Serious Engine Trouble

[tritonsmoon]

Back in June of 2005 I had a problem with my VX using a lot of oil. The dealer I went to for service ran some diagnostics and explained to me I should keep an eye on the vehicles oil usage. And they could find NO oil leak. Well the next oil change I had that same dealer left the cap off. Fortunately I had no major damage after driving 20 miles. Since that time that particular Isuzu dealer has gone out of business. But I did write to the Owner Relations Department at Isuzu. Recently I have had to check or add oil pretty much everytime I fill up with gas. This weekend I had a major problem and on a 230 mile trip the oil burned completely out of my VX. I had to have it towed 100 miles to get home. Today they tell me a bearing seized and they can't turn the crank shaft at all! As you can imagine I'm not very happy. Has anyone had a similar experience? Will Isuzu help me out at all? I don't know if I want to put in a new engine. This thing only has 58,000 miles on it.

[VCrossfan]

Most likely Rod Bearing #1 (furthest from the oil pump) use the Search and browse the forum, Isuzu has a prob and know it and some members have had the same prob. Back in my Hotrod days anytime I pulled the oil pan for any reason I always installed a new oil pump due to ,it's cheap and a peace of mind. Maybe a good idea for us over 100k and lower??? Good Luck

[etlsport]

unfortunately that is not unheard of.. there have been a few VXs that suffered a similar fate.. on a 99 i dont know that you would still be covered under warranty, but if you are it sounds like your vx was maintained by a dealer, so if you are under warranty they might replace your engine for you.. can only hope..

.. from what i understand its not a very common occurance if you consider the number of vehicles that share our engine.. so i would feel its worth replacing my engine if that were to happen to me.. but im very attached to my vx

what type of oil were you using in your vx?

[tritonsmoon]

I've been using synthetic 5W-30 not for any other reason other than that was what the dealer recommended.

[nfpgasmask]

My VX burns oil like mad. I don't have a clue how to fix it yet. I change my oil every 3000 miles and I always carry at least a whole quart around with me and check it once a week. If your engine runs out of oil, it will seize. So, until I figure out how to make it stop burning oil, I will just keep an eye on it and keep it topped off. Its really bad on road trips. I usually bring 2-3 quarts with depending on how far I am going. I am using Mobile-1 synthetic.

I really would like to get it fixed, but it seems like a common problem no one has been able to eliminate completely. The only thing I have done is use 10W instead if 5W. The thicker oil seems to burn away less rapidly...I think.

Bart

[Jolly Roger VX'er]

My VX burns oil like mad. I don't have a clue how to fix it yet. I change my oil every 3000 miles and I always carry at least a whole quart around with me and check it once a week. If your engine runs out of oil, it will seize. So, until I figure out how to make it stop burning oil, I will just keep an eye on it and keep it topped off. Its really bad on road trips. I usually bring 2-3 quarts with depending on how far I am going. I am using Mobile-1 synthetic.

I really would like to get it fixed, but it seems like a common problem no one has been able to eliminate completely. The only thing I have done is use 10W instead if 5W. The thicker oil seems to burn away less rapidly...I think.

Bart

If I was you I would do the "psychos2" fix since you still have the stock intake and not the supercharger like I do.

I have the supercharger and after changing PCV every other oil change and keeping EGR clean (just pull off @ 30,000mile intervals) and using a breather cap on the valve cover....mine doesn't use hardly any oil between 3,000 mile oil changes. I mean it's barely under full when its time for an oil change. Before I did all this mine sucked down 2 quarts out of the blue.
And yes...I check my oil during fuel stops and before road trips.

The problem is the pcv valve. I have had the problem and replced the pcv valve and it is fine ,then all of a sudden down 2 qts.I have solved the problem by putting in a breather and plugging the line that goes to the intake plenum.I have had no problems since. It has probably been 8 months. If you want specifics let me know. shawn

What I did was bought a small breather from autozone ($10) and got a piece of rubber hose the right diameter and a couple hose clamps. I used the hose to connect the breather to the pcv valve and install the stock clamps to make sure it does not fall off. Take the hose that is connected to the intake plenum and plug it , I used a bolt that was the right diameter and used the hose clamps on both ends of the hose. It is very important that this hose is plugged or you will have an air leak.The breather is actually hidden under the plastic cover. I did not actually remove the pcv valve, just made it so the oil cannot be sucked into the intake. The reason this happens is poor design of the valve cover. There is either no baffle or insuficient baffles to stop this from happening when the pcv valve sticks open. shawn

http://www.vehicross.info/forums/sho...&highlight=oil

[kpaske]

I'm sorry to say that I don't see much that Isuzu could do for you. Your vehicle is out of warranty, and although leaving the oil cap off is not a good thing, unless it happened the same day your engine siezed, it would be hard to claim that it was the cause.

There are some known issues with this motor, but short of starting a class-action lawsuit, I don't think there is much you can do. Isuzu failed to fix the problem when the vehicle was still under warranty - you can bet your butt their not going to start fixing problems now.

Sorry to hear about your motor. I did that to my first vehicle - a 1980 Chevy Scottsdale pickup. Darn thing died on me on my way to school and the fuel pressure gauge was broken, so I had no idea. By the time I got off school and started poking around and realized what it was, it was too late.

[craigmm]

...oh yeah my tire blew out at the same time. go figure...

[twistedsymphony]

bad luck.. thanks for bumping this thread though good read

I was thinking about trashing the PVC now I'll be doing it for sure... I hate unnecessary crap like that.

It might be interesting to see how the JDM version has theirs setup, IIRC they aren't required to use a PVC system as part of their emissions laws so the Isuzu engineers would have likely gone the rout that makes the most sense for performance and reliability.