Hey folks, I need some advice.

I have an F-Type v6S 2015 now at 101,000km.
The car started to drink oil around 90,000km.
At my last oil change last week, the tank had 2L of oil remaining. The previous oil change was done 8,000km prior.
My mechanic said the PCV valve cover might need to be replaced to eliminate this drinking problem. Because the repair would be expensive, I decided to use my extended third-party warranty.
They sent me to an affiliate shop, and their diagnosis is that the low engine block needs to be rebuilt. I was expecting $2,500 in repair fees for the PCV, and now I'm looking at a possible bill of $18,000 or more. Sadly, my warranty only covers up to $10,000.
To prove that the PCV was fine, the mechanic opened the oil cap while the engine was running, and the engine started to work hard, shaking a lot. He said that's proof that the valve cover is all right. Can anyone confirm that he's speaking the truth?
I drove 1000km between the last oil change and this inspection. Oil was already black and smelling gas.
The mechanic said that the oil may have been too thin. My mechanic who did the oil change uses the recommended 0W-20, while this mechanic says it needs 5W-30.

So, I wonder, how f*cked am I? Do you think this is a case of an engine rebuild? Or might I have some luck and find out this is less expensive?
If it's the lower block that drinks that much oil, can I just do the oil change frequently and forget about the issue, or does it require a rebuild?
I'm hesitant

 

Engine oil should NOT smell like gas. (Unless you often run the engine for really short duration, EG moving .
around a parking lot/garage to allow the WIFE to access her car. )

Engine blow-by due to worn piston rings IS indicated if you feel pressure from the engine after removing the oil fill cap. I've not seen that a removed cap should affect running, tho.
Ask down at the 'corner garage' if the idle should sound like that with the cap removed...



Let's hear more second opinions

 

Good to know.

I travel 1.5 km every morning to get my coffee, averaging 30-40 km/h with the jag. Could this be considered really short duration?

I'll ask my mechanic about the idle.

 

I thought I did short journeys, but 1.5km is hardly worth starting the car for! Nothing will get up to temperature in that time, so isn't at all good for the engine.

 

Agreed.

I always recommend at least one continuous trip of 30 to 60 minutes per week. This will evaporate any condensation in the oil. It will also serve to keep your battery in good shape.

Take the long way home!!!

EDIT: In your case, take the long way to the coffee shop!



Has worked for us over 5 years!

 

Yikes! This explains a lot. Short runs like this never allow the engine to get to proper operating temperatures but they do permit all sorts of negative issues, contamination of the oil being one of them. Oil in an engine used this way on a regular basis will not do its intended job of lubrication - improper lubrication =engine wear. And then there is the battery which does not get a chance to recover from the discharge at start-up. Your Jaguar would love a long fast run after you change the oil 😃

 

Ah, my mistake! I should have specified that I push the car weekly. I ride the twisties every Friday and Saturday with my friends. We're driving hard when we ride, but I make sure to let the car breathe every 10-15 minutes. I average 400-500 km a week during the season.
Most of the driving is done on weekends, but during the week, the car only drives a few kilometres per day.

 

So, with everything said, what do you think? Should I be worried?

I visited this link, and everything adds up for a PCV valve replacement. Though, to be honest, I know a little bit about car mechanics, and this is out of my skills. So, what do you think?
https://carfromjapan.com/article/car...bad-pcv-valve/

Here's what I've seen:
- On rare occasions, the car vibrates a little bit when idling. It's really subtle and usually occurs after driving the car hard. It happens extremely rarely, maybe once every 1.5 months
- The engine runs too rich. I mounted the GoPro on the car, pointing towards the rear. On shifts close to the redline, I sometimes see fumes of black smock coming from the exhaust.
- car jitters on first and second gear, and downshift from second to first.
Finally, there is an oil leak. However, I never saw any puddles on the ground, and every time I get in the car, I turn around and look around. It drinks 0.7L per 1000 km.

Besides that, the car runs perfectly. No power was lost, there was regular gas consumption, the shifts were buttery smooth, and the car's track record has always been A1.

