Blown Engine

I purchased a Disco 2 (TD5) on a 53 plate privately last August which had full dealer service history and approx 37k on the clock. Its my first Land Rover and I have been loving every moment I spend driving it and have had no problems until now. I was driving along quite happily at approx 65mph when suddenly there was a slight rattling noise coming from the engine and within a few seconds a massive cloud of black smoke began to pour out of the exhaust and I lost power. I coasted into a layby and turned off the ignition and removed the key but the engine continued to rev and the smoke was still pouring out. After about 2 mins the engine stopped.
Its been the garage now for about two weeks and after replacing injector seals and testing the injectors to no avail they removed the head to find what can only be described as a melted piston which had also badly scored the bore. The other 4 pistons looked pristine. So now I am looking at having to replace the engine.
My questions are these;

Is this a common fault with TD5 engines?

What could have caused this to happen?

Is it worth writing to Land Rover for compensation as the engine is still young (38k) and has documented service history?

I dont wont this experience to destroy my enthusiasm for my beloved Disco but its definately taken a dent. Apologies for the long post.

GhostDance said:

I purchased a Disco 2 (TD5) on a 53 plate
My questions are these;

Is this a common fault with TD5 engines?

NO. Nor common on ANY engine.

What could have caused this to happen?

Best Guess is a solid object has entered the damaged cylinder. A small nut or bolt or screw. Or the end of the glowplug may have dropped off. Has it dropped a valve? This means the head of a valve breaking off. I feel sure that most of us oldies on here will feel pretty sure that something a lot harder than air or diesel has entered that cylinder. Modern engines have such small spaces on compression they can't eat much more than air or fuel without serious damage happening. WATER is the cause of most troubles, but not yours.

Is it worth writing to Land Rover for compensation as the engine is still young (38k) and has documented service history?

YES. Start with a NICE letter expaining the facts and asking if they would help or contribute to the repair ... You never know your luck.

I dont wont this experience to destroy my enthusiasm for my beloved Disco but its definitely taken a dent. Apologies for the long post.

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You might be surprised how much "damage" a cylinder can show and still run perfectly well. The bore can be lightly honed, and a new piston and rings fitted. The damage will then all be IN (into the cylinder walls) and the rings will have no trouble with it. There is a point when such damage is "too much", but that point is a whole lot worse than any garage will agree to.

Is there a local LandyZone Oldie who could have a look at it?

And then do try to ascertain what caused the problem. This is especially important as it might happen again days after a repair.


Bummer.

CharlesY

Right, I'm on the shorts now....hic.

Given the current economic situation and the fact that many large companies are folding, let alone being a little tighter, the odds are that L/R will wipe their hands of any claims made against them. Someone else on this forum is trying to take legal action against L/R for an alleged "known problem" with little or no luck. As CharlesY has said, the price of sending a pleasant letter asking for a bit of help might actually be acknowledged and maybe, just maybe taken onboard as a cause for a little assistance. the odds are not likely for them to replace the engine. It has been known for them to offer replacement parts or free labour at a stealer for the repair.

Sadly I don't think you are going to be satidfied with any response you get as the odds are stacked against someone with a used landy that is well out of warranty. Companies are being nasty at the moment. I have a brand new Sony Ercisson C905 that hasn't worked since the day it got delivered, 5 months later and I am still fighting for a replacement phone!

Good luck mate

I've seen this happen to a Renault engine, oil accumulated in the intercooler via a leaky seal until there was enough oil for the engine to draw in and use as fuel. The engine could not be stopped as it was using the oil in the intercooler to fuel the engine in unchecked volumes revving flat out and inevitably the engine blew before it ran out of fuel/oil. That was in the workshop

its not uncommon to a diesel , had it on a golf once , yours killed its self , i walked away from mine and denied all responsability , not mine don't know who owns it, left it clattering away on the side of the road

sounds like its picked up on the engine oil! if the scores inthe bore are not too deep you may get away with a rebore and pistons.it will be better to rebuild your engine knowing it will be like brand new than buy an unpredictable engine where its history and mileage are unknown.
diesels usually pick up on engine oil when breathers are blocked and the pressure has to be released elsewhere.another cause is thrashing the b*****cks out of them or over filling them with oil.

