Hello There. Pleased But A Bit Paranoid.

Just bought another XM. '98 R VSX Diesel Estate Auto. My third. Previous ones both diesel, series 1's, estate & hatchback. (Plus, when a student, a rather strange DS "special" which seemed to be the result of someone chopping the rust out and welding what was left back together - I'll see if I can dig out a photo).

The new XM seems reasonably sound, though cruise control doesn't work (but if you've ever tried commuting on the A14 you'll know it's not top priority).

I'm a bit paranoid about oil in the cabin. When driving, it feels/smells as if I'm being sprayed by a fine oil mist - almost imperceptible. And twice (in only a couple of weeks) people have told me my children smelt of oil!

Any ideas?

AirCon/Heater works well, though fresh air vents don't seem able to blast air out. Does fresh air come from the grille between windscreen/bonnet?

Hi. Shacklewell.

I would have the air con properly checked over. It's the only system on the car that actually carries oil into an open to cabin area and a microscopic leak might just give you the symptoms you describe, although I would have expected its performance to be poor or non existent if it was leaking. The main issue is that if it leaks the gas, you really don't want to be inhaling it. If it is the air con, in the end it will resolve itself and stop working as the low pressure switch does its stuff. Other thing to look for is any obvious oil misting under the lid, which might be getting to the scuttle area. Finally --- are you running on bio ? If so, you might be picking up an aroma from that. Good luck with it.

Mike.

Yes, that's where it draws fresh air from. To remove it u'd have first to remove the side bits of plastic trim. Their hooks crack easily, but the process is possible if u first prise the top hooks off and then push down to prise off the low side -still, be extra gentle-.

George

Hi Shacklewell

There is nothing to see that could leak oil under the front scuttle except the brake valve which would leak LHM with its distinctive smell.
This time of year it is too cold to be trying to remove the end trim from the scuttle, you will just break the plastic clips off.
Most likely source of oil smells is front the rear of the engine compartment with the fibre lining on the underside of the bonnet getting soaked with it. Because the lining is black you can only find the oil by feel.

Regards

XMexc

Hi Shacklewell,

From your description of the symptoms I woud diagnose that you have two simultaneous problems both of which are common 2.5TD problems. The first is a leaking oil cooler. The oil cooler is cooled, not by air, but by the water in the cooling system. The second is a pinhole leak in the heater matrix. This is spraying a fine mist of coolant, now conaminated with oil, into the airstream.

Check the header tank for signs of oil in the water. Is the inside of the windscreen 'greasy' when you try to wipe it with a cloth?

I had a pinhole leak in my heater matrix for a while. The leak was so small that it was no problem to keep the header topped up and I didn't have any wet carpets. For thse reasons there was no rush to change it. However, I had another far more sinister symptom. I ended up in casualty one Saturday morning with pains across my chest and suffering palpitations. After extensive tests they could find nothing wrong. I searched the internet for symptoms and although rare I diagnosed it as being glycol poisoning. Glycol is fairly benign as a cold liquid. However, heat it up and turn it into a mist and it becomes quite nasty. Needless to say I changed the matrix for a new one and the problem went away. Concidence?... maybe.

Cheers

noz

ps
Lets take this discussion to the XM issues or Diesel Specific sections rather than in the Introductions section.

This post has been edited by noz on December 16, 2006 12:11 pm

Hello. Thanks for the replies. Will post results of my investigations. Incidentally, water loss now becoming an issue!

Have found photo of "special" from my youth. Based on an ID19, I think.

Shacklewell