Piston Damage Recognising and Rectifying - 51730 PDF

Piston damage –
recognising and rectifying

Motorservice Group
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5th edition 07.2015 (112016) Liability

Article No. 50 003 973-02 All information in this brochure has been carefully researched and compiled. Nevertheless, it is possible that errors have
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DIE NECKARPRINZEN GmbH, Heilbronn sary technical expertise, the required knowledge of, or experience in repairs.
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2 | Piston damage – recognising and rectifying

Table of contents
Table of contents Page

1 Introduction 4
2 Quick diagnosis 5
3.1 Seizure due to insufficient clearance 10
3.2 Seizure due to lack of lubrication 16
3.3 Seizure due to overheating 24
3.4 Damage due to abnormal combustion 27
3.5 Piston and piston ring fractures 46
3.6 Piston pin fractures 52
3.7 Damage to the piston pin circlips 54
3.8 Seizure in the piston pin bosses 58
3.9 Piston noises 62
3.10 Cylinders and cylinder liners 64
3.11 Increased oil consumption 76
4 Glossary 86
Piston damage – recognising and rectifying | 3

1 Introduction
The issue Additional information

The aim of this brochure is to provide an Recognising damage is not always a
overview of the different types of damage straightforward task. In many cases the
on pistons, cylinder sliding surfaces and damage can be hard to make out, particu-
cylinder liners. It can assist experts when larly in photographs. This is why you will
running diagnostics and determining the also see damage pictograms for every
cause of damage and provides laymen damage pattern (Fig. 1). These will help Fig. 1
with basic information. you to identify the damage on the photo-
graphs more easily. These pictograms do
The process of assessing engine damage not show the damage on a 1:1 scale. The
requires an all-encompassing approach to pictograms are merely intended to serve
identify the causes, which may not always as examples, in some cases with additio-
be clear. It is not at all a rare occurrence nal information. Damage that leaves cha-
for engine repairs to be carried out and racteristic traces on different points or
then for the same failures to occur again parts is described with several picto-
because, although the damaged compo- grams.
nents were replaced, nothing was done to
eliminate the cause of the problem. When A glossary containing key specialist terms
describing the events leading to the has been included as an appendix to this
damage, experts are often only provided brochure.
with a single, defective part, without any
further data on the running time or extent
of the damage. This only allows for general
diagnostics and not an examination of the
specific damage.

Quick diagnosis – Overview 2
Seizure due to insufficient clearance 10

Seizure due to insufficient clearance on the piston skirt 11
45° seizure marks 12
Seizure due to insufficient clearance at the bottom skirt end 14
Seizure due to lack of lubrication 16
Seizure due to lack of lubrication on the piston skirt 17
Piston skirt seizure on one side only 18
Dry running damage due to lack of lubrication caused by fuel flooding 20
Piston head seizure on a diesel piston 21
Seizure due to lack of lubrication caused by scuffed piston rings 22
Seizure due to overheating 24
Seizure due to overheating centred around the piston head 25
Seizure due to overheating centred around the piston skirt 26
Damage due to abnormal combustion 27
Removal of material by melting from the piston head and piston skirt (petrol engines) 31
Material removal/fusion due to melting on the piston head (diesel engines) 32
Cracks in the piston crown and bowl (diesel engines) 34
Ring land fractures 36
Impact marks on the piston head (diesel engines) 38
Hole in the piston crown (petrol engines) 40
Piston head seizure due to the use of incorrect pistons (diesel engines) 42
Erosion on the piston top land and on the piston crown (petrol engines) 44
Piston and piston ring fractures 46
Piston fracture in the piston pin boss 47
Piston fracture due to the mechanical contact between piston crown and cylinder head 48
Material washout in the piston ring zone (piston ring fracture) 50
Piston pin fractures 52
Fractured piston pin 53
Damage to the piston pin circlips 54
Piston damage caused by broken piston pin circlips 55
Seizure in the piston pin bosses 58
Seizure in the piston pin boss (floating-fit piston pin) 59
Seizure in the piston pin boss (shrink-fit connecting rod) 60
Seizure in the piston pin boss (with piston skirt seizure(s)) 61
Piston noises 62
Radial impact points on the piston top land 63
Cylinders and cylinder liners 64
Longitudinal cylinder liner cracks 65
Torn-off flange on the cylinder liner 66
Cavitation on cylinder liners 68
Irregular sliding surface wear 70
Bright spots in upper sliding surface area 72
Cylinder liner crack due to hydraulic lock 74
Increased oil consumption 76
Incorrectly installed oil control ring 77
Wear caused by the ingress of dirt 78
Wear caused by fuel flooding 80
Piston ring wear soon after engine reconditioning 82
Asymmetrical piston wear pattern 84

