I wanted to top off the engine oil, and when i opened the cap, i found a substance that looked like peanut butter. There was a thick layer on the cap and the filler tube for as far as i could see. Just wondering if anybody knows anything about this and if its safe to drive. Until i hear back ill be driving the race car(96 accord 4 banger). I'll attach a pic tomorrow.
[:(]Ugh! I pray that this "peanut butter" is not oil and water mixture! If the headgasket is cracked and leaks minute amounts of water into the engine oil, it forms a substance somewhat like that. Hopefully not in your case. Not sure what else it could be...?
Flush your engine oil to clean all that nasty stuff and all other sludge from your engine. Makes a nice difference on your engine. My engine run a lot smoother and did not develop any more sludge/foam/etc until I sold my old ML at 110K miles.
AC
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2005 ML 500
Black, 18" AMG Wheels, 285/60R18 Falken Ziex ST/Z + Bi-Xenons(+ Drew's e-code mod), Yakima roof bars. Former vehicle 2001 ML 320 with 108K miles, when traded, and a large repair/defect history.
It is not peanut butter! Those in the know refer to this as 'motor snot' and it is caused by cold weather and condensation in the oil. Repeat: not an ML issue nor not a Mobil1 issue. Not to worry.
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Tom DeTemple
Denver
'99 ML320 traded @139k miles for---
'02 ML320 traded @45k miles for---
'05 ML350SE now at 48k miles
I agree 100% with AC_ML, flush that gunk out of there. If it is building up in the dipstick tube it is building up elsewhere. Cause, one of three problems. A head gasket(lets hope not), Somebody previous to you was using conventional oil, or excessive condensation that was never noticed until know.
So the flush would be the cheapest and best way to get it out of there. Then fill it up with Mobil 0w40 and inspect the cap and dipstick often until you are sure the problem is solved.
I would drive the "race car" until you do the flush and fill of oil. It is the safer bet.
I agree 100% with AC_ML, flush that gunk out of there. If it is building up in the dipstick tube it is building up elsewhere. Cause, one of three problems. A head gasket(lets hope not), Somebody previous to you was using conventional oil, or excessive condensation that was never noticed until know.
So the flush would be the cheapest and best way to get it out of there. Then fill it up with Mobil 0w40 and inspect the cap and dipstick often until you are sure the problem is solved.
I would drive the "race car" until you do the flush and fill of oil. It is the safer bet.
What do you mean exactly by "flush" (you said it 3 times)?
Is that more than an oil change? How do you do it?
While sludge is not a problem unique to ML, the later is known to be more succeptible to it. That is why MB changed their specification early on in the ML model life, from regular oil to synthetic. There was even a class action law suit which prompted MB to extend the warranty on the engine to 100K miles.
If a flush (whatever that is) would have solved the problem, don't you think MB would have simply settled it with a free oil change for all ML owners?
Having said that, a litle sludge on the oil cap doesn't necessarily mean your engine is contaminated.
I find small amounts of "peanut butter" on my cap every time I change the oil. And my engine has 140K miles and still going (know on wood).
I agree 100% with AC_ML, flush that gunk out of there. If it is building up in the dipstick tube it is building up elsewhere. Cause, one of three problems. A head gasket(lets hope not), Somebody previous to you was using conventional oil, or excessive condensation that was never noticed until know.
So the flush would be the cheapest and best way to get it out of there. Then fill it up with Mobil 0w40 and inspect the cap and dipstick often until you are sure the problem is solved.
I would drive the "race car" until you do the flush and fill of oil. It is the safer bet.
What do you mean exactly by "flush" (you said it 3 times)?
Is that more than an oil change? How do you do it?
While sludge is not a problem unique to ML, the later is known to be more succeptible to it. That is why MB changed their specification early on in the ML model life, from regular oil to synthetic. There was even a class action law suit which prompted MB to extend the warranty on the engine to 100K miles.
If a flush (whatever that is) would have solved the problem, don't you think MB would have simply settled it with a free oil change for all ML owners?
Having said that, a litle sludge on the oil cap doesn't necessarily mean your engine is contaminated.
I find small amounts of "peanut butter" on my cap every time I change the oil. And my engine has 140K miles and still going (know on wood).
The warranty on the engine is actually 150,000 miles (10 years), albeit a rather worthless one. You would have to prove that your engine damage was caused by sludging due to the use of regular oil.
As for the "peanut butter" or "milk shake" on the oil cap, I've never found this on mine. I certainly would not rule out the possibility that coolant is getting in the oil.
Oil flushing consists of adding an off-the-shelf product containing oil spirits/additives/kerosene, which dissolves gunk and sludge, before you perform an oil change. Pretty cheap, safe, and have been used for decades to clean internal engine parts and prolong engine life, and it is still being used by mechanics and people who don't like sludge/gunk within their engines and don't like engine breathing parts to get clogged either.
Concerning the ML engine warranty, your engine will need to be consuming large amounts of oil before MB will consider performing any engine warranty, which has pissed large amounts of owners who are forced to add more than 15 Qts of oil (between 10K miles FSS's) because MB engine oil consumption tolerance specs are 1 Qt of oil for every 700 miles.
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