Oil quart foil seal accidentally poured in during routine change - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

Username says it all. Please don’t ask how this happened as I am still beside myself that it actually did! I’ve searched the web and although this happens more than I thought, I couldn’t find anything specific to a Boxster motor. I’ve filled and drained the oil twice hoping it would wash the piece down into the sump but no luck. I think the piece is large enough to totally occlude the oil pickup tube so don’t want to start the car. I’m guessing it may be stuck somewhere in the crankshaft bearing carrier. Does anybody have constructive suggestions on how to proceed? I've attached a photo showing the size of the piece of foil. Car is a 97 Boxster. Thanks in advance.

I don't know on a Boxster engine, but on an Aircooled VW there is actually a screen to prevent larger items such as this from getting into the crankcase. On a vw, you could remove the oil filler and access the area it would be trapped in. You may get lucky and it may be a similar setup on a Boxster.

If you stopped pouring oil as soon as it happened you might have been lucky and just disconnect and remove the two section oil fill tubes, it could have rested in one of the plastic tubes. But since you have poured many quarts of oil through the fill tubes it's hard to say where it is now?? Personally I would still check the fill tubes or remove the oil sump cover. If not there find a good quality bore scope and look down into the crank case after you remove the oil fill tubes. BTW if you remove the oil fill tubes, and they are original, I recommend installing new ones. A common problem... These plastic tubes get brittle over time and will crack causing a vacuum leak.

If you are lucky, you can drop the oil pan and it will be accessible at that point. There is a screen on the intake, but I would not advise running the car with the foil in there. As you've already poured in oil to try and flush it out, it's either in your oil pan or in the structure / mechanicals above the oil pan and there's not much free room inside the motor above the oil pan. If it were me, I'd try the oil pan first because it's easy. If not there, I'd remove the filler tube from the top of the engine (harder) and see if it was there. You'll also be able to check the tube if it is out. Best of luck.

I don't have anything to add except, having been on the receiving end of similar debacles, I offer my heartfelt empathy and sympathy. Once, in the middle of a serious brainfart, I filled my coolant reservoir full of oil. I have no idea what I was thinking or why I did it. It was a heck of a mess to clean up, but everyone here was supportive, sympathetic, and forthcoming with suggestions. Well, one guy decided he wanted to be a total dick, but there's always one in every crowd, right? Sometimes two or three. Anyway, hopefully you'll find it when you pull the sump pan. The silver lining is that you have an opportunity to examine the sump for other debris. My silver lining was that I changed out the original coolant tank before it failed, which likely would have been soon. Good luck , dude! Please come back and tell us how it turns out.

Note to self. Remove foil completely. approach car.

Yep, I did that once. I drained the oil through a screen (no joy) then dropped the pan and there it was, stuck to the bottom of the pan. Crisis averted!

Directly below the oil filler hole in the case lies the crankshaft housing, adjacent to cylinder #1. With all the oil that's been poured in, I believe the foil has fallen into the crankshaft housing. I would drain the oil, in a clean container if you want to reuse it. Remove the oil sump plate & look for the foil, if you don't find it rotate the engine Clockwise & keep looking for the foil. At this point it's either completely disassemble the engine or allow the engine to chew it up & spit it out. If the foil drops in the sump whole it "could" cover 90% of the oil pickup tube!

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Don't want to add insult to injury, but I read on the internet that keeping the coolant tank well oiled prevents them from failing according to 4 out of 5 dentists surveyed! So it must be true!

As others have suggested, drain the oil and drop the sump pan. This is relatively easy. If it's not in the sump then it's stuck in the oil fill tube, so you'll have to pull those, which can be a bit of a PITA.

I agree with everyone who said to drop the oil pan. The oil pickup tube has a mesh guard which prevents objects from being sucked in. That means if it made it into the sump it says there, but it can ( as previously written) clog the oil pickup tube. Best of luck

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Time to drop the pan, add a baffle kit and an extension.... Easy couple hour job (if that) Mike

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It is good to drop the sump pan every now and then as well. If I do mine again I am buying the dreibond from pelican, it has a little lever to help apply the sealant. Loctite 5900 was hard as #$% to do, some folks have said submerge it in hot water first.

I am really interested to see if you were ever able to find the foil part? I did the same thing (thankfully a much smaller piece of foil) but have not been able to find it yet. I have filled and drained the oil 3 times, checked the oilpan after every drain, looked in the filter and have only found a few small pieces of foil. I have let it completely warm up and idle for for 10 minutes then drained it..... Where the heck could have this thing gone? If the engine does chew it up and spit it out, what is the path it takes? Where will it end up? Any chance it makes it to the ims and causes problems there? Does it just end up in the bottom of the pan and/or in the filter?

brewerbry - after the initial fill, I drained the oil and found nothing. Subsequently I purchased some cheap oil and tried again (with no luck). It's worth noting that each time I drained the oil I inspected it. On the third pass (against, advice) I ran the engine for a few minutes, hoping (as BYprodriver said) the engine might chew it up. After that I drained it again. After the last fill/drain, I noticed some (very few) shiny flecks (like glitter) in the oil. I pulled the filter and checked for more but didn't find anything. With that said, I will be pulling the sump pan to inspect the pick-up tube and baffle. Regarding the IMS - I doubt this would cause a problem for it. ( more experienced forum members chime in here ) As an aside: I'm not sure if this is coincidental but after running the engine I noticed a small puddle of oil had leaked down from the right-rear side of the engine (actual source unknown) onto the ground. At first I thought it was the AOS but a visual inspection shows all the clamps and hoses to be 'ok'. I will deal with that problem once I find the seal. Please keep us updated on your progress...I'm sure there are other dummkopfs out there, too!

I am right there with you - have drained the oil multiple times and found a few small foil fragments but certainly not the whole piece. I had an oil leak like you - mine ended up being the oil fill tube. It is really thin plastic and on a 17 year old car, had gotten brittle and cracked. It is a DIY project to replace although quite a pain in the rear; made less awful if you have a cable actuated hose clamp tool (replacement process still sucks!) I also found that adding oil rapidly (from the collection pan to the fill tube) can lead to overflows in the fill area (in the trunk) and that area has a drain tube that exits directly to the ground in the right rear of the car...

Guys, If you haven't seen the inside of your engine take the advice of the numerous people who have posted here that have. What you are doing is wishful thinking at best. Pull down the oil pan before you ruin your motor. I'd hate to see you next post be "No oil pressure engine failed", or a YouTube post "What's this noise"

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This. Removing the oil pan is peanuts compared to a ruined motor in both cost and effort. It's not difficult to do yourself and shouldn't be particularly expensive to pay a shop to do. From a couple of posts on this thread, it sounds like you may still find it there.

Saga is over, the game of hide and seek has come to an end....after draining / filling / draining / filling three times with the oilpan off, I had all but given up. I put the pan on, drove the car VERY cautiously for about 50 miles, drained the oil yet again, dropped the pan AGAIN and VOILA! The foil piece had finally made its way to the oilpan. Finally! The adventure is over.

This post makes me wonder how often this happens, especially at the quick oil change places where I take my other vehicles.