I recently bought a 1999 Dodge 2500 CTD with 87K and have had problems with it from the get go ( Air conditioner, steering box, brakes and a bent push rod). The dealer has taken care of it all but every time I park it some where there is a spot of oil under the front of the engine about 8- 10 inches in diameter.<br><br>The dealer says this is normal and is coming from the “blow by”. I can live with a little but this seems excessive. How much oil is too much and will I have to park it over a drip pan every time?<br><br>Thanks for your help.<br>

 

A &quot;spot&quot; of oil 8-10 INCHES in diameter??? This is NOT, repeat NOT normal. You must be consuming a lot of oil. One drop of oil in my opnion is too much. Sounds like the dealer is snowing you. Yes, all engines have blowby but not to the extent that they blow oil out. If you are not exagerating about the amount of oil dripping then you have a big problem. That amount of oil coming out could be a variety of things such as bad rings which means an engine overhaul. How many miles on this rig? BTW, are you male or female? What sort of warranty did you get from the dealer?

 

Yes the oil &quot;spots&quot; are 8 to 10 inches in diameter. I have been putting a piece of cardboard or paper under it every night when I get home. The dealer has been very good at addressing my problems and has fixed every thing so far. It was the Dodge Mechanic that said the excess oil was normal when I made him look at after it parked it in their lot. He even put that in his report that it was normal. <br><br>The truck has 87,000 miles on it. They just repaired a bent push rod as well as a couple of other things. I have had a couple of Dodges but this is my first Diesel so I am not that familiar with the engine yet. Sorry if this sounds like a stupid question. I just don't have a lot of experiance. <br> <br>Thanks for your reply.

 

The only stupid question is the one you did not ask!!!
I noticed that in your original post you had said 87K but was not sure if that was the mileage when you bought it or if you had considerably more now.
That was a serious question when I asked if you were male or female as this sounds like the type of thing I have seen many dealers say to females in the past. Ticks me off royally.
You did not tell us what sort of warranty the dealer gave you.
We also need to know how much oil you are using per 1000 miles.
What caused the bent pushrod? That may be a clue to the high oil consumption. Did they take the cylinder head off to fix this?

 

I really don't know how much oil it uses per 1000 miles because I haven't driven it that much. I'll keep a close eye on that. The dealer gave me a 30 day warranty but the problems with the push rod started right a way and that was two months ago. I have no idea what caused the push rod problem. <br><br>In that time I have had the truck for about two weeks of the two months. The rest of the time it has been in the shop for various reasons. I am seriously thinking about going with a different truck.<br><br>Yes, they did have the cylinder head off. At least I assume this because in the list of parts there is cylinder head gasket. <br>The other parts include: Valve cover gasket, push rod, thermostat, coolant, intake manifold gasket, exhaust manifold gasket, air intake connect gasket, oil (3), grommet valve cover seal, hose and clamp.<br><br>

 

Not sure on that particular engine but the fact that head was off makes me very suspicious. For most (all?) overhead valve engines it is not necessary to remove the head to change a pushrod. How about some comments from the guys that know this particular engine?<br> If you only had a 30 day warranty and now it is over that, even tho the truck was in the shop for 2 weeks of that you may have a problem. My suggestion is, if you can get another truck from the dealer then do so. However, remember that I do not necessarily have all the facts. If you do get another truck from this dealer watch out that he does not try and stiff you for the repairs to your present truck. Remember, he is in business to make a buck or two.

 

You might have them check the gear housing for a crack from the KDP. There have been a couple of 99's that have had the KDP fall and crack the gear housing. It's hard to see because it cracks under the fan assembly. They will have to remove the fan assembly to check it.<br><br>You can look at some of the pictures on my site and see where the crack usually happens and what it looks like.<br><br>http://members.aol.com/hrrs994/kdp/

 

As BigBlackDodge said - 100,000 mile warranty on the engine. Don't let them off with the 30 day stuff.<br><br>As Mexstan said - large oil spots are NOT normal. I get NO spots from mine.<br><br>I'd do at least two things - 1. Get a second opinion from Cummins and a recommendation. And 2. Go to a different Dodge dealer and have them look up, on the computer, ALL of the work that's been done by Dodge on that truck, and if it is extensive see if they'll give you a print-out - ammunition to get your dealer to either get the proper work done or give you a different truck, and something to give to Consumer Protection, BBB, and your State's Attorney General.<br><br>Let us know how things are going.<br><br>Stan