Green plastic in my oil.

[shadrach74]

Happy Easter Folks,

Sooooo, I did an oil change last week and found the stuff you see in the photos nestled in the filter media. It is green in color. It feels firm but is a bit mailable (I hammered it out on a pies of steel and it can be pounded flat without shattering). A freind of mine has said it's cam chain guide material, but I never seen that present as green...and it's very green; it looks like finely chopped capers. Oil has 6000miles on it, filter has 12,000miles (got to the hangar and realized I was out of filters for the last change).

Many thanks as always!

[healthservices]

Originally Posted by shadrach74

Looks like the same material as the cam end plugs.

[shadrach74]

That occurred to me as well, but there's so much of it.

[Top_Ramen]

there's also valve stem seals


spark plug tube gasket/ o-ring

[Jamesp]

The new style chain guide material is light green.

[Steve Tinker]

That could have happened in the last 1,000 miles or 12,000 miles. Whatever caused the debris its not good news.

1) Could your engine have the later (green) chain guides - if so, thats possibly the problem, though the gude plastic is not a soft material.
2) Probably not the camshaft end plugs, if one or part was missing you would have oil leaking everywhere.
3) Valve guide seals would also leak oil into the combustion chamber and engine would smoke.
4) Good call on park tube O ring, have they recently been removed - check for possibe leaks around valve cover.

Maybe time to remove the sump and check for debris in the oil strainer and bottom of sump cover. There maybe other clues in there.

[Jake Raby]

This color material comes from the inside of the hydraulic servo on the 5 chain variocam arrangement.

[shadrach74]

Thanks for all of the replies folks.

Cam deviation is dead on through the rev range as usual.

The car is not smoking, but I do smell oil at times even though I don't see it. It is a 5 chain Motor and does not have upgraded chain guides.

Jake, can you expound on the servo and failure mode?

This is a stock 02 986S with 68,000 miles.

[Jake Raby]

There's a pair of seals inside some of the servo units. To gain access to them the unit must be cut open. When they start to fail the material will contaminate the oil.

[Nine8Six]

Its all okay then right? rainbows and unicorns etc

Man, I almost tempted to keep my 986 parked here indefinitely and keep it as a very nice garage / sport car corner / collectible

[shadrach74]

Originally Posted by Jake Raby

There's a pair of seals inside some of the servo units. To gain access to them the unit must be cut open. When they start to fail the material will contaminate the oil.

Thank you Raby-Wan Kenobe! What are the implications of the failure of said seal? Could you provide a bit more insight as to what I do to remedy the situation? Do I need to replace the whole VarioCam unit?

[shadrach74]

Does any one else care to ring in/expound upon the VarioCam mystery solenoid seal in dark green? Search yields nothing. Shops around here know nothing of this symptom.

[Paul]

Based on Jake's comments earlier in this thread:

Chain Tensioner 99610505158 - Genuine Porsche - 996-105-051-58 | Pelican Parts

[first boxster]

Thanks Paul. That is what I understood, him to say. It is just difficult to see how it could come from inside there, but he is the expert.