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Stuck oil scraper springs, a common problem. Oil scraper springs can get stuck due to contamination inside the engine. When they get stuck, they can no longer “stretch” far enough to scrape the oil down at the cylinder wall, with consequences.
In this blog we will discuss a number of points:
- Operation of the oil scraper springs
- Cause of stuck oil scraper springs.
- The result of stuck oil scraper springs.
- What can you try to solve it yourself?
Operation of the oil scraper springs
The title already says it a bit. The oil scraper springs scrape the excess oil from the cylinder wall back into the crankcase. In this way, the oil is prevented from ending up in the compression space and thereby going along in the combustion process.
The oil scraper springs are equipped with some small openings. Here, the scraped oil can then be returned to the crankcase. In addition to the oil scraper springs, there are also compression springs in an engine, with modern engines these are usually two. The compression springs must ensure that the space is perfectly sealed, so that the compression in the engine will be optimal.
What happens in the engine?
The piston moves up and down in the cylinder barrel. The cylinder sleeve is lubricated with the engine oil. When the piston moves down, there is a special spring around a piston, this is the bottom spring. Which is intended to take the oil back into the crankcase. If this is not done correctly, the oil will remain partly on the inside of the cylinder wall. Here the combustion takes place and part of that oil goes along with the dressing of the oil. This gives you blue / black smoke and the oil is gone from the engine. As a result, new oil must be added.
Cause of Stuck Scraper Springs
As you can read in the introduction, the cause of the oil scraper springs getting stuck is pollution, carbon deposits to be precise. But how does this carbon deposit occur? And what can you do to prevent it.
Pollution
Just by car to the supermarket back and forth or another short drive. It seems the most normal thing in the world, but in the meantime your car is suffering. If you do this occasionally, this is not a problem, but if this is regularly the case, there is a chance that your engine will be seriously contaminated internally.
Due to the short distances, the engine does not have the opportunity to reach the optimum temperature. The engine does not warm up enough, resulting in incomplete combustion. The carbon deposits build up internally in the engine. When this becomes too much, the oil scraper springs can get stuck.
More environmentally friendly cars
Regulations regarding car emissions are getting stricter and stricter every year. Manufacturers do everything they can to minimize the consumption and emissions of their cars. However, this does not always benefit the car.
You can see a good example of this in this video about the then new Audi TSFI engines. In the search of the manufacturer for as little resistance as possible inside the engine (resulting in less fuel consumption), the importance of the oil scraper spring was briefly forgotten. This resulted in extremely high oil consumption.
Furthermore, all pollution of the cars nowadays no longer ends up in the environment, but instead in the car itself. Consequences, contaminated EGR and particulate filters and contamination in the oil and fuel system.
How to prevent?
You can prevent the above problem by always allowing the engine to warm up, resulting in better combustion. In addition, you can consider an additive to prevent contamination in the engine. The Lindemann Engine Performance Treatment is extremely suitable to protect the engine against pollution and wear.
Result of stuck Oil Scraper Springs
Because the oil is no longer scraped back into the crankcase by the oil scraper spring, it will end up in the compression space. This will then go along with the combustion process, resulting in oil consumption. So, the problem is pollution or possible wear. At the bottom of the piston you can see all dirt and then burnt oil. On the side of the piston you can see that there is a layer on it, resulting in a clogged oil scraper spring.
When the engine gets very hot, the metal expands, and the piston can no longer return to its end position. The piston ring should fall into the bottom groove of the piston. The oil consumption will then get worse even faster, because the oil scraper spring will then get stuck in the cylinder wall, because it cannot go back far enough, so it no longer fits. It has become too big, which increases the oil consumption even more and the chance of getting stuck is even greater.
There are of course multiple causes of oil consumption, which is why we have previously written a blog about reducing oil consumption. Here too, the oil scraper springs are briefly discussed, but we will discuss this in more detail in this blog.
What can you try yourself?
Manually loosening the oil scraper springs can be a costly repair. Before you start you can also consider internally cleaning the engine with an engine flush. The Lindemann Oil System Cleaner is ideal for this and cleans the engine thoroughly.
Lindemann Oil System Cleaner
Naturally, the chance of success of this additive depends on the degree of contamination. If the oil scraper springs have not come loose after the first flush, you can try a second time. However, if it is still not successful, it will still have to be done manually. This is only the case with extreme pollution.
Do you have any comments and / or questions regarding the blog above? Let us know in the comments below or contact us! Are you looking for a premium quality additive? Order directly through our shop. Click on the button “Order now” and place your order.