Engine Failure Major Causes & their Conditions

Fact Sheet 115

Engine Failure Major Causes &

their Conditions
Most engine failures are directly or indirectly attributable to either engine
overheating or some complete or partial failure of the lubrication system.
These failures can occur over a long period of time and vehicle operation or
they may be sudden and catastrophic.
This often depends on how soon the initial problem is recognised, the mode
of operation at the time, the type and severity of the failure, the condition of
the vehicle at the time and the degree of vehicle maintenance. The mode of
vehicle operation can contribute to the severity of these engine failures and,
in addition, poor maintenance practices can also be a factor.
Engine overheating and/or lubrication problems, if not attended to, can lead
to serious and permanent engine failures. Similarly, some poor practices
may also lead to serious engine problems. The way in which these problems
can affect engine life and performance is outlined in this Fact Sheet.

Engine Overheating
Anything that contributes to the engine running above its designed operating temperature can contribute to
engine failure. The common causes of engine overheating are shown in this table.
Cause

Result

Burst cooling system hoses

Leading to loss of coolant

Coolant leakage from gaskets/seals

Gradual loss of coolant

Damaged radiator core

Resulting in coolant leakage

Radiator core internally clogged with sludge Resulting in poor coolant flow and reduced heat transfer
Externally clogged radiator core

Due to dirt, insects, etc., again resulting in poor heat

transfer

Damaged external fins on radiator core

Reduced air-flow through radiator

Broken or loose fan belt

Reduced air-flow through radiator

Faulty thermostat

Opening at too high a temperature

Faulty electric cooling fan/s

Reduced air flow through radiator

Radiator coolant dirty and/or past the end

of its useful life

Can cause internal cooling system corrosion with

reduced heat transfer

Internal engine problems

Can cause internal cooling system corrosion with

reduced heat transfer Such as leaking head gasket or
corroded or cracked cylinder head or block. Often this
is as a result of one or more of the above conditions
results in heat, pressure and corrosive gases being
forced into the cooling system, resulting in loss of
coolant and rapid temperature increase

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Engine Failure Major Causes & their Conditions

Fact Sheet 115

When overheating occurs, steam pockets are formed in critical areas within
the engine. As steam is not a good conductor of heat, it reduces the coolants
ability to conduct heat from these critical areas. This can result in localised hot
spots in the cylinder head in the vicinity of exhaust valve seats and combustion
chambers and in the cylinder block around the tops of the cylinders. The heat
produced by combustion, is not easily removed away from these areas as the

Corrosion cylinder head

steam generated is a poor conductor of heat, so the heat continues to build up.
Any heat build-up can be critical in the top ring/cylinder area as these
components rely on an extremely thin oil film for their lubrication. Such an
increase in heat build-up results in reducing the oil viscosity of the extremely
thin oil film lubricating the piston rings and any breakdown of this film will lead to
increased friction and hence the generation of more heat. The end result is that

Cracked cylinder head under cam

the piston rings can start to seize in the cylinder bore, producing even more
frictional heat, which then passes into the piston. The result of all this increased
heat is that the pistons eventually seize in the cylinder bores, resulting in either
a completely seized engine or badly damaged pistons, rings and cylinder bores.

Lubricant Related Problems

Cracked combustion chamber

While severe engine overheating may result in seizure of pistons and/or rings in
the cylinder bores, any failure of the lubricant or its supply can result in damage
to many of the engines components. Lubricant failure can be attributed to
many causes and may take the form of an interruption of supply of oil to critical
areas, breakdown of the lubricant film, contamination of the lubricant itself,
poor maintenance practices, or the use of an incorrect grade of oil. Common
Cylinder head

causes of lubricant related problems are shown in this table.

Cause
Low oil level/loss of oil

Result
A severe reduction in oil capacity can result in difficulties in oil pick-up by the oil
pump, resulting in oil starvation and interruption of lubricant supply to critical
engine components.

Severe oil consumption Extremely high oil consumption can result in reduced engine oil capacity with the
leakage/burning
problems already outlined.
Deposits in the engine oil, either in the form of sludge (usually associated with
Engine oil deposits
cold, stop/start motoring) or from oxidised oil (as a result of very severe service)
can cause problems with lubricant supply, due to these deposits restricting oil
galleries and filters. This restriction of engine oil passages results in reduction
of oil supply to critical engine components such as bearings, camshaft and cam
followers, gudgeon pin bushes and piston rings. In these circumstances, wear
and/or seizure of these components are likely.
In addition, this reduction in oil supply may also result in less oil being supplied
to cool the piston under crowns, where it greatly assists with piston cooling.
Any reduction in oil supply to piston under crowns results in considerable heat
build-up in this area and can lead to rapid piston seizure.

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Engine Failure Major Causes & their Conditions

Blocked filter

Fact Sheet 115

If the engine oil filter is blocked in any way, the supply of engine lubricant is
restricted and engine damage, especially to engine bearings, can occur.

