[gearhead]

Hi 3.0L V6 Engine owners.

I've noticed the smell of fuel in the oil when I check the oil level with the dipstick.
I remove and insert the dipstick a few times, wiping the dipstick clean with paper towel each time.
The odour of fuel is prevalent on the paper towel.

I mentioned this to our Dealer's Service Dept and one of the Tech's stated it's normal.
I'm thinking it's not normal (especially after reading a post by bballr4567 here:

http://www.terrainforum.net/index.php?topic=1141.msg13747#msg13747[/color] where bbalr4567 states "It also stated that our old oil had fuel in it. "[/color])

and will again bring this up next oil change which is coming up very soon.

We have somewhere around 10,500 km on the vehicle since new.

If you're a 3.0L V6 owner and you have a chance, please post up whether you detect the odour of fuel in your oil.
Many thanks in advance for any feedback.

 

[arloman]

No!!!!!

 

[inphoenix]

Hi 3.0L V6 Engine owners.

I've noticed the smell of fuel in the oil when I check the oil level with the dipstick.
I remove and insert the dipstick a few times, wiping the dipstick clean with paper towel each time.
The odour of fuel is prevalent on the paper towel.

I mentioned this to our Dealer's Service Dept and one of the Tech's stated it's normal.
I'm thinking it's not normal (especially after reading a post by bballr4567 here:

http://www.terrainforum.net/index.php?topic=1141.msg13747#msg13747[/color] where bbalr4567 states "It also stated that our old oil had fuel in it. "[/color])

and will again bring this up next oil change which is coming up very soon.

We have somewhere around 10,500 km on the vehicle since new.

If you're a 3.0L V6 owner and you have a chance, please post up whether you detect the odour of fuel in your oil.
Many thanks in advance for any feedback.

The link mentioning the fuel smell in the oil was from 4 cyl owner.

 

[2010BlkGraniteNox]

All gDI engines have this issue....Its the reason myself and others have mentioned gDI is hard on oil. Its also the reason I would never follow the OLM. On my Cobalt SS (2.0L SIDI Turbo), I had Mobil 1 shear from 30weight to 20weight due to fuel dilution in 1k miles...

The reasons as I understand it this happens more in the US vs other countries, is how rich we must run. In the US we run the richest gDI setups, we maintain the same stoich (which isnt required for gDI, it should be MUCH hgiher than 14.7:1), but the US EPA is extremely strict on NoX emissions, most other countries do not consider them separate. The leaner the engine is running, the higher the NoX, which means we are STUCK using new technology (which could be getting another 20% mpg's) with old standards. This running rich of the gDI causes carbon build-ups, fuel dilution, and piston issues (just look around the net).

Do a little reseach on bobistheoilguy to find out others having this common problem with gDI setups....Its not a GM related issue.

 

[gearhead]

The link mentioning the fuel smell in the oil was from 4 cyl owner.

Yes, I realize that inphoenix, but DI is DI and smell of gas in oil is smell of gas in oil regardless of engine.
It's something new to me.

All gDI engines have this issue....Its the reason myself and others have mentioned gDI is hard on oil. Its also the reason I would never follow the OLM. On my Cobalt SS (2.0L SIDI Turbo), I had Mobil 1 shear from 30weight to 20weight due to fuel dilution in 1k miles...

Do a little reseach on bobistheoilguy to find out others having this common problem with gDI setups

Thanks, 2010BlkGraniteNox.
I'll see what I can dig up time permitting.
Now I think I'll move our oil change date up simply to clear this "issue" up and I'll e-mail Christina here on the forums to see if she can help.

BTW, Christina, if you read this, perhaps you wouldn't mind "unhiding" your e-mail in your profile.
I know you've posted your e-mail before, I'll dig it up and put it here.

[EDIT] Christina can be reached at [email protected] with the subject line "ATTN: Christina RE: {your issue} [END EDIT]

Any other comments welcome and encouraged.

 

[bballr4567]

If you can set the oil on fire with a lighter, there is too much fuel in the oil. Something is going wrong. The service manager that I talked to had no clue how they figured out there was excess fuel in the oil and the tech that did the report was gone.

 

[gearhead]

If you can set the oil on fire with a lighter, there is too much fuel in the oil.[/color] Something is going wrong. The service manager that I talked to had no clue how they figured out there was excess fuel in the oil and the tech that did the report was gone.

