B4 ran for 2 minutes without oil

My wife borrowed my car for a road trip yesterday. Along the way she lost oil and heard the buzzer/oil light, but couldn't pull over for a couple of minutes. What are the chances the engine/turbo is still OK? Apparently the temperature gauge never went up, and it was running more or less normally when she shut it down. Also she said she was coasting as much as she could.

I think I will go down tomorrow and tow it back...bummer.

Maybe you got lucky and the pressure switch went out. I'd check the level when you get there. I can't speak for sure to damage from use, but I'd imagine your bearings didn't like it. You'd have to hook up a mechanical gauge and see if the oil pressure is normal. Usually a tell tale sign of damage is low oil pressure once you get it running again. That and clouds of smoke

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I think there was quite a bit of oil on the ground, so I am guessing its not the switch. Though that would be awesome if it was the switch. Maybe more likely the oil cooler seal or turbo.

We had that happen with our old 2.slow, though granted that's not a turbo engine, it drove 10 miles after the light came on and surprisingly sustained no damage, even though it had drained all the oil out. I'd refill it and carefully start it up, listening for knocks and all. Maybe pull the turbo inlet loose and check for excessive shaft play first.
Of course fix the leak.

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Sometimes the oil pressure switch is known to leak around the terminal. Cross your fingers.

That's a long time after the buzzer goes to run the engine, especially at temp and road speed rpm's...

I wouldn't hold out much hope but maybe, won't know until you find out what happened.

Steve

Reminds me of the lady that called me up a few years ago saying that she needed a balance shaft delete kit. I always ask if the oil light had come on, and if so how long was it on...(I usually hear yes, and somewhere in the neighborhood of 4-10 seconds).
She said that the oil light came on when she was 50 miles from home, and the engine stopped/wouldn't crank just a few blocks from making it home.

Naturally she needed a lot more than just a balance shaft delete kit....

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In any case, you might get off lucky on this one -- though I fear for the health of your turbo...

i say fill it up with oil and new filter. drive it as normal. the cost to repair anything that could have gone wrong would cost more than the car is worth unless you DIY it and even at that its about even. if it lasts, it lasts. either call an uber when it goes dead on the road or get AAA.
it could be fine. i have and many others have ran low or hot on oil and nothing much comes of it. not much you can do thats worth doing. just have a back up plan incase it does not end well.

^^^^ That’s probably the best advice I’ve ever seen you give...

-Todd

JETaah said:

Sometimes the oil pressure switch is known to leak around the terminal. Cross your fingers.

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had a car that the switch went bad. was broke, checked the oil, no knocking so kept driving. well the sensor is by the manifold. stopped working because enough oil leaked by. then it started spraying the exhaust manifold. man was that a smoke show. and what a mess.

Short Change Oil and Listen

My oil cooler gasket blew out on my AHU, and I drove about 3 miles with no oil. I recommend replacing oil and filter, driving for a hundred miles, and replacing oil and filter again. Then drive like normal and listen for new sounds for a thousand miles or so. It might be fine. Mine has been.

The garage said the supply and return hose for the turbo were bad. So I am thinking of replacing the turbo, since it wouldn't be too much more labor. If the car was at home and it was summer I would probably just replace the lines and give it a try. I just have to see if I can come up with enough money to get a good (non Chinese) turbo.

I think I'll try the 100 mile oil change, too, good idea.

rallywagon said:

My oil cooler gasket blew out on my AHU, and I drove about 3 miles with no oil. I recommend replacing oil and filter, driving for a hundred miles, and replacing oil and filter again. Then drive like normal and listen for new sounds for a thousand miles or so. It might be fine. Mine has been.

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That gasket should be on a 3 year change interval IMO.

Steve

My daughter put a hairline crack in her oil pan after hitting a ground out section of road that was not marked. Her oil light came on in the middle of a long narrow bridge. She pulled over as soon as possible, perhaps a minute or so after the light came on.

The turbo was shot but the engine was fine. Fortunately I had a spare oil pan and a spare turbo. She’s been back on the road for over a year and about 20k miles.

Steve Addy said:

That gasket should be on a 3 year change interval IMO.
Steve

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I dont know or have heard or anyone changing that gasket unless it leaks lol. 3 years? Sounds right!

Mongler98 said:

I dont know or have heard or anyone changing that gasket unless it leaks lol. 3 years? Sounds right!

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Now you have... I think it's a really good idea! That seal rarely starts by leaking a little, it pretty much will dump your oil out in a matter of seconds. I changed the one on my 1.6td Jetta every once in a while, even though it wasn't leaking. Preventative maintenance buddy!

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Mozambiquer said:

Now you have... I think it's a really good idea! That seal rarely starts by leaking a little, it pretty much will dump your oil out in a matter of seconds. I changed the one on my 1.6td Jetta every once in a while, even though it wasn't leaking. Preventative maintenance buddy!

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It's also a specialty o-ring that a lot of locals don't have on hand. I have never checked with the VW dealer here, they might have it, but maybe not, who knows.

And you're right, when that o-ring goes it can be all over pretty fast.

