and pressure testing.The last one that came to me like this had a visible crack in the machined hole that No 1 EUI goes into - it spanned the area of the o ring.The car would go from low to high on the dipstick after 100 miles.
I was told of a TD5 that caught fire and burnt out on a long journey for the same reason.The symptoms of smoke etc will only occur when the oil is diluted and has risen enough for an excess to make its way out of the breather into the inlet piping in a large enough amount to burn in a big way.

eightinavee said:

If the oil level is rising and the injector washers and o rings have been replaced then the head needs checking very carefully - possibly removing and pressure testing.The last one that came to me like this had a visible crack in the machined hole that No 1 EUI goes into - it spanned the area of the o ring.The car would go from low to high on the dipstick after 100 miles.
I was told of a TD5 that caught fire and burnt out on a long journey for the same reason.The symptoms of smoke etc will only occur when the oil is diluted and has risen enough for an excess to make its way out of the breather into the inlet piping in a large enough amount to burn in a big way.

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Is there not some danger of a real "runaway engine" situation here?
Sounds dodgy to me.
I hope my TD5 doesn't do this to me.
CharlesY

Sorry to here this mine did the same but ran away on the motorway and went bang big time .Iam now on my second engine and the head has cracked on this one it was a second hand engine i had fitted but was all i could afford .... spoke to landrover customer care (should be customer we don't care ) and they say there is no problem with the heads and have not heared of the fault try e mailing them or ring the more people tell the the chance is they may well do something about it

CharlesY said:

Is there not some danger of a real "runaway engine" situation here?
Sounds dodgy to me.
I hope my TD5 doesn't do this to me.
CharlesY

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Yes they can run away and i've had a couple do it to me, stick it in neutral and let it blow up (auto). try and stall it in 5th gear with the brakes on (manual)

On the couple of occasions this has happened to me, i wasn't driving them, they just revved into oblivion in the workshop, with auto's, there's no way to stop it. If you're quick enough, you can stall a manual before the clutch burns out!