need help in Osoyoos British Columbia

[Larry B]

I am driving an MCI-5B with a8v71 with manual transmission. Second trip for bus.Drove about 900 miles and never used any oil. When stopping for night at a camp ground, noticed oil blowing from  valve cover breather pipe. oil on dip stick shows about 1/4". What are the possible causes? Have I likely broken an oil ring or could it be something else? As long as I make sure there is lots of oil in the engine will it hurt to drive the beast home. My charge rate is much less than others. Will driving speed or rpm affect oil consumption?
   Thanks  Larry B

[Zeroclearance]

Most likely a tired topend.   Broken or worn rings.   Pressurizing your crankcase yields the blowbye out your breather.

Just watch your oil level and limp it home.   

[luvrbus]

Like Kevin said something on the compression side a broke oil ring they pump oil out the air box drains and smoke plus have popping sound most of the time 

Man you spent a lot of time and money covering every little detail on the rebuild to have that happen  I feel bad for you 

1 piece pistons are cross heads ?

[Larry B]

Thanks guys. Glad to hear this beast should make it home. I have cross head pistons. I still have 20psi oil pressure at idle and 65psi at 1500rpm. The oil seems to be blowing from only one (left) breather pipe. There is no noticable change in the sound of the exhaust. i am going to tie a couple of soup cans on breather pipes and see if I can get out of this camp ground without making any more mess than I have already have done. I am not the most liked person here from the oil trail.on the concrete .Guess there is no sense hurrying home damage is already done.  thanks again
    Larry B 

[hargreaves]

Larry, pull that valve cover and check to make sure the screen that fits below the breather tube hasn't come loose and fallen off.    Cheers Gerry

[luvrbus]

A 8v71 should have a breather on the back of the engine also fwiw

[thomasinnv]

A 8v71 should have a breather on the back of the engine also fwiw

Clifford are you referring to the cross over tube that is located under the blower drive coupler? I don't recall seeing anything else back there, or am I blind?

[luvrbus]

Looking from the back on the right hand side most have a breather there

[Larry B]

Update on my panic cry for help in Osoyoos. The word Panic describes very nicely what I felt in B.C. The next morning after my cry for help I fill engine with oil (about a gallon in 300 mile drive the day before) started ,air up and got out of camp ground as quick as possible to avoid any more oil mess. Found a spot a few miles down road on gravel and stopped to check oil leak. THANK YOU LORD. It is amazing what you can see in the daylight with a mirror. It was nearly dark when we stopped to camp the night before. The oil is not running out of breather pipe but is running down outside of it. The small 1/4" copper tube at rear below left head and returning to block behind starter hard a crack and was spaying on breather pipe. Found someone that works on large trucks that repaired it for less than  $100.00 .To me this was cheap as I had it in my head that if I ever got the beast home I was going to spend $1000.00's and a lot of hard work to get this engine running correct. Thanks all for you advise in my panic. The trip(about 1500 miles) up and down the mountains on a total rebuild seems to have been a good thing for my engine. It seems to be getting stronger all the time. I have not had to add oil since Osoyoos and still full on dip.  I do like my jakes, sometimes on downhill I turn up volume on rear camera so wife and I can share the sound. At this point she usually  has words for my taste in music. I would have written sooner about my panic but we do not have internet access on bus yet. We have only been home a couple of days and still trying to catch up . Once again thanks for all the advice.
       Larry B

[Seangie]

Larry - Great to hear you got out of the mess for a 100$. (too bad about the bad reputation for MCI 5's at some campground in BC)

I do like my jakes, sometimes on downhill I turn up volume on rear camera

Oh...thats a great Idea!  I am adding it to my project list and will set it up so I can run the microphone from the camera through the sound system on the bus! 

[luvrbus]

Larry, FWIW that line is supposed to be made of steel if you replaced it with copper it will crack again, a 8v71 or any 2 strokes have no copper lines anywhere I have replaced dozens of blower feed lines people have made of copper tubing 

I am glad that was the only problem

[Stormcloud]

It's sure nice when the repair comes as easy and inexpensive as that.

On our return trip from Arizona to Canada in February in the MC-7 with 8V-71, the engine decided to start leaking. A lot.  About 10 litres(or quarts)  per 500 miles or so. All over (and under) the toad. I wasn't gonna stop to look for a mechanic to check it; I stopped every 2 hours and added oil as required.

When I pulled the engine/transmission to swap it to automatic, we decided to replace engine gaskets , seals, and hoses while the powertrain was out, all while looking for a severe oil leak.

I noted a missing 1/4" plug from the upper inside of the cylinder head that was allowing oil ( and plenty of it) to splash onto the rear of the engine and drain to the front, down the front of the block, and then all over the toad.

It was a relatively easy and almost free fix ( one 1/4" bolt ) once I found the hole, but I sure wouldn't have found it with the engine installed without a steamer/high pressure washer, some noise cancelling ear plugs, and a helluva good flashlight.

Some days you get the bear, and other days the bear gets you.

[lostagain]

Glad to hear it was an easy fix.

On the way home to Invermere from Alberta, which we do about twice a month with the bus, there is a tunnel at the bottom of Sinclair pass just before the Radium Hot Pools. I always open my driver's window and take my foot off the pedal to hear the Jakes rattle. Great fun. My wife rolls her eyes, LOL.

JC

[bevans6]

That line sounds like the oil feed to the power steering pump drive gear.  On mine I had two fittings and a short length of flexible oil line.  I just reused the fittings and made a new line up when I replaced my engine.

Really glad to hear it was an easy fix!

Brian

[harpold700 3]

Did you get Joe Usher to do the repair?