2 Quick diagnosis – Damage symptoms
Piston skirt damage
Seizure due to insufficient 11 45° seizure marks 12

clearance on the piston skirt
Piston skirt seizure 18 Seizure due to overheating 26

on one side only centred around the piston skirt
Seizure due to lack 17 Seizure due to insufficient 14

of lubrication clearance at the bottom skirt
on the piston skirt end
Dry running damage due to lack 20 Wear on pistons, piston rings 80

of lubrication caused by fuel and cylinders caused by fuel
flooding flooding
Piston head seizure
Piston head seizure 21 Piston head seizure due to 42

on a diesel piston the use of incorrect pistons
(diesel engines)
Seizure due to overheating 25 Seizure due to lack of 22

centred around the piston head lubrication caused
by scuffed piston rings

Quick diagnosis – Damage symptoms | 2
Piston ring damage
Seizure due to lack of 22 Wear on pistons, piston rings 78

lubrication caused by scuffed and cylinder running surfaces
piston rings caused by the ingress of dirt
Incorrectly installed 77 Wear on pistons, piston rings 80

oil control ring and cylinders caused by fuel
flooding
Piston ring wear soon after 82

engine reconditioning
Further damage in the ring and skirt area
Ring land fractures 36 Material washout in the piston 50

ring zone (piston ring fracture)
Piston damage caused 55 Radial impact points 63

by broken piston pin circlips on the piston top land
Asymmetrical piston wear 84

pattern
Oil consumption-relevant
damage

2 Quick diagnosis – Damage symptoms
Piston head damage
31 32
Removal of material by melting Material removal/fusion due
from the piston head and to melting on the piston head
piston skirt (petrol engines) (diesel engines)
40 44
Hole in the piston crown Erosion on the piston top
(petrol engines) land and on the piston crown
(petrol engines)
48 38
Piston fracture due to the Impact marks on the piston
mechanical contact between head (diesel engines)
piston crown and cylinder
head
34 47
Cracks in the piston crown Piston fracture in the
and bowl (diesel engines) piston pin boss
Piston pin seizure and piston pin fractures
Seizure in the piston pin 61 Seizure in the piston pin 59

bosses (with piston skirt bosses (floating-fit piston pin)
seizure)
Seizure in the piston 60 Fractured piston pin 53

pin bosses (shrink-fit
connecting rod)

Quick diagnosis – Damage symptoms 2
Damage to cylinder liners and cylinder bores
66 66
Torn-off flange on the Torn-off flange
cylinder liner on the cylinder liner
(preliminary stage)
65 74
Longitudinal cylinder Cylinder liner crack due to
liner cracks hydraulic lock
68 14
Cavitation on cylinder liners Seizure due to insufficient
clearance at the bottom skirt
end
70 72
Irregular sliding surface wear Bright spots in upper sliding
surface area
Oil consumption-
relevant damage

3.1 Seizure due to insufficient clearance
3.1.1 General information about seizures due to insufficient clearance
The clearance between the piston and the As the clearance between the piston and Characteristic features of seizure due to
cylinder may become reduced beyond the cylinder decreases, mixed friction insufficient clearance:
permissible limits or even completely deci- initially occurs: the expanding piston • Bright wear marks that change into
mated as a result of incorrect dimensio- forces away the oil film on the cylinder smooth, darkly discoloured areas of
ning of the two sides, after cylinder distor- wall. The result of this is that the load wear due to rubbing.
tion or also after thermal overloads. bearing surfaces on the piston skirt are • Seizure points on both the pressure
The piston reaches much higher tempera- rubbed to a bright finish. The temperature side and the anti-thrust side.
tures when the engine is running. As a of the components increases due to the
result, the thermal expansion of the piston mixed friction and the resulting frictional
is greater than the cylinder that encloses heat. The piston presses with increasing
it. In addition, on account of the thermal force against the cylinder wall and the oil
expansion coefficient of aluminium, the film ultimately stops doing its job entirely.
expansion of the piston is approximately The piston then starts to run dry in the
twice that of the grey cast iron commonly cylinder, resulting in initial rubbing marks,
used in the cylinder. Both factors need to with a smooth surface with dark discolou-
be taken into account accordingly at the ration.
design stage.

