Went to the shop this morning for a look-see. Sad picture with the suspension out and the sump dropped exposing the bottom. The good news is the innards look VERY clean, and there are no metal shavings, etc. in the sump. The bad news is the pressure relief valve appears to be fully functional, with no binding of any parts during disassembly. The latest oil filter is still on the car, and I was able to see where it had swelled, cracking the paint, as well as the gasket being blown out. We're saving that filter & I will post pics at a later time.

But, we've reached an impasse. The pressure is apparently WAAAY too high, and although it idled fine for a couple hours, however, with any revving the pressure went to max on the gauge. The oil cooler, oil filter check valve, and pressure relief valve all seem to be clear. And no, there is no evidence of leakage from the sending unit.

I'm scratching my head as we try to figure out the next move. Oil pump maybe? We're checking into that now.

 

Mmmmmm.

I dont think its in the oil pump. Reason being the pump is doing exactly what it is designed to do, and the relief valve is apparently doing what it does.

I reckon the issue is "past" the filter, and in the oil gallery/s of the engine itself.

Again my reasons.

The oil is getting TO the filter, and is getting blocked somewhere beyond that. The main item involved here is the crankshaft, and its 7 main bearings. The top end is a minor oil feed item, and sees oil "after" the crankshaft.

I have been studying the oil pump/pipes/carrier, in my parts diagram, and the 2 oil pipes out of the pump to the oil pipe carrier drawing are interesting at least. I follow it as follows:

Pump sucks oil up through pick up screen, through pipe 1 to the pump, out of the pump through pipe 2 back to the bracket, where it appears it feeds through a passage in that bracket into the cylinder block, then to the oil filter housing, then to the oil filter, back into the oil gallery. BUT, the actual flow chart including the oil cooler I dont have or know.

A blockage "after " the oil filter makes sense to me, and the relief valve, and by-pass valve "should" take care of that, so again something is out of whack in the "relief" side, maybe.

The blockage may be:

If the bearings on the crankshaft have "spun", NOT all of them, one would be sufficient I reckon, then the oil hole alignment between the cylinder block and the bearing shells is no longer, so the oil has NO WHERE to go. OK, bearing failure and crankshaft failure usually follow very soon. Just to be sure I would be dropping the main bearing caps (one at a time) and just have a look at the bearings, just to ensure they have not spun. This is rare, but it can happen.

Again, I still maintain that the relief system should be able to cope with that issue, but that is only opinion, as I dont have an oil flow schematics for this engine.

IF, however the oil gallery running the length of the cylinder block was blocked/restricted, say just near where the oil filter housing bolts on, which is where the oil first enters the gallery, then all hell would break loose, which I think is what you got??.

 

I might be mistaken but have you checked the by pass relief that in the rectangular block behind the filter,i believe it wont let any more than 75lbs preasure,it might be stuck,or something is blocking it.Also take the cam cover off to see if you are getting oil up there(there should be quite a bit by each lobe).

 

Lumppy, I don't believe we've looked at the cam, however the by pass relief has been checked and appears clear. Haven't found any evidence of physical blockage as yet, and there are no foreign particles in the sump. The search continues today with the sump off.

 

I'm not going to even remotely attempt to send you down another path, you need to eliminate all of the above.

But, a while back you posted that with a high pressure airline, "something went POP" and then they put the car back together and it seemed to run OK for a while.

So what went POP, where was it, what was it, and possibly more important where is it now?

Whatever it was, it is still in the oil system somewhere.

I would want to know what it was, and chase it down.

 

It seems that something is blocking the preasure relief valve or filter valve.From the filter the oil goes into the oil galley,then up the front of the motoe to the head,which also has a galley across the front of the block to feed the cams. There micht be something in either the galley or the housing behind the filter housing. If you have to clean the galley you can remove the front cover (with the pan off) and get access to it.

