Oil Around Injector

[Bailes1992]

Anyone got any ideas about this? Engines a 1.9TD. It's bubbling up from the base of the injector.

[jasper5]

Looks like the cam cover gasket is leaking oil, allowing it to run down onto the bottom of the injector.

[Bailes1992]

Looks like the cam cover gasket is leaking oil, allowing it to run down onto the bottom of the injector.

I checked that. It's bubbling out the bottom of the injector

[Welly]

Probably come from the rocker cover gasket, spillage when topping up and/or a leaking breather tube off the head.

If it's bubbling up then that's cylinder pressure leaking up past the threads of the injectors. I think you can fit new washers? or even murder them up with a spanner but DO NOT fiddle with them until someone with proper experience here tells you how.

[jasper5]

I would clean off all the oil that is around the injector and the cam cover then run the engine and watch for where the leak is coming from, preferably with a hot engine.

[Bailes1992]

Can see the oil bubling up from the side of the injector

[JonL]

I'm not an expert, by any stretch of (even my fertile) the imagination, but if there is oil coming out of your injectors you have a serious problem.

The injectors seat directly into the inlet port or combustion chamber (high pressure direct injection) and the only thing on the other side of them should be the combustion chamber or possibly the inlet valve. Oil here would mean that you have oil in the inlet port or combustion chamber and that would suggest a crack/leak in one of the oil pathways in the head. This is unlikely as the normal failure point for these oil pathways is across the cylinder head gasket or mating faces. To have failed further up the head without a catastrophic failure would, to my mind, be very rare. The normal symptoms of this would be increased black or blue smoke from the exhaust as the engine oil was burnt during the normal combustion process. Are you sure that it is oil, I cannot see the pictures at work, rather than fuel that is collecting oil and dirt as it escapes and thus looks very black? This would seem to be more likely as it could be an injector that is not sealing correctly or is slightly loose.

Not a great deal of help I know but all I can offer!

[Bailes1992]

I do think it's diesel mixed with other dirst and what not around the injector.

[jasper5]

If it isn't the cam cover leaking then I agree about it being diesel, I've recently repaired a couple of Fiesta diesel leaks from the leak off pipe seals, there was a lot of this type of gunge around the injectors on those.There isn't an oil supply to the injectors, clean the gunge off and keep a careful watch on what is happening.

[Nicodemus]

Exactly what Jasper said.

It's possible that the oily fluid is gathering there from elsewhere and what appears to be fluid bubbling up from around the injector is a seperate problem, possibly a leak from the cylinder forcing gas up around the injector thread and thus bubbling. But you must try to prove what's happening one way or the other.

The whole point is, you have to fault find in a very paranoid and persnickety fashion. If you don't, then you're just guessing and/or indulging in wishfull thinking. And yes, we've all done it ourselves, that's why the insistance on fussy, accurate evidence gathering.

[StevieboyTD]

Did i mention you should blast it all off with some carb cleaner and see where it is coming from?

[Welly]

I understood that the place where the diesel is regularly leaking or dripping onto will stay very clean but the surrounding area may get manky over time.

Our old 318tds was bubbling from around one of the injectors and the bubbles were clean and 'light' if you like. There certainly wasn't any thick black or oily gunge anywhere and it had been doing it for ages (since I sloshed in some Forte ).

Just remembered, I forgot to tell the guy about that when I sold it

[Bailes1992]

Yeh you did Steve but I could clearly see where it was comming from.
Took it into the garage today and they think the injector might be tightning up or might need new washer. The black stuff is diesel mixed with carbon from the cylinders.