I have oil sludge, please help.
 

I have recently purchased a 2006 Chrysler Sebring Touring Sedan, 2.7L V6 with 27K miles. Two days after the purchase I removed the oil cap and found a thick build-up of sludge on it and inside the valve cover. I need to know if this is a common problem with the 2.7L, or a sign of neglect from the previous owner. I am going to do two 2K oil changes back to back with Synthetic or Synthetic Blend oil to see if this will purge the engine of the current build-up. Also, will using 5W-30 instead 5W-20 cause damage to the engine? I am not confident with how well 5W-20 protects moving parts. Is there some oil additive that can be recommended to ensure engine longevity? I am fairly mechanically inclined but unfamiliar with type of drivetrain.

RE: I have oil sludge, please help.
 

u had better either take it back to who u got it from and get your money back or see if the dealer will help u out in ne way being 27k. That motor is toast if u see sludge in it already. U wasting time and money on oil products wont do u any good in the long run on this one. I will be putting a motor in it REAL soon. When u get this all working out use 5 30 or 5 20 which ever it says in the book or on the oil fill cap. Dont play around with this the motor will run u 7k

RE: I have oil sludge, please help.
 

Thanks for the advise. I will contact the dealer this week and make it known what they will do to correct this situation. I am use to the old V-8's where a little bit of sludge did not spell death to motor.

RE: I have oil sludge, please help.
 

Drain the oil, fill it back up with trans fluid. It has a high detergent content so it brakes down sludge pretty good. I would then drain it again and then fill it up with oil again and add an oil system cleaner. This will help.

RE: I have oil sludge, please help.
 

if u do that while still under warranty then kiss any and all help from chrysler. A tech will kill that in a heart beat. The manager will as well.

RE: I have oil sludge, please help.
 

What does not help is that some dearlerships will short the engine 1/2 qt of oil and say that its OK to do such on any car.

RE: I have oil sludge, please help.
 

Well most cars have a quart leway from full to add. They put it in the safe operating range. If you don't want to have any technical hassells with the dealership, just go to your local parts store and buy an oil system cleaner or engine cleaner. There is one from Gunk and one from Eagle. The eagle one is better, it doesn't contain alchol, methonol, or kerosene.

RE: I have oil sludge, please help.
 

I will be pulling the oil pan this weekend to see how much metal has been collected with the magnet. I am not really sure what is considered an acceptable amount for a car with 27K miles. I might do an engine flush after I contact the dealership. From what I am reading, I have a better chance of flying to the moon then exchanging cars, refund orsome other solution. The topend of the engine seems to be getting plenty of oil flow and there are not any metal to metal sounds occurring. But to add to this little nightmare, I forgot to mention that the coolant was low. Discovered this when the heater went cold at idle.The engine had sufficient coolant, it was not running hot. Thanks for all the repliesfrom everyone. I will be posting my progress with this. If all else failsI canget about 50 friends together to picket the dealership in shifts. That will be a sight.

RE: I have oil sludge, please help.
 

im sorry to say this, but thats why i stay clear of 2.7s. ive heard and seen of a TON of problems with them. only thing you can do is clean it all out, run some oil through it and drain at 500 miiles, 2000 miles and then another 2000 miles. that should clear it up unless theres already engine damage from it. good luck man.

RE: I have oil sludge, please help.
 

Mine is OK so far. I have 40K on it, and use synthetic.
I heard about this problem, and it is an internal leak of antifreeze into the oil. Not good!
I keep checking. I may have to trade-up if it seems to be starting.

RE: I have oil sludge, please help.
 

At 27k mi, that engine was ignored. Supposedly the sludge issue for 2.7L was corrected in 2002. To see it on a 2006 tells you the car was not properly maintained.

My 01 Limited isn't showing any signs of sludge, just under 39k mi now. I've been using synthetic for over a year, just to be safe.

Tell that dealer to find you another car, or get them to warranty that engine to 100k mi.

Good luck!

RE: I have oil sludge, please help.
 

Since this thread has popped back up towards the top...this is what I found. The perceived sludge was "wet" sludge on the oil cap. It was a slight build up of moisture mixed with the oil caused most likely from many short trips performed by previous owner, which did not allow the oil to get to proper temps, thus not evapurating condensation. The coolant level has never dropped since I took over ownership. I check it every other day. The hood latch spring may give out before the motor ever does. lol The PCV was somewhat clogged also, which could have pervoked the build-up too. I am using M1 5W-20 oil (which is a Group III with POA's added to base stock)at 3K OCI'S which should help in preventing the sludgies and will soon do an Auto-RX clean cycle to make sure the loose "wet" sludge is removed. The limited sight afforded to the valve covers does not lend much help to see how much actuall build-up has occured on the top end. However, I did fish some speaker wire (crude, I know) into the PCV port and oil cap kneck and pulled out a little "wet" sludge that coated the wire. The small clumps broke down easily when rubbed between my fingers which is not a characteristic of burnt sludge. A friend whom is a retired master mechanic with three different auto makers said that tearing down the top end to take a peak was not nessecary with what he sees. Mazda techs would have to measure a 10mm depth of sludge on the oil cap before they would consider the engine to have a sludge issue. The sludge film on my cap has not reappeared since my fist oil change. Happy motoring and good luck on your 2.7's.

RE: I have oil sludge, please help.
 

Special tool is needed to fill coolant properly. Dilership will do it for a 50 doll. probably not counting antifreeze cost.