water in oil

Hi,
This is such a great website. I have a 2005 tacoma 4 cylinder that appears to have some water in the oil. It showed up last night when I checked it. I drove it some this morning because I had to and it looks like it's not as bad. My first thought is a blown head gasket. Would that happen to this motor? It has 80K on it and it has been trouble free. It runs fine and hasn't overheated.

Is there anything I could add to the coolant?

Also, about 4500 mile ago, I switched to mobile 1 synthetic motor oil. Could that have caused this?

Also, I went to the car wash and washed the engine compartment lightly a couple days ago. I didn't spray the engine that I know of, but of course now I'm afraid that I cracked the block.
thanks,
chet

thanks,
chet

 

Change that oil ASAP and then I'd check it after every short drive. If you see water in the oil again you're gonna have to get it fixed.

 

There was a tiny little bit of creamy oil on the dipstick, but most of it looked normal. It was mostly on the upper part of the stick-- about halfway to the handle and a tiny bit on the tip. I guess it's enough that I noticed something different.
I'll change the oil tomorrow and keep an eye on it.
thanks

 

climb under the truck and loosen the oil drain plug just enough so that either water or oil drips out slowly. if theres coolant getting into the oil you will know cause oil is lighter than water so the coolant will settle at the bottom of the motor. you should let it sit overnight before doing this. i had this happen on my wifes 99 tahoe. turned out to be that the intake was loose and it was leaking coolant into the oil. in your case it could just be condensation.IMHO

 

x2

Check your radiator overflow to see if there is oil in the coolant as well.

 

Sounds like condensation.....if it was a blown head gasket, the whole dip stick would look like you dipped it in chocolate milk.

Are you checking it after a short drive or after it is completely warmed up (at least 20 minutes of driving). If it is not fully warm and driven a while, there will still be condensation in the oil...

 

Are you due for an oil change?

Check the oil itself either by changing the oil or draining a bit off so you can see the OIL (and not a dipstick or residue). That'll be the true test...
If there's water in the oil, the oil will be milky & frothy (sp?).

 

if your oil level is rising your leaking coolant into your oil (making oil).

 

I would be willing to bet it is your Mobile 1 oil. Some synthetics leave condinsation. More likely than not, nothing to worry about.

 

i run mobil 1 and have noticed this, but i put lucas oil in the rear diff and had shit floating around I looked it up it was the lubricants and detergents so its been in there for about 40000kms with no problems. could be something along those lines.

 

Thanks everyone! I let it sit overnight and unscrewed the drain plug enough to get about a 1/4 cup of oil and there was no sign of water, not even a spec. Great idea dirthawker1313. The coolant resevoir is nice and clean also.

My theory is, of course, the Mobile1 and condensation that is building the the dipstick tube and each time I check the oil, the stick is dragging through the muck and making the oil look bad.

Would it be bad to switch back to conventional oil? I've only been using the synthetic for the last oil change... about 4500 miles ago.

thanks
chet
Toyota's rock!

 

Ugh....sometimes I wonder where people come up with this stuff.

First - Mobil 1 DOES NOT create condenstaion in the oil....NO oil does.

Second - Mobil 1 is a GREAT oil and I have used it for over 15 years and swear by it so no need to change.

What happens with any engine is when your car sits overnight or for an extended period of time where there may be temperature changes.....like it's warm during the day and cold at night, condensation may form in the engine. After you start your car and it's been running 20 minutes or so all of that condensation evaporates via the crankcase breather or PCV valve. This is why it is considered "severe duty" if you only drive your vehicle for short periods.

Bottom line, your truck is fine and just drive it!

 

if your worried about the condensation you can put some SEA FOAM in the crank case. that will help keep it "dry".

 

LOL, thats a very good point Secret Squirrel -some people here really need to think about what kind of advice they are giving before they give it