why is there chocolate mousse in my engine?

[S4sha]

Ok i know its just a cold frothy accumulation of engine oil vapor... but it was a bit of a surprise when i checked my oil today.

My drive home from work is only about 5 mins so i wasnt nearly at temp, so i guess when it heats back up it 'dissolves' back into a more oily medium?

...right?

[QIKRNU]

Today it took me at least 15 minutes for my oil to get to 150* F. (The minimum I consider for hooning). All interstate. I-64/I-71 East from STL.

[dparm]

Are you saying it was foaming? I'm not sure I follow.

[tman52]

Pics?

[useridnotvalid]

Is just condensation that builds when the motor warms and cools in cold weather. It's normally cakes up on all non oil surfaces like the dip stick above the oil line. Under the oil cap and to the bottom side of the valve cover. There's really nothing you can do about it till it warms up. If your super worried you can change the oil but until it get warm outside it Will keep coming back

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Note 3

[S4sha]

Are you saying it was foaming? I'm not sure I follow.

no just a bit caked on near the oil cap - exactly what USERIDNOTVALID described

[S4sha]

Is just condensation that builds when the motor warms and cools in cold weather. It's normally cakes up on all non oil surfaces like the dip stick above the oil line. Under the oil cap and to the bottom side of the valve cover. There's really nothing you can do about it till it warms up. If your super worried you can change the oil but until it get warm outside it Will keep coming back

Bingo - not worried at all - just curious if anyone else had come across this

initial reaction was more like 'wtf is that!??!' then i thought about it and just needed to hear exactly what you just described for a sanity check

[dparm]

I would need to some a picture of it. Frothing is not normal. If you are seeing the oil getting milky or changing consistency, that is not normal either.

[staubach333]

If you were to get the engine highway speed hot for an extended period of time (half hour or so), all that would be completely gone.

[jmcS4]

I'm confused. Is just a little normal if it's a short trip or is Dparm right??

[staubach333]

I'm confused. Is just a little normal if it's a short trip or is Dparm right??

Normal for a short trip. Engine doesn't get hot enough to evaporate the condensation. Chances are it's just that. Though there could be other problems which could cause a similar froth (coolant in the oil), though that is highly unlikely.

[dparm]

Frothing/foaming is different than what happens when coolant gets in the oil. Coolant contamination will cause the oil to get milky and sludge up.

Frothing/foaming means you are getting tons of bubbles forming, sort of like a bubble bath. That is VERY bad and means the oil could be way overfilled, incorrect lubricant (i.e. they put ATF in the crankcase), depletion of anti-foaming additives, etc. It's hard to troubleshoot but is an easy way to spell a quick death for the motor.

[blackedoutt]

Small amounts of water condensation within an engine is completely normal. Water can get into the engine through humidity in the air, or EGR (especially cooled EGR systems). Under normal operating conditions the oil will get warm enough to evaporate the water out, which is why overcooling your oil or engine is just as bad as overheating it. I'm not sure about our engines but there are some out there that even use an oil thermostat. Water condensation in oil causes a milky almost mayonaise emulsion to form in certains areas of the engine mentioned above such as dipstick tube, oil fill cap, high/colder crevises of the valve covers etc. Short trips with incomplete oil warm ups can cause it, but a long heat soaking trip can reverse it. It's not really a big deal unless it is more than just water - See Dparms concerns.

[dparm]

Correct. Condensation forms in the crankcase through the normal heating/cooling cycles. It's why I suggest people get their car out on the highway periodically so there is sufficient time and temperature to burn off the moisture. Water will thin out the oil.

[sa_seahawker]

OP has Chocolate "Mousse" or "Moose" in his engine?!