Lots of milky condensation in oil cap and filler neck

welterbf123 · Feb 20, 2014

REVHARD25 said: ↑

Wait stop what your doing!! this is a tsb and recall....NOT ...its no big deal ...take the tacoma on a road trip and the condensation will go away
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Just a thought. What would happen if you somehow wrapped the filler tube with some kind of insulation? Would that stop the condensation?...

welterbf123 · Feb 20, 2014

ShadowFalken said: ↑

The main byproducts of the perfect combustion of gasoline are carbon dioxide and water. All piston rings leak some by. Water boils at 220F engines try to run cooler than that in most areas. Take a non contact temp gun and shoot some temps under the hood.

Milky oil is another issue. Yes, GM intakes are notorious for leaking. A sharp tech with a known pattern failure will look for signs of a root cause. It is simple. If you have milk and always add a smidgen of coolant at a couple services in a row, look deeper. If the coolant is and stays full.....................you get the picture.
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Water boils at 212*F at sea level...

Kyouto42 · Feb 20, 2014

More redline. Less issues. Much fun.

welterbf123 · Feb 20, 2014

Got Tacoma said: ↑

First the picture of the oil cap posted by BBY2KS2K is definitely an indication of a problem. Oil with that appearance is not from driving short distance trips with a cold engine. An oil cap should never look like that.

Milky colored oil under the fill cap may be normal if you exclusively make short trips especially at low temperatures. This milky oil under the cap is not just under the cap it in the entire engine interior. But it can also be an indication of a minor or more serious problem. First the minor stuff. The PCV valve on your engine is the component that is supposed to prevent this from occurring. The PCV valve vacuums the air from the interior of your engine. Every time you shut off your engine the interior walls of the engine forms condensation on them just like a cold soda can. This condensate in your oil will make the oil acidic if it is not removed. When you run an engine at operating temperature the condensate in the oil vaporizes to steam and the PCV valve re burns the steam in the combustion chambers. Check the PCV valve and make sure it has an adequate suction on it. A lot of folks say OH just remove it and shake it if it rattles it's OK. Wrong if it rattles it signifies it is not totally occluded but it could have buildup around the valve decreasing the amount of vacuum it is pulling. Decreased vacuum equals decreased water vapor being removed from your engine. It is a good idea to change your PCV valve every 2 years especially if you make a lot of short trips. You also have to check any hoses or piprs connected to the PCV valve as the may be blocked also.

Now the serious stuff. Milky oil can also signify a coolant leak into the oil. If coolant is leaking into the oil it is via the head gasket or a cracked head. Usually it has no symptoms other than milky oil. First check if you are consuming coolant and if you are how much over how many miles. In a sealed coolant recovery system you should consume zero coolant.

Second check to see that the coolant recovery bottle is percolating or have the appearance of the engine overheating (boiling) when the cap is removed. Do not remove this cap when the engine is hot you can burn yourself severely. This is caused by exhaust gases leaking into the coolant water jacket giving the appearance of boiling coolant when it is not boiling. Exhaust gases get into the coolant via a cracked head or cylinder block.
If everything checks out OK and the oil is still milky change your oil more often every 3k miles. Using synthetic motor oil does not make the oil milky.

Synthetic motor used in an engine that used conventional motor oil in the past will make the synthetic have a darker appearance earlier into the life of the oil change This occurs because the synthetic motor oil is actually cleaning the interior of the engine via it's different surface tension qualities versus conventional motor oil. After several oil change this will go away because the engine interior will be cleaner.
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This is a great write-up. My son, however, had this bubbling issue on his '98 4Runner and after replacing the head gasket, the bubbling went away. I can only surmise that this is not always a sign of a cracked head or cylinder wall. It all depends upon what part of the head gasket is leaking.

TheMuffinMan · Feb 20, 2014

This is not a problem unless the oil in your pan looks the same way. If it bothers you suck some oil out of the pan and send it off to blackstone labs to get analyzed. One of the many measurements they have is for water % in the oil.

The plastic neck/cap just doesn't get hot enough to cook the condensation off, not a big deal.

Edit: Not a big deal if you drive it regularly. If you park it for months at a time then you might need to change the oil based on time in the engine instead of miles driven.

Navar · Feb 20, 2014

My question or concern would be where else is that milky crap building up? Normal or not I would not want it. If its moisture than it can burn off if you get the engine up to temp. Drive a little more or let it run longer.

If you have no leaks and this is "normal" what kind of oil are you running and I would run some sort of engine cleaner through it to clean where all that oil goes to just try and cut it back or get it cleaned out.

Look into BG 109 Compression Restore, google it and just read some of the results of this product.

DEEVON911 · Feb 20, 2014

Navar said: ↑

My question or concern would be where else is that milky crap building up? Normal or not I would not want it. If its moisture than it can burn off if you get the engine up to temp. Drive a little more or let it run longer.

If you have no leaks and this is "normal" what kind of oil are you running and I would run some sort of engine cleaner through it to clean where all that oil goes to just try and cut it back or get it cleaned out.

Look into BG 109 Compression Restore, google it and just read some of the results of this product.
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I don't think there is anywhere else that stays cool enough for that build up.

I changed my oil not to long ago, and had a little build up on the cap. Partly because I don't drive as much or as far as I used to. My oil looked fine coming out. It's really no issue. No one has had any engine problems with this happening, and I'd be willing to bet that everyone will continue to not have an issue.

Navar · Feb 20, 2014

Just offering an opinion and help.

DEEVON911 · Feb 20, 2014

Navar said: ↑

Just offering an opinion and help.
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It's all good. People just seem to be making a big deal about this, when its not.

Coolant in your oil? = problem.
Just some build up on your cap? = no problem.

nj636 · Jan 7, 2015

I've noticed the milky substance on the filler cap today. I switched to SuperTech Synthetic oil last time I did an oil change.

I just a small USB camera down the filler neck to check for any sludge but it's clean.

I am sucking this up to short drives in cold weather, the oil that drained looked normal.

I will report back after a 300 mile round trip tomorrow.

*edit: no water came out of the oil pan, coolant level is full and pressure
tests fine. when I pulled the dipstick before dumping the oil, the oil was not milky.

timbobzimbob · Dec 8, 2016

surforegon said: ↑

My 2015 Tacoma TRD OffRoad has about 40,000 miles on it. Every service has been at the dealership. Most of my trips are under 10 miles. Last night I was looking around under the hood and looked under the cap for my first time. Immediately I thought OH NO! Got a telescoping inspection mirror & flashlight out and inside looked fine, all clear oil residue. Dipstick looked clear oily. And the radiator fluid was pure Toyota red. I took a long Phillips screwdriver wrapped in a paper towel and cleaned the tube out. The cap I shot with cleaner spray, dried off, and spun back on.

After finding and reading this thread I think it's normal. Condensation of vapors at a high point on the engine. Sure scared me for a second though. Brought back memories of a failed head gasket on my old FJ40.

Pic is my Tacoma oil cap from last night...

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