Thanks bballr4567.
I will pass that info on to the Service Dept and see if they can keep some oil for testing after draining it for the next change.

 

[gearhead]

We received an e-mail from Christina (thanks for the quick reply) and are scheduling an oil change with our Dealer for some time next week.
Will post updates here as we get them and will keep Christina in the loop as well.

The only other oil change we did was when the oil life reading was around 25% or so and somewhere around 4700 - 5000 km on the engine off the top of my head.
We switched to Castrol Synthetic which was recommended by the dealer as a GM approved synthetic motor oil.

 

[gearhead]

...

Do a little reseach on bobistheoilguy to find out others having this common problem with gDI setups....Its not a GM related issue.

...

OK, I spent a little time digging into this today and indeed, it is far more common than I thought to have the smell of fuel in the oil.
There's so much info out there, I could probably spend the entire weekend reading up on it and still have more questions LOL!
Comments suggest very little gas makes the oil smell like it's full of it:

Gasoline is so aromatic that 1/2 teaspoon in 5 quarts of oil smells like lot of gas but, no harm. The only way to check is a UOA and look for serious fuel percentage. My Mazda turbo smells of gas But a UOA showed less than .3% and no extra wear and oil withing specs. Short drives of less then 10 miles exacerbates the issue. IMO

Many people suggest getting a "UOA" (Used Oil Analysis) done to find out for certain.
There are many labs out there that will do this service for around $25 USD.
It sounds like a lot of work for me, since you must get the oil sample after running the vehicle for a certain amount of time at a certain RPM then capturing the oil sample about 10 seconds after draining starts.

I think we'll just point this out to our Dealer again and be sure to make GM aware of it as well.
If there is a problem further down the road, we want to make sure we have it documented that we've brought this issue to the attention of our Dealer and let them decide how to deal with it.

 

[RNOX]

We need a volenteer to light their oil ;D

 

[gearhead]

We need a volenteer to light their oil ;D

LOLLOLOLOL!
I can bring some lighters and take notes...
;D 8)

 

[RNOX]

Marshmellows too ;D

 

[nemesis04]

I stumbled upon a test BG was doing with a Ford Taurus Sho that has a twin turbo DI engine. It shows you the condition of the valves and pistons at each oil change and the increasing amount of deposits that are developing with these type engines. It is an ongoing test and they have done 5 oil changes so far. It mentions fuel in the oil, deposits etc!

Thought it was interesting: http://www.bgfueltest.com/

 

[gearhead]

I stumbled upon a test BG was doing with a Ford Taurus Sho that has a twin turbo DI engine. It shows you the condition of the valves and pistons at each oil change and the increasing amount of deposits that are developing with these type engines. It is an ongoing test and they have done 5 oil changes so far. It mentions fuel in the oil, deposits etc!

Thought it was interesting: http://www.bgfueltest.com/

Wow, that is some interesting stuff!
Thanks nemesis04.

 

[bballr4567]

It is interesting for sure.

However, remember that the SHO does have those turbos. The air is hotter going into the engine so it can possibly cake the deposits even faster.

 

[RNOX]

So BG is an oil change place selling all types of services and oil additives? Impartial? You decide

 

[nemesis04]

So BG is an oil change place selling all types of services and oil additives? Impartial? You decide

BG products are used in service department dealerships and work quite well. I have used them on my Maxima. I highly doubt they are creating the situation as carbon buildup seems to be an issue to a certain degree with DI engines.

 

[RNOX]

Dealership service deraprments .. Honest? Not looking to make every penny they can? Techs who are paid by what they do and the more work they do they get paid.

 

[bballr4567]

Techs who are paid by what they do and the more work they do they get paid.

Only on warranty work and even then they dont get paid enough. Its the **** service writers who you should be upset about. No offense if anybody on here is one but, they are just secretaries that are getting paid like a manager. Its a semi-pointless job and that is where the bulk of your money is going when you visit a dealership.

Now, apparently the BG fuel products work very well. Im curious to see what they will do to the SHO to get all the carbon out as it might be a 25k tune up item for me.

 

[SuperMat64]

Just had my first oil change on my V6 engine and there was no gas smell in the oil.