Seizure due to insufficient clearance 3.1
3.1.2 Seizure due to insufficient clearance on the piston skirt
Description of the damage

• Several similar areas of seizure marks
around the piston skirt.
• Seizure marks on both the pressure and
anti-thrust sides of the piston skirt, i.e.
seizure marks on opposite sides.
• Surface changes from bright wear marks
to smooth, darkly discoloured areas of
wear caused by rubbing.
• Undamaged ring zone.
Abb. 1
Damage assessment Note:

The clearance between the piston skirt In contrast to a seizure due to lack of
and the cylinder running surface was lubrication, a seizure due to insufficient
either too narrow by design, or it was clearance always occurs after a brief
restricted by distortion that possibly did running-in period following engine recon-
not occur until the engine was operating. ditioning.
Possible causes for the damage

• Cylinder bore too small. • Use of incorrect or unsuitable cylinder
• Cylinder head over-tightened or tightened head gaskets.
unevenly (cylinder distortion). • Cylinder distortion caused by uneven
• Uneven mating surfaces on the cylinder heating due to lime deposits, dirt or other
block or cylinder head. malfunctions in the cooling system.
• Dirty or damaged threaded bores or
cylinder head bolts.
• Seized or insufficiently lubricated seating
surfaces.

3.1.3 45° seizure marks

• Seizure marks on both the pressure and
anti-thrust sides, offset at approximately
45° to the piston pin axis.
• The seizures areas change from bright
wear marks to relatively smooth, darkly
discoloured areas of wear caused by
rubbing (Fig. 1). Fig. 1
• Piston pin displays blue tempering
colour (Fig. 3). Reason: piston pin bed
has become hot due to insufficient
clearance or a lack of oil.
Fig. 2
Fig. 3

Damage assessment
The piston pin boss has heated up exces- clearances are restricted and a piston
sively. The thin-walled and elastic piston seizure occurs. The piston seizure is
skirt is able to compensate for the increa- centred around the transition between
sed thermal expansion on the pressure the piston pin boss and the piston skirt.
and anti-thrust sides. The piston pin boss
is stiffer and its expansion increases. The

• Mechanical overload of the connecting • Installation fault during the process expansion of the piston pin as is the case
rod bearing, e.g. due to abnormal com- of shrinking the piston pin (shrink-fit during engine operation. If the bed is
bustion. connecting rod). moved in this state, it can cause initial
• Malfunction/fracture in the oil injection During the shrinking process, care must rubbing marks or seizure marks. This may
jet. be taken to ensure that, immediately cause stiffness or failure of the piston
• Insufficient or no oil pump pressure. after the piston pin has been inserted, pin bed during engine operation. For this
• Insufficient lubrication when the engine the piston pin bed is not checked for reason, allow the assembled components
was first taken into operation. The piston freedom of movement by tilting the piston to cool down before checking the freedom
pin was not or was insufficiently lubri- back and forth. The temperatures are of movement.
cated when it was assembled. equalized between the two components
• Failure of the connecting rod bush (piston immediately after the cool piston pin is
pin seizure) due to insufficient clearance inserted into the hot connecting rod. The
or lubrication. heat introduction increases the thermal

3.1.4 Seizure due to insufficient clearance at the bottom skirt end

• Seizure due to insufficient clearance at
the bottom skirt ends, with wear marks
and counter-wear marks.
• The marks change from bright wear
marks to smooth, darkly discoloured
areas of wear caused by rubbing (Fig. 1).
• There is nothing unusual about any of
the remaining parts of the piston.
• Seizure marks in the cylinder liner in the
area around the lower O-rings (Fig. 2).
Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Damage assessment
The piston seizure at the bottom edge of
the piston skirt was caused by distortion/
restricted clearances in the lower area of
the cylinder liner.

• Incorrect sealing rings: excessively thick • Any sealing ring residue or dirt in the
sealing rings can distort a cylinder liner sealing ring grooves was not removed
and reduce the piston running clearance. prior to installation.
• Additional use of liquid sealants in the • If the sealing rings twist when the cylin-
sealing ring groove. In order to seal the der liner is being inserted or slip out of
surfaces, the sealing rings must be able the sealing ring groove, the cylinder liner
to deform elastically. The free space will become constricted in this area. To
required for this in the groove must not prevent this, lubricant must always be
be filled with additional sealant. used when installing the cylinder liner.

3.2 Seizure due to lack of lubrication
3.2.1 General information about seizures due to lack of lubrication
Seizures due to lack of lubrication can running surface then rub against each
occur generally, i.e. even if there is suffi- other without any lubrication, which
cient clearance between the cylinder and soon causes seizure with a severely worn
the piston. In the process the oil film surface.
breaks down (often only locally) because A similar situation arises if there is an
of the high temperatures or because of insufficient lubricating film between the
fuel flooding. In these areas, the surfaces piston and the cylinder due to a lack of oil.
of the piston, piston rings and cylinder
Characteristic features of a seizure due to lack of lubrication:
If the oil film is destroyed altogether:

Seamless areas of narrow seizure marks,
mainly on the piston skirt, showing a
severely worn and darkly discoloured
surface.
If there is a lack of oil:

Identical to those described above, apart
from the discolouration of the surface.
The surface of the seizure areas has an
almost pure metallic finish, with no dark
discolouration. As the lack of oil affects
the entire surface of the cylinder, there are
often seizure marks on both the pressure
side and the anti-thrust side in the piston,
in many cases even in the early stages.