Maintenance is always done on time, an average of 10,000 km per summer. That's why I find it weird to have the rings needing replacement. I won't lie; I drove 30,000km in a year, but I'm not beating the car up, and I'm truly taking care of it. Also,

Lastly, the shop my warranty asked me to go to is unknown to anyone I know. It's in a sketchy area of the city. They had 6 cars on the lifts, and all of them were having their engine rebuilt. The mechanics were not welcoming, and the shop was extremely dirty. I'm 25 years old and driving an F-type, so my gut feeling is that they tried to scam me. In 20 minutes, no compression test was done; just by smelling and looking at the oil filter, they said it was an engine rebuilt 100%.

 

Glad to rear that your car does get some proper exercise…still…1.5 km runs do nothing good for the engine.
Your description of the recommended shop and mechanics would convince me that my car should not go anywhere near it. Before changing anything, I would do a full oil and filter change, using 0w20 oil that meets the JLR specification. And yes, deal with the PCV valve. Check the oil level before every use of the car and see how the story develops. If there is still an issue, have a mechanic familiar with the JLR engines look at it

The easiest way to check the oil: BEFORE starting it, that is before its first use of the day. That way you know that all the oil has drained into the sump and the readings will be consistent. Ignore the “wait 10 minutes” instruction. Also make sure that your coolant level in the reservoir is near MAX. Have you had the leak prone plastic coolant pipes changed?

 

You need to RUN away from that shop! If they did not even perform a compression test and told you you needed a new/rebuilt bottom end, they are taking you for a ride. There's no way one could tell without even the simplest of diagnostics test to perform. Even if the car came in smoking like a chimney, you would still need to pinpoint what component is failing.

Even then a compression test doesn't tell the whole story. They would need a leak down test to pair that up to see if its a ring/cylinder issue, or a valve/ head issue.

1) Do you see blue smoke coming out of the exhaust while at idle or under acceleration? 2
2) You need to address the oil leak first to diagnostically rule out that out as a cause

0W-20 is the recommended oil weight from JLR and should be more than acceptable for your use as long as you're in the referenced enviromental temps.

 

^ I'm with JP129. Doing a compression test is more/less the first thing you check - and certainly done before you talk about tearing things down. (I can show you my Doctor of Motors diploma, if it helps.)

If compression were bad, certainly the ultra-thin 0W-20 would pass through a bit easier, but I wouldn't jump to change from the factory spec. Hell, BMW is now using 0W12 in it's hybrids - it's a trend. In part for mileage, but supported by better build quality.

You don't mention anything about checking the oil level over time - presumably because you didn't. If there IS a wear problem, you just made it worse, and your warranty company might not cover any of the cost.

Don't rush into the the rebuild. Check the compression. Do a longer run at least once a week. Keep an eye on the oil level.

 

Do you see any visible leaks infront of engine

 

Hey folks,

Thank you for all your answers.

- I don't see blue smoke, but white puffy smoke on hard acceleration, and after a cold start for about 10 minutes if temperature a low (Under 12 celcius). I always assumed it was condensation. When the car is in the underground parking, there's no smoke. It only puff on idle at lights and during acceleration when the ambiant temperature is quite cold.

I have development on the situation though. I went to JLR and they also think it might ends up to an engine rebuild. But he said from the wear he sees on the car, the odometer might have been traffickated. I saw three specialist and from the wear the car is showing, they all say it's unusual and should happen when the car is at 160,000 km +++

My problem is that there's no way to get proof by reading the ECU. Usually, you'll look at the ECU to find a forgotten file displaying the original mileage. JLR told me that all the files must be modified for the dash to display the new mileage.

Luckily, the dealer rushed the preparation and forgot to reinitialise the infotainment system. I have the past owner's entire phonebook and complete navigation data. Do you think JLR can extract the navigation history and see if it matches the odometer? I know for a fact that the navigation system always knows where you are. Do you think it stores somewhere the total distance red by the navigation system?

 

There is no visible leak. Every time I get in the car, I take the time to look around for any puddles, but I never see anything.

 

By the cam covers and the timing chain covers, and the valve cover gaskets

 

Did you end up doing an engine rebuild? Or was it the PCV valve after all?

 

None of the above. It turns out the oil was too thin. I now use 5w40. I drove 20,000km, went through 3 oil changes, and always had the recommended quantity coming out.

 

Still after all this time and no compression test or leak down test has been done?

Without some kind of real numbers I don't think you can know if it has all those problems or not?
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