Glitter in 6.2L oil ... please help

[RST Dana]

The only time glitter is acceptable is when Taylor swift fans are getting dressed.

 

[rdezs]

...uh.... Or undressed

 

[West 1]

Look under the car at the oil pan, if it has been removed for the O ring replacement you should see zero leaks around the pan, you might see socket marks on the pan bolts. At 200K there will be at least small leaks around the pan gasket.,

A pan gasket is cheap, maybe $35, O ring is less than $10. Your labor is free if you are qualified to do the pan drop. I would invest in the O ring job and see what you have.

The AFM will not engage below 26 psi I believe so it is already disabled. If it has new lifters already I would hope they replaced the AFM manifold also. That should be part of the job.

A few years ago I did a couple AFM deletes but due to smog laws I always replace all the AFM components now so it works like brand new again, along with the parts I pull the oil pan, replace the O ring and most times pull the timing cover and oil pump. If the pump is good I do increase the Oil Pressure relief spring pressure and replace the secondary oil pressure relief valve inside the oil pan.

None of the above repairs will fix bad bearings which are already failed but make a good AFM engine reliable for another 150,000 miles maybe.

You say it still runs quietly? If that is the case fix the o ring so you have oil pressure and hopefully your idle pressure jumps to over 25 hot. With the pan off replace the secondary pressure relief valve in the pan, $15, since you are in there.

Low oil pressure will allow many parts to start to fail, cam bearings are common. If the mains and rods are damaged you would have more noise or even knocking.

For about $50 you can have the oil tested and that will tell you what is in the pan and sometimes points exactly at your failure points.

You may need a new engine but with oil pressure and clean oil maybe this engine will play for a while longer

 

[petethepug]

2013 Denali. Slight tick at idle. Flecks in oil. If it’s the bearings on the main, labor is going to bite hard. If it’s something as simple as trunion bearings in the rocker arms, not as bad.

Here’s a scenario. If the trunion bearings are getting ready to go from low oil pressure up top, step two would be to pull the pan and verify the crank is ok.

Assuming the crank mics out for new bearings and the cylinders & rings are good you can handle the rebuild as a stage 1 upgrade .

Eliminate the AFM, skip the machining of existing heads and drop in a set of basic TrickFlow or equivalent heads. AFM will be gone, oil pressure issues resolved and you’ll have another 100k miles on a sweet 6.2L ride that’s rid of its afm Achilles heel.

 

[thefrey]

2013 Denali. Slight tick at idle. Flecks in oil. If it’s the bearings on the main, labor is going to bite hard. If it’s something as simple as trunion bearings in the rocker arms, not as bad.

Here’s a scenario. If the trunion bearings are getting ready to go from low oil pressure up top, step two would be to pull the pan and verify the crank is ok.

Assuming the crank mics out for new bearings and the cylinders & rings are good you can handle the rebuild as a stage 1 upgrade .

Eliminate the AFM, skip the machining of existing heads and drop in a set of basic TrickFlow or equivalent heads. AFM will be gone, oil pressure issues resolved and you’ll have another 100k miles on a sweet 6.2L ride that’s rid of its afm Achilles heel.

Hm. That’s something to consider.

I wonder if one if the trunions is quitting from low oil pressure and (maybe?) that could be the source of the metal. Not sure if it would check out but I feel like it might be possible considering the tick is 100% from the passenger side. I wonder if the tick is more of a bad trunion than a lifter not pumping up all the way.

I’ll pull the valve cover off and check for play and see if that shows anything. I’ll also try to check the crank while the pan is off. I haven’t done it before so im assuming I’ll just have to check for any scoring or abnormal wear. Not sure how obvious it will or won’t be but I appreciate the info

 

[thefrey]

Look under the car at the oil pan, if it has been removed for the O ring replacement you should see zero leaks around the pan, you might see socket marks on the pan bolts. At 200K there will be at least small leaks around the pan gasket.,

A pan gasket is cheap, maybe $35, O ring is less than $10. Your labor is free if you are qualified to do the pan drop. I would invest in the O ring job and see what you have.

The AFM will not engage below 26 psi I believe so it is already disabled. If it has new lifters already I would hope they replaced the AFM manifold also. That should be part of the job.