Steve

I got it from O'Reilly's. It didn't come up by application, but it's mahle B32299 or fel-pro 72485

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Mozambiquer said:

I got it from O'Reilly's. It didn't come up by application, but it's mahle B32299 or fel-pro 72485

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With most general parts houses (maybe not NAPA) you have to take a part number for a common non-VW manufacturer in with you in order for them to locate it. Quite often even if they don't have it they can get it. For instance most places can get Fel-Pro stuff.

This is the kind of thing I order when I have a short order or when I think of it, usually right after I use one from the shelf box. I looked today when I was at the shop and there are 6 in the box so I think I'm ok for now.

Steve

I am planning on replacing that seal on the oil cooler on my car this summer. I already have the seal ready to go. I should have spent some time this summer looking underneath the car since I just bought it in May. Could have easily prevented this.

I just got an update from the garage. They replaced the lines and added oil and it runs "fine". They said something about the turbo lagging a little. I asked and they said it doesn't smoke. They also said it runs fine on the highway. So I'm guessing that if it is ok on the highway that the turbo is still alive to some degree.

I have about a 2.5 hour drive back (and I'm definitely bringing a tow strap). If the turbo is partially damaged or self destructs on the way home could this destroy the engine?

If the turbo is damaged it wont last more than 10 seconds. So of it started it's fine. Just be prepared and ready to stop a runaway with a stall in whatever gear your in. Probably wont happen but better to be ready just incase.

If white smoke starts pouring out your tail pipe on the trip back pull over and shut it off your turbo is dead at that point.

Buddy of mine in an 06 Jetta had the spindle break on his turbo while driving it. The car burned all the oil and his light came on. He put 4 more quarts in, drove another 3 blocks and was out of oil again. Finally got the car home, tore apart the turbo, found it broke (found the exhaust wheel in the exhaust pipe by the cat). Cleaned everything up. ordered a replacement turbo. still driving the car today.

Although his MPG has gone down and hes had the cam replaced, he still loves the car. I keep trying to get him to buy a CR but he is hesitant.

Moral of the story, if the turbo fails you just need to worry about runaway or running without oil (which has already happened). No real internal engine damage since the intake wheel can't make it through your intercooler and throttle body.

Nice, well I suppose I'll give it a try, and I'll have someone with me with the tow strap in case there's an issue.

ToBiN said:

Moral of the story, if the turbo fails you just need to worry about runaway or running without oil (which has already happened). No real internal engine damage since the intake wheel can't make it through your intercooler and throttle body.

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Or: the turbo shaft snaps, and engine oil at 60 psi is injected into the intake manifold, where two tablespoons is enough to bend a rod... or two... while the engine runs away.

If you're really unlucky a rod breaks as the engine runs away and a chunk flies thru the block, ruining it permanently.

Not very common to have a broken rod grenade the block during a turbo-failure-induced runaway, but bent rods are not uncommon. BTDT.

look. take off the inlet to the turbo. grab the shaft nut, pull it out and push it in. there should be little to NO forwards and back movement. a tiny amount is not necessarily bad but not good. side to side there should be a tiny bit. not very much but should be able to feel it. if there is a LOT of play, its toast and i would NOT run it.
Get the car warm, and shut it off and drain as fast as you can the oil, you can drain the oil and add some gasoline and run it though a coffee filter. same with the oil filter, can opener, no saws. and cut the pleats out in one but, fold into accordion and press in a vice to get oil out and inspect for metal. clean the metal with gas again and now that the bits are clean tell us if its brass or aluminum or iron. Brass means the turbo journal bearing is FUBAR should be pixy dust like, aluminum means you have damaged some lifters or bores, or bearings ect.... fairly large pixy dust or more. Iron means the cam and maybe some gears are worn down. again, larder than pixy dust here.

anything larger than say a grain of sand in size is bad. ultra fine glitter is ok but if its brass then your turbo is GONE.

Vince Waldon said:

Or: the turbo shaft snaps, and engine oil at 60 psi is injected into the intake manifold, where two tablespoons is enough to bend a rod... or two... while the engine runs away.

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Assuming of course those 2 tablespoons travel through the 36" x 2.5" plastic intercooler pipe, though the input tank / intercooler tubes / output tank of the intercooler, then back into another 36" piece of 2.5" plastic intercooler pipe, past the egr butterfly, down through the intake manifold and through a less than 12mm hole per millisecond of cam timing, I feel your risk of actually bending rods on an intercooled system is minimal.

As my buddy did, you probably run out of oil that will be settling in your intercooler pipes and tanks before bending rods.

The point is not that 2 T of oil leaks from the turbo seal and has to make it all the way to a piston.

The point is that if a turbo shaft snaps the engine can quickly and suddenly empty an oil pan's worth of oil (quarts/liters) into the intake system, since the turbo bearing is fed under system pressure.

When large amounts of liquid are fed into one end of the intake system it has to go somewhere... pooling in the intercooler and other low spots for example... but as the system fills up oil can make its way directly to the intake... where it's burned... hence the runaway. And, if a couple tablespoons of liquid are ingested at any one time rods bend.
It's happened to me directly, and others here as well.



At the end of the broken-turbo runaway on this engine (30 seconds max) the crankcase was empty, the intercooler and associated tubings were full, and so were the cylinders, two of which bent rods enough to crack 'em.

I get that this is all worst-case... but it does happen... and might be worth keeping in mind as a risk when driving with a known dodgy turbo, or perhaps when considering a cheap offshore version.

*That's* my point.