Bearing problem?

[JTS197]

Hello. I have a 2008 Tahoe 5.3. I changed the oil the other day and noticed a bunch of copper sparkling in the oil. Everything that I could find suggest it can be the piston bearings or main bearings, or the cam shaft bearing(?). I don't have any codes, and the oil pressure seems to be fine. The engine does hesitate or seem to lack any power. And the particles were not there the last time I changed the oil about 7000 miles ago.

I used Valvoline Restore and Protect when I did the last oil change; could that have caused anything?

Any thought of what the issue can be and what I could be looking at as far as repair costs?

Thanks

 

[OR VietVet]

The oil did not cause the problem. Would help to know the engine mileage. You said, "The engine "does" hesitate or seem to lack any power". Did you mean to say doesn't?

Best to take the filter and use the correct tool to cut it open and cut it so the pleats can be pulled out and look down in the pleats for material and then post the pics. If you changed oil the "other day" and noticed a bunch of copper then, why wait till now to post about it? Do you still have the oil filter?

 

[Foggy]

7000 miles is way too much on a dod/afm engine with vvt...
Oil cleanliness and pressure is Everything!!!!
It's def bearing material if it's like tiny sparkles
If it still runs fine, keep the oil changed way more often.. Install a magnetic
tip drain plug (won't catch non mag metals of course)

 

[JTS197]

The oil did not cause the problem. Would help to Yeah, I meant it doesn't.the engine mileage. You said, "The engine "does" hesitate or seem to lack any power". Did you mean to say doesn't?

Best to take the filter and use the correct tool to cut it open and cut it so the pleats can be pulled out and look down in the pleats for material and then post the pics. If you changed oil the "other day" and noticed a bunch of copper then, why wait till now to post about it? Do you still have the oil filter?

Yeah, I meant it doesn't. I still have the filter. I waited to post anything because I was trying to understand what I was seeing and what I need to potentially get fixed. The mileage is now "25600" with 1700 hours on the engine. It is a CBP Tahoe.

 

[OR VietVet]

Cut the oil filter open and spread those pleats and show the pics, But from what you are saying, does sound like bearing material.

 

[donjetman]

@JTS197
oil analysis is your friend
as is
cutting open the filter and inspecting.

 

[rdezs]

How many miles on the engine?

I also concur, 7,000 miles is way too long between oil changes. If you do short trips and basically stay in town in traffic, 3500 miles. If you do mostly highway driving stretch that out to 4500-5,000.

I'll put my money on the front camshaft bearing as most likely.

 

[donjetman]

How many miles on the engine?

I also concur, 7,000 miles is way too long between oil changes. If you do short trips and basically stay in town in traffic, 3500 miles. If you do mostly highway driving stretch that out to 4500-5,000.

I'll put my money on the front camshaft bearing as most likely.

@JTS197
especially with Valvoline R&P. Its a good oil but not for extended oil drain intervals. 5k max if mostly hwy miles. 3,500 if mostly city.

 

[j91z28d1]

most enginea don't usually stop producing metal once they start.

cutting the filter open should show you what you need to know. beyond that, you're not really going to fix it without replacing hard parts. if its the cam lobe/lifters it will start ticking soon enough. if it's the rod bearings it will start knocking ever so lightly at first and then get worse. about all I can say is start saying money of you want to fix it, and don't plan any long road trips for a while.


on a side note, did you see glitter specs in the bottom of the drain pan, or just when you swirled around the oil would like a stick or something. I've seen that in almost every engine I change oil on and I've changed a tons of oil in all kinds of stuff. we have slowly transferred the fleet to electric equipment, so much less these days but still. I've see guys say omg this engine is hurt and about to blow up, while out living them. they are long retired and gone and it's still out there running daily. slivers in the filter is what will really tell you it's a time bomb.

 

[JTS197]

@j91z28d1 - I saw the glitter specks after the oil dumped out.

Here's the pics of the filter. I honestly do not see anything in it. But when I looked at the left over oil in the filter, I saw a few specks of gold/copper. No chunks though.

Most of my driving is city driving. I just got the rear end rebuilt after the govlock blew up so this is a big downer. Honestly I was thinking the 4L60 was going to be the next major repair down the road; not the engine.

I get that this will need to be repaired at some point, but what are my options? If it just the rod bearings, is it just as much to fix that as getting a rebuild? And then if I do a rebuild, does it make more sense to buy a rebuilt engine?

 

[j91z28d1]

glitter in the bottom of the pan after dumping the oil isn't great.

these ls engines don't usually eat a main or rod bearing first before the valve train. but crazy stuff happens.


I'm honestly not sure where that's coming from by lookin at the pics.

what is best to do is hard to say. you could try as said above about sending off an oil sample. they might be able to tell you what that metal is coming from. to know for sure you'd basically have to pull the engine, tear it down and inspect it.

finding a rebuild engine that you can trust is kinda hard these days someone else will probably have better advice than me. but for now, maybe change the oil a 1000 miles, or at least pull the filter and inspect. might get a sense of its getting worse.

 

[JTS197]

I think I cried wolf too soon. Me being an occasional idiot, I totally forgot when my GovLock blew up a few months ago, I drained the diff oil with all the chunks and bits, into a plastic oil container that has a drain/pour snout. I use the same one for all the oil changes. When I did thoroughly clean it today, the metal bits were silver (not copper). And when I poured out the old motor oil (from the other day), I smelt the fragrance of diff oil in the container.

I thought I had wiped it down when I drained the diff oil but I don't remember spraying it down with brake clean and really cleaning the metal off.

Anyways, I am going to play it safe and drive my Tahoe a few hundred miles and then change the oil again and see it there is anything then.

Appreciate the help though!