A few years ago I did a couple AFM deletes but due to smog laws I always replace all the AFM components now so it works like brand new again, along with the parts I pull the oil pan, replace the O ring and most times pull the timing cover and oil pump. If the pump is good I do increase the Oil Pressure relief spring pressure and replace the secondary oil pressure relief valve inside the oil pan.

None of the above repairs will fix bad bearings which are already failed but make a good AFM engine reliable for another 150,000 miles maybe.

You say it still runs quietly? If that is the case fix the o ring so you have oil pressure and hopefully your idle pressure jumps to over 25 hot. With the pan off replace the secondary pressure relief valve in the pan, $15, since you are in there.

Low oil pressure will allow many parts to start to fail, cam bearings are common. If the mains and rods are damaged you would have more noise or even knocking.

For about $50 you can have the oil tested and that will tell you what is in the pan and sometimes points exactly at your failure points.

You may need a new engine but with oil pressure and clean oil maybe this engine will play for a while longer

I’m almost positive the pan has never been pulled, as the car was somewhat neglected from the past owners.

There’s definitely a leak either from the pan or rear main. I stopped a ton of the oil leaking when I swapped the oil cooler lines but it’s now just a drip so I know it’s one of the two.

I’m planning to drop the pan, swap the O ring, new pressure relief, and clean the pan really well as well as the pickup tube. Probably going to look at the cam while the pan is off and pull off the valve cover to look at trunions. I am definitely not “qualified” but I’ve got a decent amount of tools, this forum, and YouTube to help out lol so I don’t mind tackling the job. I was considering going all out and doing the high pressure melling and new timing chain but I figured I might as well see if the new O-ring fixes my issues before I pull the front cover off

Yeah my AFM activates when the engine is cold but not when warm. I can only hope the AFM manifold was also replaced but I'm not sure

Also I’ll do an oil sample to try to pinpoint anything. I appreciate the info

 

[j91z28d1]

honestly not sure what that is in the pics.

I'd cut the filter open and inspect in there. seen if up can cut the media open and lay it on something to soak the oil out and it clean enough to inspect

 

[Dustin Jackson]

@thefrey $3k for a Yukon from a dealership is a crazy low price, even for a shady car lot. I suspect they knew about this.

At this point I would start looking and saving for a new motor and continue to drive this one until it dies

 

[thefrey]

@thefrey $3k for a Yukon from a dealership is a crazy low price, even for a shady car lot. I suspect they knew about this.

At this point I would start looking and saving for a new motor and continue to drive this one until it dies

I payed a little more than a grand more than 3k for it. Which yeah for the price I took a gamble so this might be what I get.

But to be fair, it needed a DEEP interior detail (carpets were almost black and they’re tan), there was no mats, it needed 4 new tires, there was no 3rd brake light/spoiler, no gas struts on the rear window, there were no key fobs, the rims are basically trash, no spare tire, a little bit of body damage and rust, needs 4 new door handles, needs a new blower motor, one of the auto running boards was stuck down and the other one was broken off, new battery, new oil pressure sensor, new oil cooler lines. Fixed the broken washer fluid lines. Fixed the rear wiper and defroster tab. There was a bunch of random missing trim in the cab. Had to rewire a headlight and replace about 5 bulbs. And there’s still some stuff I’m working through. So it’s not exactly like it was in mint condition for super cheap.

So yeah I did take a solid gamble at it but it was a replacement for a car that had 320k miles and for the amount of work it needed it seemed like a decent price. So at this point it is what it is

 

[Marky Dissod]

So at this point it is what it is

It's not where you start, it's where you finish. It's not how you go, it's how you land.
We'll help to the extents that we can.

 

[thefrey]

It's not where you start, it's where you finish. It's not how you go, it's how you land.
We'll help to the extents that we can.

I appreciate that. And I can't thank you and everyone else enough for the help and wealth of knowledge that you are giving me

 

[Marky Dissod]

You can start by disabling / shutting off the Engine Half@$$ featurebug.

 

[rdezs]

In your situation, yes, I'd say drop the pan, take care of the o-ring and the pressure relief valve. Pull the valve cover and hopefully it's just a trunnion bearing. If oil pressure doesn't improve after that, I would throw some 10w40 in and keep the RPMs down. It very well could go a long time like that. If you eventually end up having to go to a 20w50 to keep your idle oil pressure at 20 psi, you'll know you are on borrowed time.....

