A Brain Teaser

[Jon S]

Ok, lets see if anyone knows the answer to this.

I have just bought a 2.4L TD Surf (LN130) about 5 weeks ago. There is something(s) wrong with it but I and my local garage can't find the problem. I have a K&N filter fitted.

Problem:

I have very poor economy, around 16.5mpg on short runs and 20mpg on long runs.
I don't seem to have much power. I can manage 60mph up slightly steep hills, 40mph up moderately steep hills and 20mph up steep hills.
I have white smoke on starting, goes after about 15 seconds. Only happens when cold.

Symptoms

After a thorough check at the garage today, nothing specific could be found.
Emmisions are too high.
There is pressure in the crank case that is being vented when the oil dipstick is removed.
There are no problems with exhaust products in the coolant and they are pretty sure that it's not a cracked head or head gasket.


I am more worried about apparent lack of power and smoke than anything else, although the emmisions at a level that would fail an MoT are a concern.

I would be really gratefull for any help anyone can offer.

Thanks,

Jon.

[welshsurfer]

what is the condition of your turbo-charger ???
is it spinning up/working at all ??
strange noises ???
CARL.......

[Danno]

Sounds like it could be an over fueling problem, but I'm not sure.

[Morr]

.......After a thorough check at the garage today, nothing specific could be found.
Emmisions are too high.
There is pressure in the crank case that is being vented when the oil dipstick is removed.
There are no problems with exhaust products in the coolant and they are pretty sure that it's not a cracked head or head gasket.....
Jon.

Excessive crankcase pressure could be indicative of worn rings, did they perform a compression test? Does the motor appear to be consuming oil?

[Simon.O.]

High crankcase pressure can be a sign of excessive blowby caused by worn rings/bores.
Lacking power sounds a bit like not enough effort from the "steel snail" ( turbocharger )
A compression test is probably the quickest and cheaper of tests to do.
Replacing rings vs reconditioning the turbocharger is a cost to which I have no knowledge and to be honest do not ever want to know.

[Jon S]

Thanks for your help,

I am currently persuing the 'overfuelling' route, I know my turbo works, I can hear it spinning up and down and also I can hear the wastegate working.

I managed to get in touch with my nephew who used to work for a landrover dealer doing diagnostic work and he tells me that excessive crank case pressure isn't something to worry too much about. Apparently the crank case breathers can become slightly blocked on older cars leading to elevated pressure. Only something to worry about if the dipstick is pushed out and oil is pressured out. No oild is being burned, leading me to think that the condition of the piston rings isn't too bad.

My nephew suggests that injector timing or poor injector performance may be to blame, or an engine temp sensor not working, causing an 'on choke' condition. Or maybe a leaking injector.

I spoke to a toyota dealer only to find out that they couldn't put the diagnostic machine on these vehicles because the 'frequencies' are incompatible with imports. Does this sound right?

Thanks,

Jon.