Blocked oil ways/pump

pick-up screens

Any blockage of internal oil ways or screens can result in restricted lubricant

Extended drain intervals

Extended oil drain intervals can result in oil deposits from the formation of sludge,

supply to engine components and damage will result.

and oil thickening due to oxidation. The engine manufacturers recommendations
must not be exceeded with regard to oil drain intervals.

Oil viscosity too heavy/

too light

It is essential at engine start-up that the lubricant be easily circulated within

the engine to provide the necessary oil film for protection of highly loaded
components. In addition, at full operating temperature and under load the
engine oil must be able to retain its film strength to provide complete engine
protection. It is important that the manufacturers recommendations regarding
oil quality and its viscosity be adhered to.

Engine component failure

Any engine component failure that reduces or cuts off oil supply can result in
wear or seizure of heavily loaded engine components. Such problems as broken
oil pick-up pipe, broken or seized oil pump drive, broken oil pressure pipes (if the
engine is so equipped) and broken oil supply pipes to overhead camshafts are
some examples of engine component failure that can result in severe engine
damage. In these cases, the internal components are starved of oil, resulting in
rapid wear and possible seizure.

Piston blowby close-up

Valve lifters damaged and resurfaced

Engine bearings worn and new

Piston ring cracked

Oil sludge

Welch plug rusty hole

Cavitation erosion

Oil sludge - close-up

The supply of the correct grade of lubricant, in the correct quantity and changed at the correct interval, is
essential for the long-term, satisfactory performance of an engine. As indicated, any interruption to supply
from any cause has the potential to lead to serious engine problems of wear and/or seizure.

Poor Maintenance Practices

Poor maintenance practices can also result in premature engine failure. As already mentioned, over-extending
engine oil drain intervals can easily result in filter and screen blockages due to oil deposits. These deposits,
due to either high-temperature oxidation or low-temperature sludge, are kept under control and dispersed in
the oil by suitable additives. However, when the recommended oil drain intervals are exceeded these additives
are depleted and deposits are no longer prevented from forming and can then accumulate in oil passages,
screens and filters where they reduce oil supply.

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Engine Failure Major Causes & their Conditions

Fact Sheet 115

Poor maintenance of engine air filters will also contribute to engine problems, as any blockage of air filters
results in over-rich fuel mixture due to reduced air-flow. Over-rich fuel mixtures can result in fuel dilution of
the engine oil and this in turn contributes to increased oil oxidation and, if severe enough, will also result in
reduced oil viscosity with its inherent loss of oil film strength.
Failure to replace the timing belt at the correct interval, usually between 90,000 and 100,000 km, or 3 to
5 years, will result in breakage of this belt. With overhead camshaft engines this invariably results in valves
hitting pistons with dire consequences. The valves are damaged and piston and cylinder head damage can
also result.

Driving Conditions

Continuous stop-start driving, contributes to the formation of sludge deposits, which can lead to
problems of filter and screen blocking, with the resultant reduction in lubricant supply.

In addition to the factors already mentioned, extreme driving

conditions can also contribute to engine failure in the longterm. Conditions such as continuous stop-start driving,
contributes to the formation of sludge deposits, which can
lead to problems of filter and screen blocking, with the
resultant reduction in lubricant supply.
Similarly, continuous high-speed driving and/or operation
under heavy load, such as towing large caravans or trailers,
can result in premature oxidation of the engine oil, again
giving rise to deposit formation and the blocking of oil ways,
filters and screens.
Overstressing engines can also result in component failure

Continuous high-speed driving and/or operation under heavy load, such as towing large
caravans or trailers, can result deposit formation and the blocking of oil ways, filters and screens.

such as damaged bearings, broken connecting rods, cracked

or broken pistons, broken or dropped valves, etc. Such
failures as these usually result in a complete engine blowup, often where the engine is virtually destroyed as both the
cylinder block and cylinder head are severely damaged. These
extreme driving conditions, if coupled with poor maintenance
practices, such as extended oil drains, will exacerbate the
problems mentioned above.

Conclusion
Modern engines, properly maintained, give many thousands of kilometres of reliable service. However, even
under ideal operating conditions, with regular and recommended oil change intervals and maintenance,
no engine will last forever. Wear will eventually occur to the highly loaded components within the engine;
however, this wear does not generally result in catastrophic engine failure.
It is the problems mentioned, such as blocked radiators, clogged radiator cores, loose fan belts, inoperative
electric fans, low engine oil levels, high oil consumption, engine oil leaks, etc., that generally lead to sudden
and catastrophic engine failures. If these problems are identified and rectified by regular maintenance and
servicing, this will assist in avoiding the type of engine failures mentioned.

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Nulon Products Australia Pty Ltd
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Freecall: 1800 679 922

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