 

[petethepug]

If budget allows and bearing & cylinder walls check out, install a hd oil pump when pan is off due to milage. Button her up, compression check, then trunion bearings.

At some point you’ll hopefully find the smoking gun and head off the hemorrhaging.

There’s a possibility you may have gotten the truck just before that $1.50 oil pump O ring caused a chain of cataclysmic disasters.

 

[OBSandaNNBS]

Best way to open a filter is with tin snips

 

[j91z28d1]

Best way to open a filter is with tin snips

they sell a pretty cheap tool on Amazon. I have an expensive one at work so I haven't used an Amazon one personally handy thou and less messy than snips. I have used snips. watch for sharp edges that way. it will cut you so fast you won't even feel it.

 

[thefrey]

Mine is not DOD and had oil pressure issues when I bought it and fully expected to need a new engine. I even bout a used engine expecting to need it.
I also had the oil glitter and chunks your pics show as bad if not worse.
Taking a chance, I changed the O ring and oil pump 6 months ago. It can be done without dropping the pan.
My Hot oil pressure is 20ish PSI hot idle in gear after driving 1/2 hour and has not dropped any lower but It's also not 95 out yet.
It's worth taking the chance on it as it just might last for a lot longer, but then again it might only last a few more days anyway.
I'm changing my engine though in a few months as it sounds pretty loose when cold and 1 piston is slapping pretty good until fully warmed up. It does have 239k on it

Are you still using 5w30 or did you up your viscosity? I'm trying to figure out if I should stick with 5w30 or go up to 10w30. Do you have any ideas what your glitter is from or are you not worried about it since you're putting in a new engine anyways

 

[thefrey]

Did you use a magnet? If so, are they magnetic. If not, then it could be carbon, broken down o-ring or gasket material maybe?

To help on your quest for low oil pressure, here's the common things for that year motor that will help.

1. Oil pump pickup tube - which you have already diagnosed.
2. Valley cover o-rings that block off the oil galley towers that aren't used on a non-AFM motor. There are 8 of them I believe. They get hard and flat, and then oil sprays out under the cover (into the valley internally) thus reducing you hot oil pressure - especially at idle.
3. IF those are metallic parts, then the low oil pressure is most likely associated with bearing wear and will never improve.

A thicker weight oil may help - 10w-30 or 10w-40. You'll need to dig into what came out of the pan more. Also, change the filter and drain it into a clean pan and see what you get. Then, if you have a way to remove the top of the filter that doesn't introduce metal flakes (ie: don't use a saw) you'll have your answer inside the pleats of paper membrane.

Edit: this is assuming the year is 2007 - 2009. If newer, then it will have a VLOM that also can have oil issues that I'm not personally familiar with.

Question about your #3 - Wouldn't bearing wear on these engines mean that any metal shavings be non magnetic? From all the research I've seen everything points to non-magnetic particles being bearing material.

 

[charkmapman]

Would not jump to conclusions. O ring on pump is very good possibility for oil pressure issue. That would also let you see debris in oil pan on magnet. If on magnet then it is metal. It is possible that previous lifter "fix" left crap in motor and that is now in pan. When changing "o" ring replace oil pump also. ( I mean why not, you've got it torn down anyway). You may also want to send oil sample out for testing but crap from lifter "fix" may throw that off. Which would make me want to retest oil after "o" ring fix and some miles on new oil. 5w-30 as specified by GM should be used. no additives.

 

[thefrey]

Would not jump to conclusions. O ring on pump is very good possibility for oil pressure issue. That would also let you see debris in oil pan on magnet. If on magnet then it is metal. It is possible that previous lifter "fix" left crap in motor and that is now in pan. When changing "o" ring replace oil pump also. ( I mean why not, you've got it torn down anyway). You may also want to send oil sample out for testing but crap from lifter "fix" may throw that off. Which would make me want to retest oil after "o" ring fix and some miles on new oil. 5w-30 as specified by GM should be used. no additives.

I am planning to just drop the pan to swap the o-ring instead of going through the front. My plan is to consider changing the pump if the o-ring does not fix my issues as it may save me some $$ and I don't have to go through the front cover (yet).

I'm thinking the same honestly and I appreciate the info. I want to do the o-ring replacement and then do the oil analysis on fresh oil. If the magnet picks up the metal, it would rule out bearings, correct? I don't know 100% but I thought bearing material is non magnetic.