88 Cherokee with yellowish-white on bottom of oil dipstick

[greenjeep4]

Hi. I am a new member and this is my first post.

I have a 1988 Jeep Cherokee with 194,000 miles. The engine is a 4.0L 6-cylinder (original). The transmission is an automatic (original). It is a 4x4.

I checked the oil a few days ago and saw a yellowish-brown substance mixed in with the usual medium-brown oil towards the bottom of the dipstick. I have never seen anything like that before when I checked the oil.

Today when I checked the oil, I thought that what I previously saw on the dipstick may have just been a fluke - but there it was again...that yucky yellowish-white substance.

It has scared me - so much that I don't want to drive the Jeep anywhere now because I don't want to make anything worse. I don't know what is going on with it, but I am afraid to take it to the shop because all I can envision is megabucks that I don't have that they want - you know how it goes.
I am in search of any advice or solutions or suggestions to help me figure this out. Is the Jeep undriveable because of this? Is it something serious or something minor? Has anyone ever encountered this before?

Also, the Jeep just had a brand new water pump installed, along with an exhaust pipe, muffler, and tailpipe one month ago. Could this be causing the oil situation?

I appreciate all replies.
Thanks,
Elle

[fredjacksonsan]

First Elle, Welcome to AF.

My first thought would be to change the oil. I've seen some older vehicles using regular oil have a waxy buildup on the dipstick and I switched away from the brand of oil I had in there; what type/brand of oil are you using?

Another thought is that you could have some water in there, so again changing the oil would be my first move. You may want to get a sample of the oil and have it analyzed (for $30) to see if there is anything bad going on in the engine. I've used Blackstone Labs for my sampling, and they've always been efficient and very knowledgeable.

Of course, with 194K on the engine, you're bound to have a little more exhaust blowby going past the pistons and it may be normal. But an oil change and an analysis will tell you what you need to know.

[sector95]

Some thoughts...

How far do you drive? Is it cold where you live? Or is it really humid? If you are in a cold climate water vapor in the air will condense in the crankcase; this is normal and not much you can do about it other than change the oil on a regular basis. Normally, the water will boil off as the oil gets hot but if you're taking short tirps and the engine does not get completely hot and stay that way long enough, the water will remain mixed with the oil ...and you will notice a goopy brownish, greyish-colored spooge on your dipstick.

You should change the oil but if your driving habits are very short trips, especially in cold or very humid climate, then this is something that will occur again. Your oil change intervals should be no more than 3K miles. If the water isn't boiled off, it can form acids that will degrade the oil and the insides of your engine.

Mike
00XJ

[greenjeep4]

fredjacksonsan-
Thanks for the welcome and the reply.

The oil was changed less than 3k ago. It was Agip brand 10w40, but I have been adding Mobil 10w40 since the original oil change.

I checked the oil today and the dipstick showed no signs of the yellowish-whitish stuff. That was a relief, but it still concerns me.

Would you suggest having a compression test done on the engine?
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Mike-
Thanks for the reply.
The Jeep doesn't get driven more than once a week and the weather as of the past few weeks has been warm then cold then warm then cold....etc...
The thing is, there was some sort of drain on the battery, so I had been starting up the Jeep for a few minutes on the days that I didn't take it anywhere just to keep the charge up in the battery (it had to be taken to a battery shop and recharged for 24 hours a few months ago to get it going again). Now that the weather is getting more consistently warm, I have only been starting it every other day. Could that be causing the oil dipstick issue?

Elle

[sector95]

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Mike-
Thanks for the reply.
The Jeep doesn't get driven more than once a week and the weather as of the past few weeks has been warm then cold then warm then cold....etc...
The thing is, there was some sort of drain on the battery, so I had been starting up the Jeep for a few minutes on the days that I didn't take it anywhere just to keep the charge up in the battery (it had to be taken to a battery shop and recharged for 24 hours a few months ago to get it going again). Now that the weather is getting more consistently warm, I have only been starting it every other day. Could that be causing the oil dipstick issue?

Elle[/quote]

Bingo! You bet.

Battery ...maybe it's time for a new one. Check the battery clamps for corrosion ...heck just clean them and the posts. Simply starting the engine and letting it run for a few minutes will not really charge the battery; you're probably putting more of a drain on it than actually charging it. You need to take it out and drive it.

Mike
00XJ

[fredjacksonsan]

I'd agree with the starting for awhile every couple days; that would certainly cause the water/scum buildup, since it's not getting really warmed up.

[greenjeep4]

It's somewhat of a relief to know that the dipstick issue is something simple...thanks

As far as getting a new battery and cleaning the terminals...both have been done. The terminals are spotless and the cables are too...the battery has been replaced over and over and over...the only reason that the professionals give for the drain is my stereo system...I don't believe that because I disconnected my power wire for months and it still drained-on the new battery.

Elle

[sector95]

Just a thought ... when you say you disconnected your "power wire" what is that? Are you disconnecting the battery leads or is this just the hot lead for your stereo (and leaving the battery leads in place)?

If you're just disconnecting the power lead to your amp, be aware that most car stereos, even factory units, use some power for the memory and clock. That's why you can turn the vehicle off, come back and start it and all your "programming" for your stereo is not dumped and the unit shows the correct time. The power lead for this is usually part of the radio harness (in modern vehicles) so simply disconnecting the lead to your power amp won't fix the problem ...you need to remove the positive lead from the battery in order to eliminate any power drain on your battery.

Mike
00XJ

[greenjeep4]

When I disconnected the power wire, it was the lead to the stereo and the battery cables remained in place. The crazy thing is that I did actually disconnect both battery cables during some months when I wasn't using the Jeep, and the battery still drained.
The Jeep has had a persistant oil leak and I am wondering if it could be affecting electrical sensors or similar stuff - like if the oil leaks onto something electrical within the engine areas. Just a thought. Also, the Jeep has had an ongoing problem with the tranny (auto) slipping out of gear and most recently refusing to upshift out of first gear. That is a whole new message topic in itself but since I am writing now, I decided to just mention it and see if you had any thoughts on that as well.

Thanks for all the replies,
Elle

[AlohaBra]

Batteries can drain by leaking voltage across the top, mostly when it is dirty, and will conduct between the two terminals. This can be measured with a voltmeter and can be as much as .5 volts. With that said, you can check the battery periodically and see how the voltage is holding up on it, especially with the cables disconnected. Fully charged it should be 12.6 to 13 volts. The starter will not crank if it falls to 10 volts.

Battery drain can be measured in amps with an ammeter. You need a 10 amp one (preferably fused) to be put in "series" between the battery terminal (I use the negative) and the cable (cable has been disconnected first). You can measure the drain that way. For example, when you open the door it should show a fairly large drain due to the interior lights coming on. Drain should be less than 1 amp when parked (on older vehicles with less electronics).

Most good electrical shops can test this for you.

[greenjeep4]

The Jeep got driven 70 miles yesterday and then when I checked the oil today the dipstick had a more yellowish than whitish color mixed in with the oil at the bottom of the dipstick. What is making it yellow now? Any thoughts...

Elle

[mmcpeck]

Stop checking it, just do an oil change and use a good oil and filter. Drive it for a bit, at operating temp, not just idling, and see if you still have the yellow. If so you may be getting water in it somehow. But your not gonna get anywhere checking the same contaminated oil over and over, you have to change it out.

Your battery issues have nothing to do with an oil leak. If your battery is dying, you have a parasitic drain somewhere, the reason it drained when you disconnected it completely is because it was already drained from being connected to a constant drain before you disconnected it, it wasn't fully charged. You have to test it using the above mentioned amperage drain test.