Hey all!
I'm having a problem I can't seem to pin down. Hopefully some of the expertise here will provide some insight. To set the stage, I have an '04 Titan LE Crewcab. It is my daily driver, as well as the tow vehicle for my 28 foot (7,000#) travel trailer. About 54,000 miles.
Last summer, we took a major trip with the trailer down to Zion N.P. in Utah. The test was the biggest yet for the Mighty Titan. Over 3,000 miles total, ambient temperatures rarely below 100 degrees (as high as 115), and elevations reaching 9,000 feet. All towing a fully loaded trailer.
As always, the truck performed exceptionally well. Easily keeping up with the 'oil burners' we were traveling with in the mountains, etc. Everything was great, that is until we were about a two miles from home and noticed the oil pressure gauge briefly dropping to zero at each stop light. When we pulled up to the house, I immediately checked the oil level, only to find it was down 4.5 quarts! YIKES!!!
It should be noted that the Titan has never experienced any oil consumption in the past, and had been fully serviced (including - thankfully - Mobil1 synthetic oil) a week before we left. During the service, I had an injector cleaning, and in the process the dealer managed to cook one of the catalytic converters. That was replaced the day before we left. Now, before you say it, I know... I screwed up, and should have kept a better eye on the oil level during the trip, but as I said, consumption had never been an issue in the past, and it had just been fully (and expensively) serviced for the trip, so it really didn't enter my mind. I know better now!
Since that time, the truck has run pretty much okay. No obvious bad effects. It doesn't really seem exactly right, but I am also hypersensitive to it's condition now, so...? It also has not had any more issues with consumption, which I have been checking every couple of weeks, until just this last week when I discovered it down about 1.5 quarts again.
The rub is, I can't determine where the oil is going. There are no visible leaks on or under the engine, and no puddles in the driveway. There is also no visible smoke from the exhaust, or abnormal soot in the pipe. Obviously this is a substantial concern, as it could portend larger ($$$) issues down the road. We are also planning another similar trip this coming summer, and my confidence in the truck is shaken. The dealer is - at this point - blowing the whole thing off, and suggesting there is nothing they can do short of a very expensive engine tear down, and even that may not expose anything.
So the question is (thank you for your patience), what's going on here? Anyone else have a similar experience? I'm a fairly adept mechanical guy, but I'm at a loss on this one.
Thanks in advance for any insight you can offer,
Doug
I'm having a problem I can't seem to pin down. Hopefully some of the expertise here will provide some insight. To set the stage, I have an '04 Titan LE Crewcab. It is my daily driver, as well as the tow vehicle for my 28 foot (7,000#) travel trailer. About 54,000 miles.
Last summer, we took a major trip with the trailer down to Zion N.P. in Utah. The test was the biggest yet for the Mighty Titan. Over 3,000 miles total, ambient temperatures rarely below 100 degrees (as high as 115), and elevations reaching 9,000 feet. All towing a fully loaded trailer.
As always, the truck performed exceptionally well. Easily keeping up with the 'oil burners' we were traveling with in the mountains, etc. Everything was great, that is until we were about a two miles from home and noticed the oil pressure gauge briefly dropping to zero at each stop light. When we pulled up to the house, I immediately checked the oil level, only to find it was down 4.5 quarts! YIKES!!!
It should be noted that the Titan has never experienced any oil consumption in the past, and had been fully serviced (including - thankfully - Mobil1 synthetic oil) a week before we left. During the service, I had an injector cleaning, and in the process the dealer managed to cook one of the catalytic converters. That was replaced the day before we left. Now, before you say it, I know... I screwed up, and should have kept a better eye on the oil level during the trip, but as I said, consumption had never been an issue in the past, and it had just been fully (and expensively) serviced for the trip, so it really didn't enter my mind. I know better now!
Since that time, the truck has run pretty much okay. No obvious bad effects. It doesn't really seem exactly right, but I am also hypersensitive to it's condition now, so...? It also has not had any more issues with consumption, which I have been checking every couple of weeks, until just this last week when I discovered it down about 1.5 quarts again.
The rub is, I can't determine where the oil is going. There are no visible leaks on or under the engine, and no puddles in the driveway. There is also no visible smoke from the exhaust, or abnormal soot in the pipe. Obviously this is a substantial concern, as it could portend larger ($$$) issues down the road. We are also planning another similar trip this coming summer, and my confidence in the truck is shaken. The dealer is - at this point - blowing the whole thing off, and suggesting there is nothing they can do short of a very expensive engine tear down, and even that may not expose anything.
So the question is (thank you for your patience), what's going on here? Anyone else have a similar experience? I'm a fairly adept mechanical guy, but I'm at a loss on this one.
Thanks in advance for any insight you can offer,
Doug