I'm not sure these later replies are thinking enough about the clear description of what happened here.

I don't think he said the engine had a "runaway" overspeed. Far from it.

He said he was cruising along at 65 or so in 5th that would be about 2,200 rpm.

I was driving along quite happily at approx 65mph when suddenly there was a slight rattling noise coming from the engine and within a few seconds a massive cloud of black smoke began to pour out of the exhaust and I lost power. I coasted into a layby and turned off the ignition and removed the key but the engine continued to rev and the smoke was still pouring out. After about 2 mins the engine stopped.


I now think the turbo inlet (compressor end) oil seal may be the culprit.

Perhaps he can tell us - did the engine scream its head off after you switched off?
Or did it continue running at a modest sort of speed. and then stop?

CharlesY

i stand slapped across my mucky mouth , no he didnt mention runaway but he did say he coasted into a layby, may be this is when it went daft on him(foot on clutch would allow the engine to pick up on its own assuming its a manual) and the poor bugger didnt notice it ? could it have been the rings giving up or part of the injector coming loose ??? why would they change the injector seals for this problem ? if it wouldnt start or was rough running i could understand

andrew j said:

i stand slapped across my mucky mouth , no he didnt mention runaway but he did say he coasted into a layby, may be this is when it went daft on him(foot on clutch would allow the engine to pick up on its own assuming its a manual) and the poor bugger didnt notice it ? could it have been the rings giving up or part of the injector coming loose ??? why would they change the injector seals for this problem ? if it wouldnt start or was rough running i could understand

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Not at all slapped AndrewJ.
It did run on after he turned off the key, and the ONLY way for that is oil getting sucked in somehow. I wonder how fast it ran?

A td5 Injector cannot drop a tip off like some can, so we can rule that out.

But it could drop the tip off a glowplug ... or a piston could crack up and send heaps of oil into one cylinder.

Which cylinder was the damaged one? One of the TD5 cylinders has no glow plug!

Once he tells us a bit more we can guess more.

CharlesY

could the " slight rattle" be engine pinking or diesel knock?

you have me thinking charles y , i would be right in saying one of the jap motors had a problem with the injectors washing the heads off the pistons (isuzu trooper 300 ) could this of happened in this case? as for the heater tip its poss

Hi guys,
many thanks for the replies to my questions re blown engine. I can confirm that the piston involved is number 1. When the incident happened the engine did rev by itself but not excessively.....I would guess it was approx 2000----2500 rpm. During investigation by the garage they did find a glow plug that looked like it had crumbled away at the end. (Sorry guys my knowledge of engines is quite limited). The car (Metropolis Model) has a auto box which was a shame as I could have stopped the engine by stalling it had it been a manual. Incidentally while I was driving just before it happened my g/f said she heard a blowing sound (I never heard this) coming from the engine and likened it to a leaky exhaust sound.
I will write a polite letter to Land Rover regarding this matter and start the ball rolling. The garage have quoted me £4500--£4750 to supply and fit a brand new Land Rover engine and I will probably go down this line.
Once again guys many thanks for your advice and thoughts on this matter.

Fuuuuuuuuuuuuu. £4750 will buy you another 53plate TD5, then you can have your existing one for spares!

Baggs me the scrapper!

One piston with rings one set of gaskets, a set of 4 glowplugs, and we're off!

I will give you two grand for it.

Or how about I give you my lightweight historic on a galv chassis and a 19J 2.5 turbo diesel and overdrive as a straight swap?

Don't let that garage rip you off !

Find an independent.

CharlesY

assuming that your cylinder head is still ok, this may be of use to you.

Landrover Discovery TD5 engine block, pistons and rods on eBay, also, Land Rover, Car Parts, Cars, Parts Vehicles (end time 15-Feb-09 20:01:46 GMT)

there is a complete td5 on ebay with a buy it now price of £1995 on a v reg the item number if you are interested is 290294284101