 

Richard, you, me & my mechanic are in total agreement about whatever it was that went "POP". The search continues for that elusive cause. It's been my contention, and I could very well be wrong, that IF there is blockage anywhere, the pressure relief valve would activate & relieve that pressure. As for running fine after the pop, well that's been clarified a bit. Seems it was left to idle with no incident for quite a while. As soon as they started to drive it, or even rev above ~2500 rpm, the filter blew again. I requested they save the latest filter for pics, because I could clearly see where it had swollen, causing the paint on the filter to crack, as well as the gasket being blown outward. I didn't have my camera (cell doesn't have one), and that filter was still on the car.

Anyhow, when I looked at the innards of the relief valve, I could see a little bit of blackened metal on what I believe to be the plunger, thinking that maybe that discoloration indicated binding. However, it moves freely within the valve body, and came out easily when the valve was opened.

Lumppy, I've sent your info to the mechanic. He is very appreciative of the input, and willing to try anything he may not have thought of.

Of course, Grant's input has also been extremely valuable and sincerely appreciated.

Thank you all for your concern and efforts to help me solve this dilemma.

 

Ok, It's done and running fine. In fact, it sounds more like an electric motor than a piston engine, smooth and quiet. The delay was that the original replacement pump arrived damaged in transit, so a second replacement had to be ordered. The whole time, the car was on the lift with the suspension removed, so the shop suffered too!

Attached are a couple pics.

On the pic of the filter, you can see where the paint is cracked from when the filter ballooned. When I originally saw the filter, it was still on the engine & the gasket had blown out too.

The other pic is the innards of the relief valve. The pics aren't that good, but if you look hard, you can see scoring on the sleeve in which the plunger rides. At the end of the plunger, you can see a blackened area. It is my assessment that the plunger wedged into the sleeve, and when the pressure built, the entire sleeve moved with the plunger. The result would have been that the sleeve blocked the openings to the relief tube.

It may not have been necessary to replace the entire pump, but the job is done now, and it's running great. I'll be using a lighter oil (10W-30), while I watch the behavior of the pressure.

Thanks to all, especially Grant, for your advise, patience and concern.

Ray

 

Fair dinkum.

That is some serious scoring and shows that waaaaaaay back some el-cheapo oil was used and NOT changed for some time.

GOOD to hear it is all fine now.

Time for a drink or 2 or 3, damn cold here tonight, so Port is on tap. Then some Chili carrot just to stir the taste buds.

I reckon Synthetic 10W/40 ALL year round should be just fine.

 

Good to hear it all worked out well in the end.

 

And if I wanted to buy you that drink or two, where would I have to go?

 

Thanx! Maybe could have been a little less expensive, but the way the engine sounds now gives me peace.

 

Mmmmmm, I am a LOOOOOOONG way from you, BUT, we are planning another trip to Las Vegas soon????, to visit family again.

Will keep in touch, maybe catch up then?????, in the meantime the bottle of Merlot in the fridge with your name on it is being consumed NOW, HAHAHA, well done.

 

CHEERS!! I trust you enjoyed the Merlot.

A looong way? It's only, what(?) 12 time zones.
As much as I would like to visit "Down Under", your solution is much more pragmatic, as usual. Besides, I haven't been to "Lost Wages" in 40 years. Do keep in touch. Never know how paths may cross.

MOLTE GRAZIE!!!

 

I kinda' dread seeing a new post into this thread from Sharay LOL

Looking forward to a months time, when I can safely add Fixed to the title.

Good to see that it looks like your perseverance paid off, and another Jag was saved from the crusher.

 

Thanx, Richard. Your input & concern is appreciated and valued. I wouldn't have had the heart to see the crusher in her future. "KittyKar" was our first Jag, something Wife always wanted, and she proudly drove it until about a year ago, and still misses driving her.

Not sure yet, but I'm seriously thinking of correcting her remaining flaws, starting with the parking lot dent (thanks a lot anonymous ) in the passenger door & paint. Mechanically, she's sound (again), the body is solid and rust free, and the suspension has newer bushings & shocks. So there's a lot of life left.