hawkeye08
Elite Member
Glad it was just the turbo! Just curious (I am not now nor have been in the past a semi truck driver) why it is run with the oil down a half gallon for 3 weeks? I would expect it be topped off more often than that.
Off topic about a Semi tractor turbo and blown motor
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aczlan
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A semi truck will (depending on the engine) take up at least 10 gallons of motor oil, so being down a half gallon isnt a big deal.
Aaron Z
I am a licenced HD mechanic and specialised in engine repair for 35 plus years and a Diesel engine does not run away. I have seen them with the CAC completely full of oil and it shut the engine down to the point it would not pull on the flat. I have worked on the 2 cycle Detroit's to the most modern electronic engines it does not happen.
A diesel engine is compression ignition and any oil brought into the cylinder, will pre ignite before top dead centre, and cause the engine to absorb more Power than it can produce from the fuel injected because there is no longer enough oxygen to run the engine.
These stories are great, I have sen engine cut in half never from it over speeding. An engine will run to a phenomenal RPM. I have seen fuel dilution so bad it blew out the dipstick no run away. Blowers on the Naturally aspirated 2 cycles passing oil no runaways
You all have a nice day!
A diesel engine is compression ignition and any oil brought into the cylinder, will pre ignite before top dead centre, and cause the engine to absorb more Power than it can produce from the fuel injected because there is no longer enough oxygen to run the engine.
These stories are great, I have sen engine cut in half never from it over speeding. An engine will run to a phenomenal RPM. I have seen fuel dilution so bad it blew out the dipstick no run away. Blowers on the Naturally aspirated 2 cycles passing oil no runaways
You all have a nice day!
5030
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Really...
Interesting.
I owned a '79 Western Star with a 3406 pre electronic engine, ata charge air cooled with a Jacobs engine brake. The seal on the turbocharger (cold side) was compromised and it slowly filled the frontal mounted aluminum ata unit with lube oil. I say slowly so it wasn't a matter of a few seconds, rather days. When the level got high enough for the intake to begin sucking in oil and charge air, the engine took off. I was in between gears at the time and I slipped it into gear and applied the brakes and it took the driveshaft. The engoine wound up and broke one of the bridges on the Jake brake and dropped 2 valves. So no, it didn't reach a high rpm but high enough to destroy the overhead. Had to put in a reman engine.
I guess I disagree with your synopsis, at least in principle. It can happen and it happened to me and yes, I owned the tractor so I looked under the hood, under the chassis and actually checked the slacks and everything else because I paid the repair and maintenance bills or I did the maintenance myself.
Working on trucks is a dirty job.
Besides, I too work on them everyday. Mostly Cats, some Cummins and a smattering of MB's.
jeffsw6
Gold Member
I'm not saying Wikipedia is always right, but it agrees that diesel runaway is not a myth. Diesel engine runaway - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
5030
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In my case it happened so quickly, all I could think of was getting it in any gear and spiking the brakes, which I did and the driveshaft twisted like a soda straw. Both holes with the dropped valves had broken pistons and the overhead was junk so a reman engine was necessary, plus a driveshaft and a clutch because I smoked that too.
Back in the day, Roadway Express had a metering setup on their engines that metered crankcase oil into the fuel so they never changed the oil, just added more.
Of course if you had a Detroit 2 stroke, you always added oil because the oil constantly dribbled out the 'puke' tubes......:laughing:
OP
sandman2234
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Topping it off usually happens when it gets a gallon low, kind of like most of our p/u and cars, when they get to the add mark, which is a quart on a typical passenger vehicle and a gallon on a semi truck engine. For some reason, that particular engine has a sweet spot that decreases the oil consumption after it reaches about half way to the add mark. You can top it off to the full line every day and it will probably need some again in a day or two, but leave it alone and it settles in at about the half gallon mark. Simple economics is why we leave it alone till it needs a full gallon, though a little driver laziness might play into it from day to day, depending on just which "steering wheel holder" drives the truck and IF he actually checks the oil.
David from jax
Mace Canute
Elite Member
Just last week a friend was telling me about a diesel that "ran away" from turbo failure. Only info he had was that it reached 3200 rpm for sure and that it sucked oil through the turbo. He didn't know if that was all the tach would read or if that was an actual rpm number that the computer recorded.
Here's a video clip of a runaway diesel. Be sure to click on "Show more" to read what the man who uploaded the video had to say about the circumstances leading up to the runaway.
Rap 24 hp semidiesel, second start attempt. - YouTube
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sandman2234
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Thanks for the compliment!
As far as the video...
Not me..., I am in it for the money, not the glory. Besides, that is the top 1% of the top 1%, so I probably wouldn't have even made the cut.(first 1% would be extremely lucky, might be able to bribe my way into that, lol, second 1%, ain't going to happen!)
I do see something I thought "out of line" with their testing methods. The poor little duck catches all the tires, but in a real world situation, it's not the tire that you worry about hitting something, but the front end which sticks out a few inches further than the tire path when making a turn. Teaching people to be able to judge something that close, and then they hit it anyway(???)if it happens to be as tall as the bumper or higher. I would think using something skinny and taller like CB antennas instead of the shorter ducks would go further to promoting good driving habits, while still putting some challenge into it.
Bottom line, some good drivers, no... make that some great drivers there!
David from jax
The Haymaker
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You have valid points. Your record you mentioned puts you in that 1% of 1%. I have an interview at Maine Motor Transport, you're one of the guys I mention in the first paragraph.
As for the TDCs, you're right. When I'm trying to help out the rookies, one of the things I bring up is "The hardest thing about it is every day you try to stay AWAY from obstacles, now you are trying to get close." But, at the same time, I also tell them the obstacles are nothing to worry about, because if you stand back and think about it, every problem on the course is probably something you see every day on the street.
But, keep in mind, the competitions are far more than just jumping behind the wheel and going. There is also the written knowledge of the industry test and the pretrip skills test. Excel at one and fail another, and you won't even make the podium. I once got beat out of taking a first because the guy I tied with beat me on the pretrip by 15 seconds. Yes, there are significant differences between the competitions and "Real world", BUT, if you haven't got it figured out in the real world, you will fail miserably at the TDC.
"Glory"? Yeah, maybe a smidgen, but they also put me on the right course for a profitable career and have given me a good resume if the need for it arises. Being chosen for this interview will come in handy for that fact alone.