Newell Gurus

I noticed today some small spots on the front of my car that looks like diesel droplets.  Would this indicate that I have an injector out of spec?

Chester: my wife really hates spots on her car which we tow so I feel for you. My experience is only with the two stroke engine, but when injectors went bad (stuck partially open) there was black smoke especially when first accelerating. The engine also ran rough at idle but fine at speed.

Chester,

Look for streaks on your wheels, it could be hub oil ....

You might also just want to look at the engine and under the engine. It could be a simple oil leak.

Or it could be the coach's reaction to the near miss.

Chester, I had the same thing on my tow.  Mine was a transmission leak at the drive shaft seal.  The next time you are parked on concrete have a look under the coach the next morning.  It could be something else.

No leaks on the concrete pad, no apparent engine oil leaks, no oil streaks on the wheels, no smoke, engine runs smooth, and air filter is still in the green. When the transmission is hot tomorrow, I will check the oil level to see if there is any loss.

Hmm. Is it possible you drove over some oil on the highway that misted onto your car. Unless the car is covered in oil (I had that happen once when an oil line broke) there is unlikely to be harm in going further down the road to see if the spots are a one-off or an ongoing problem.

Chester, It could be oil your tires picked up off the highway.  I knew that was not my case because my mud flaps did not have any oil marks on them.  Also both sides of the front of the tow had oil spots of it. It doesn't take much.  I was on the road when I noticed it and drove over 2000 miles with a slight leak.  I did check trans. oil level frequently and it always said OK.  I also had a gal. of transyn with me just in case I ever needed it.

All diesels have some blow by. Do not try and control blow by, other than redirecting it. I have a Holiday rambler with a 3126 cat. ( I need to sell) that is a rear radiator model. I've taken that motorhome on plenty of dirt roads and its caused a lot of problems because of the pour design. The blow by pipe exits a mist of oil, some times a droplet or 2 down towards the ground and the rear facing fan picks this oil and dust and places it firmly into the shroud area into the intercooler, transmission cooler, then radiator. This is a PITA to clean.

Here's how i fixed my problem. I placed an extension on the blow by tube at a gentle angle to the rear, just past the large mudflap I have built across the whole back directly under the radiator. This created a higher pressure in front of the radiator and low behind it. I then lowered the blow by tube to about 4" off the ground on the back of the mud flap. I still get a light mist on my trailer or truck when towed, but its...controlled (?) somewhat. I have thought about placing a collector of some sort under this, but the risk of clogging or plugging isn't worth the probable valve cover gasket leaks or worse that I will get.

I need to get out and do the same, or similar, for the C15 in the Newell.

Parker-Hannifin Racor offers CCV (crankcase ventilation oil separator) that clean the breather gases of oil mist before releasing them to, usually, the engine intake air ducting and dropping the collected oil into the crankcase or to a collector container. This is another way to eliminate breather oil from splatting on you towed.