Emulsion Removal

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dazthephot
Joined: Wed 09 Apr, 2008 18:58
Posts: 266

  Z3 roadster 1.9i
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Emulsion Removal

Post by dazthephot »

Hi all,

I get a fair bit of emulsion build up due to the fact the car is only doing very short journeys twice a day, 10 miles in the morning and 10 miles back in the evening. It isn't getting hot enough to burn moisture from the oil so i see emulsion in the dipstick. I assume it's in the sump too and there's a faint film at the top of the engine.
It's not a headgasket issue before we go off down that track.

The holts engine flushes don't seem to do a good enough job so is there a better way or treatment to try?

Thanks
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Robert T
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Joined: Mon 12 Jun, 2006 10:35
Posts: 10170

  Z3 roadster 1.9
Location: Cheshire

Re: Emulsion Removal

Post by Robert T »

10 miles should be more than enough to get it up to temperature. Mine does much shorter journeys than that and I have no such problems. Where does the car live overnight? If outside then that might be a factor. Mine is undercover.

Cheers R.

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Arctic Silver '99 Z3 1.9 & Black '59 Frogeye 1275cc
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dazthephot
Joined: Wed 09 Apr, 2008 18:58
Posts: 266

  Z3 roadster 1.9i
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Re: Emulsion Removal

Post by dazthephot »

Hi Robert,

yes it lives outside. Sacrilege i know but it needs to be a daily driver now and i think is better for it. To be honest i didn't consider outside life as a factor in the emulsion build up having read threads on this subject but i guess it could well be given the utterly crap weather we have these days in the UK.
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pingu
Joined: Fri 30 Apr, 2004 16:01
Posts: 3412

  M roadster S50

Re: Emulsion Removal

Post by pingu »

I agree with Robert, something is not right. You should be fully heated at the end of 10 miles. 3-5 miles should be enough to start the burn-off process. If your exhaust tip is too hot to grab hold of, your engine is hot enough.

I assume that you have no oil in the coolant, as you didn't mention it.

I would do an oil and filter change ASAP. Also, get it on INPA to find out the oil and water temperatures, preferably while the car is being driven.

What is the exhaust gas like? It will be steamy to start, but is it still steamy when you get to work?
Pingu
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dazthephot
Joined: Wed 09 Apr, 2008 18:58
Posts: 266

  Z3 roadster 1.9i
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Re: Emulsion Removal

Post by dazthephot »

I don’t see any oily film in the coolant, I flushed it last summer and didn’t notice anything untoward.

There’s no emulsion on the oil filler cap I just shined a torch inside to see what looks like emulsion film.

There’s steam from the exhaust at start up then soon clears.

Perhaps I should buy a kit of some sort to test the coolant. I did have a head gasket change about 10 years ago as part of the dealer changing pretty much everything to solve an overheat problem but the car isn’t really exhibiting any HG issues other than the emulsion.


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pingu
Joined: Fri 30 Apr, 2004 16:01
Posts: 3412

  M roadster S50

Re: Emulsion Removal

Post by pingu »

A coolant pressure tester is a good tool.

There is a tool that works in reverse (it creates a "vacuum") and is used to fill the system. It can also test for leaks, but isn't as good a tester.
Pingu
Fender2004
Joined: Fri 14 Aug, 2009 10:24
Posts: 907

  Z3 roadster 2.8
Location: Houghton-Le-Spring

Re: Emulsion Removal

Post by Fender2004 »

You could always go for a long drive when you have time and see if it makes a difference?
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dazthephot
Joined: Wed 09 Apr, 2008 18:58
Posts: 266

  Z3 roadster 1.9i
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Re: Emulsion Removal

Post by dazthephot »

Fender2004 wrote:You could always go for a long drive when you have time and see if it makes a difference?
It does need a good long run for sure. I mean it does run perfectly fine which is why I’m not overly worried


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dazthephot
Joined: Wed 09 Apr, 2008 18:58
Posts: 266

  Z3 roadster 1.9i
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Re: Emulsion Removal

Post by dazthephot »

pingu wrote:A coolant pressure tester is a good tool.

There is a tool that works in reverse (it creates a "vacuum") and is used to fill the system. It can also test for leaks, but isn't as good a tester.
Ah right thanks I’ll look out for one. I did change the crankcase water hose union and there’s a tiny water leak from the hose joint but it’s not excessive. It’s on my list.


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Zedbedee
Joined: Sun 15 Mar, 2009 20:04
Posts: 157

  Z3 roadster 2.0
Location: Yeovil

Re: Emulsion Removal

Post by Zedbedee »

Nobody has mentioned 'thermostat'. They are often the cause of sludge on the oil filler cap. Is the temp gauge getting to the normal centre position after a couple of miles? If not I would certainly suspect the thermostat. Cheap, easy fix.
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dazthephot
Joined: Wed 09 Apr, 2008 18:58
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  Z3 roadster 1.9i
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Re: Emulsion Removal

Post by dazthephot »

Zedbedee wrote:Nobody has mentioned 'thermostat'. They are often the cause of sludge on the oil filler cap. Is the temp gauge getting to the normal centre position after a couple of miles? If not I would certainly suspect the thermostat. Cheap, easy fix.
Well I’ve recently dealt with an airlock in the system to fix a slow to react temp gauge but I will check out the thermostat so thank you.

The dip stick sludge is a bit of a long running issue.


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