Soaking wet egr and no boost on w203 C220cdi.

[Dogfish]

As above, the EGR valve and pipes are soaking wet with oil and there is no turbo boost. When I kickdown i occasionally get an EPC error on the dash.

I used a generic code reader and it said MAF issue and low charge pressure. I sprayed the MAF with a cleaner as it was very oily. The air filter is not blocked or filthy.

Today I changed the oil and filter, reset the codes and will run it later this afternoon to see what codes re appear. (This was in the CDI2 option on the reader).

I can hear the turbo spinning up at low speeds but there is no boost any higher. Its a bit like driving an old 850 Mini!

Why is my EGR and turbo pipes so wet? Will the Intercooler be clogged with oil I ask myself?

Has anyone got any ideas please.
TIA.

Dogfish.

 

[LostKiwi]

Are we talking oil inside the pipes or outside?

 

[Dogfish]

Hi LostKiwi.
It is all inside the pipes.
Personally I think the Turbo seals ares shot but I am no mechanic.
The Icarsoft Scanner threw up P1470 - 016 Charge pressure controlPositive control variation (charge pressure is too low).
Cleared the code while driving and some normality returned.

Weird.

Gonna cook a Biryani and have a think about it.

 

[LostKiwi]

Be careful if the seals are shot as you could end up with a diesel runaway situation where the car runs uncontrollably on it's own oil till it goes bang in a very spectacular way!

 

[Dogfish]

Lol, one of my worries!
You tube has great clips of this with trains, cars etc.


EEeekkk

 

[Uncle Benz]

Might be worth checking the crankcase breather separator before condemning major engine components.

 

[Dogfish]

Hi Uncle Benz.
Its been cleaned and new o rings about 10K ago. I'll have it off tomorrow and look for blockages tho..

Actually, isn't there a diaphram inside it? How is it supposed to work? Oil mist at the top of the crancase goes into the seperator condenses and drips back via a return passage? The rest is burned off by turbo?

A mate suggested I expose the turbo and give the shaft a wobble. Apparantly there should be no perceptible play in the shaft.

All good fun.

 

[Uncle Benz]

Yes, allows oil to return to sump and vapour goes out through turbo. They can get gungy, and instead of returning to sump, oil goes out through the turbo and makes a hell of a mess.

 

[LostKiwi]

Not a bad idea to expose the end of the turbo shaft and waggle it. Not definitive for seal condition but will tell you if the turbo bearings are shot and causing the problem.

 

[Dogfish]

It's probably wise to park her up until I get to the bottom of this one. I may have to resort to Star to see what else is in there.
Let you know what I find.

 

[oigle]

Expect turbo shaft to have some "wobble". Quite normal. If turbo seals were shot, you would be like a destroyer laying a smoke screen behind.
It is normal for the inside of the boost hoses to be oily. The inlet manifold will be full of horrible gunk as will the egr. Normal unfortunately. This is the reason a lot of owners choose to clean out the whole inlet system and then disable the egr to prevent it happening again. If the oil is on the outside, you have either a split hose or poor clamping of the hose.
It would seem you are getting too much oil from the pcv system if the piping around the maf is all wet with oil too, The maf must remain dry and clean. Cleaning it will be unlikely to fix the issue and you will probably need a new maf. Need to see why the pcv isn't working properly though. Excess fumes/oil from a worn motor?
Your intercooler will have some oil in it but that is quite normal unless it is excessive. Doesn't affect your motor or performance.

Ian.

 

[Steve@Avantgarde]

There will be a MAF fault if there is low boost pressure, it uses the MAF to generate limp mode.

The actual fault lies with your "Charge pressure too low" fault code. In effect it has an air leak. Find the air leak, you'll fix your car. Usually it will be a split hose on the main pipe work or a fractured intercooler.

 

[Dogfish]

Resolved.

Thanks Oigle and Steve. Turns out that the PCV valve on top of the engine is faulty allowing excess oilystuff to get sucked into the turbo. Couldn't see a split in the diaphram inside but I suspect it's there and only opening when pressured.
Additionally, the vacum line from the EGR solenoid had cracked at the hidden connector under the valve and was therefore not acheiving a vacum and as you said Steve, "Find the air leak, you'll fix your car."

She is now back to her former glory. Thank you all.