A very strange substance

[TylerCharger69]

Looking for ideas on what this could be...or what may have caused this.
A friend of mine has a 2002 Dodge Caravan 4 cyl dual overhead cam engine.  This substance in the oil pan is hard to describe.  However it has managed to clog up the oil pump, pick up tube, and leave a film of this stuff all over the internals of the engine.  It's almost like Jello.  It doesn't stick to your fingers, and you can sort of "peel" it out of the oil pan and what not so it's not like it has "cooked" itself to anything.  Remember the stuff we used to play with as kids called "Slime?"   Well...it has the exact same properties and density as that does.  There was 4 quarts worth of this stuff in the oil pan like I had said.  My first thought was perhaps him putting a full synthetic oil in after running conventional may have caused this, but I've seen those results before, and things were still a liquid, not to mention it's only been a week.  I also need to mention that spraying brake cleaner and carburetor cleaner on it....well...it doesn't even penetrate it.  I have a small sample of it in a plastic container, and it doesn't even adhere to the sides of it!!  This isn't even a liquid anymore, and when he pulled the plug to drain it, nothing came out, hence why the oil pan was pulled.  I suggested to him to drop the pick up screen and tube, and to clean out the oil pump.  Now for a follow up question.....what can he use to safely flush this engine out?  And....has anyone experienced this???  I really want to know what this is.   Anybody?

[RD]

pics not coming through

[bull]

The substance appears to be an account inactive notification from Photo Bucket.

[Silver R/T]

You sure it was oil not something else they might've put in the engine. Maybe do engine flush after you take rest of that gunk out.

[bordin34]

Try putting this on the bob is the oil guy forums. What happens if you put a torch to it?

[TylerCharger69]

If i put a torch to it...it just singes and doesn't ignite....it singes and sorta melts away....like rubber in a way...engine flush wont even budge this stuff....like i said  diesel fuel, brake cleaner, or carb cleaner don't even begin to break it down....just sort of runs off without dissolving it.  Dishwashing detergent  BEGINS to try to break it down....but that's it.  I'm thinking somebody put something in the crankcase.....sabotage maybe???

[Tilar]

What color is it?

[TylerCharger69]

It's kinda the color of slightly used oil....with like a dark orange hue if you hold it up to the light and look through it...if you stretch it thin enough  it has some transparency

[Tilar]

Sounds like someone put sodium silicate in it. Liquid glass. People used to use it years ago to seal up a cracked block. It is also what the democrats used to ruin the engines during the cash for clunkers fiasco.

[bordin34]

Where did he get his oil changed last? If it was at a dealer maybe they put some liquid glass junk in an oil bottle for storage and forgot then put it in the car.

[TylerCharger69]

He had actually changed it himself a few days prior to this happening.  But  the liquid glass theory makes sense to me.  I'm thinking someone sabotaged him.   I ve never seen this before!!!  Any other theories are welcome!!!

[Tilar]

People used to put sodium silicate (Liquid Glass) in the cooling system to seal up a cracked block and it worked really good as long as people only used water or water and a light anti freeze mixture for the cooling system, But ethylene glycol which is the older green antifreeze will change liquid glass from a solid back into a soluble form.

[John_Kunkel]

The "Jello" could be caused by a coolant leak into the engine, has the coolant level gone down significantly?

[b5blue]

I did a repair years ago on a motor that had only been run on Quaker State. The valve covers, valley and bottom of the pan were full of jellied paraffin from years of build up. It acted and fit what you describe fairly close and clean up was a pain in the butt. The stuff was so gooey it held the valve covers to the heads after cutting the gaskets all the way around. Have you pulled a valve cover yet? It reminded me of the movie "The Blob" 

[Tilar]

Quaker State.    You couldn't run fast enough to get me to put that crap in my engines.

[TylerCharger69]

Yeah....lmao....I wouldn't use Pennzoil either!!!

[BigBlackDodge]

Ecotoplasm.

I've seen it happen before.


Has he been messing around with an Ouija board?

BBD

[Tilar]

Yeah....lmao....I wouldn't use Pennzoil either!!!

I've run pennzoil in almost everything I've driven since I bought my first vehicle back in 72. I changed the valve cover gaskets on my soon to be 190,000 mile suburban this summer and it is as clean as it was when it was new. I didn't buy it new but the original owner ran pennzoil so I'm sticking with it.

I'll probably use something a little better in the Charger though.   

[Magnumcharger]

Ecotoplasm.

I've seen it happen before.


Has he been messing around with an Ouija board?

BBD

Funniest lines in Dodgecharger.com history!!!

[TylerCharger69]

No.....no coolant loss....and there is no "chocolate milk" substance with this.....it's very weird.  It's like all of the oil dried up and turned to this.....gooey stuff......I'm not sure how else to explain it.

[71ChallengeHer]

Jello ? There's always room for Jello 

[TylerCharger69]

LMAO...Yeah!!!   that's what it resembles.....except it doesn't quite have the liquid like properties that Jello does....It's a bit stiffer actually   Looks a lot like ballistics gel!!!!   I dunno.........I'm stumped.   No other mechanic  has ever seen this before!!!   At least none that I've talked to anyway.

[bordin34]

What does it taste like?

[TylerCharger69]

Ya know?....That's a good question...but I'm not gonna try it.    HEY!!!  LET'S GET MIKEY!!!

[oldcarnut]

He had actually changed it himself a few days prior to this happening.  But  the liquid glass theory makes sense to me.  I'm thinking someone sabotaged him.   I ve never seen this before!!!  Any other theories are welcome!!!

I tried to find some pictures of a tore down engine after it had liquid glass in it for curiosity but wasn't able to.  I have been in autostores before when someone started to buy an oil product and noticed the cap seal was broken.  Some dimwit had put used oil back in the container and returned it for credit.  Guess the clerk didn't pay attention when he took it back.  Maybe someone did something similar only with an additive to purposely screw up another persons car engine.  Hope that wasn't the case but that's why I always check the tops on car products as well as food before buying them.