Seizure due to lack of lubrication 3.2
3.2.2 Seizure due to lack of lubrication on the piston skirt

• Seizure marks on the piston skirt on
the pressure side, which in some cases
extend into the piston ring zone.
• Slight seizure marks on the anti-
thrust side.
• Surface of the seizure areas is light-
coloured and has an almost pure metallic
finish.
Fig. 1
Damage assessment
There was an acute lack of lubricant bet- this concerns a temporary lack of oil or Note:
ween the piston and the cylinder bore. The the early stages of damage. The damage With this type of seizure due to lack
fact that the surface of the seizure areas would have been even more severe if of lubrication, the damage area is always
has an almost pure metallic finish indica- engine had been operated further. located in the area of the piston skirt
tes that the oil film was present but signifi- where the normal wear pattern would have
cantly weakened at the time of the seizure. formed on an undamaged piston after
Due to the limited extent of the damage, running in.

Insufficient lubrication caused by:
• Insufficient engine oil. • Failure of the oil injection jet for cooling
• Oil pressure in the engine too low (oil the piston.
pump, pressure relief valve, etc.): not
enough oil emerges at the crankshaft
bearings. This means that not enough
lubricating oil is supplied to the cylin-
der running surface, which is lubricated
with splash oil and centrifugal oil from
the crankshaft.

3.2.3 Piston skirt seizure on one side only without matching

wear marks on the counter-side

• Severe, darkly discoloured seizure areas
with a heavily worn surface on the pres-
sure side of the piston.
• Opposite side of the piston skirt free of
damage.
• Piston ring zone usually undamaged in
the early stages.
Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Damage assessment
This is a typical example of seizure due to locally confined area or by the affected side
lack of lubrication. It usually occurs on the of the cylinder overheating. Lack of clea-
pressure side and is less common on the rance can be excluded as the potential
anti-thrust side. This damage is caused cause here as, despite the severity of the
when the lubricating film breaks down on seizure marks, there are no wear marks on
only one half of the cylinder. It is caused the opposing counter-side.
either by a lack of lubrication within a

• Partial collapse of the cooling mechanism • On air-cooled engines: defective, missing • Insufficient lubrication on the cylinder
due to lack of coolant, air bubbles, dirt or incorrectly installed air baffles. pressure side (which is subjected to
deposits or other malfunctions in the • Failure of the oil injection jet for cooling greater loads) as a result of oil dilution
cooling circuit. the piston. or oil grades that are not suited to the
• On ribbed cylinders, dirt deposits on the • Insufficient oil pressure: insufficient intended purpose.
outside can lead to localised overheating lubrication on the cylinder pressure side
and, consequently, a breakdown of the for connecting rods with oil injection jets.
oil film.

3.2.4 Dry running damage due to lack of lubrication caused by fuel flooding

• Narrow, sharply defined longitudinal
friction marks on the piston skirt instead
of the normal piston wear pattern.
Fig. 1
Damage assessment
Unburned fuel has condensed at the cylin- which results in long, narrow friction Note:
der running surface and diluted or washed marks. The piston ring zone usually In the case of damage caused by
off the load-bearing oil film. As a result, remains undamaged. unburned fuel, the damage occurs at the
the interacting sliding parts (piston and load-bearing areas on the piston skirt.
cylinder bore) run dry against each other, These are the points at which the normal
wear pattern would have formed on an
undamaged piston.

• Overrich engine operation and abnormal
combustion caused by faults in the mix-
ture preparation or in the ignition system.
• Insufficient compression and, as a result,
incomplete combustion.
• Coldstart device defective or operated for
too long (carburettor engines).
• Oil dilution caused by frequent short
distance driving or an overly rich mixture.

3.2.5 Piston head seizure on a diesel piston

• Localised seizures that mainly occur
on the piston top land.
• Surface of the seizure areas is rough
and worn, in some cases larger pieces
of material have been torn out.
Fig. 1
Damage assessment
Due to a fault on the injection nozzle, non- without any lubrication at all. As a result, the
atomised fuel was able to reach the cylin- piston top land seized so severely that it was
der wall, where it weakened the oil film to temporarily welded to the cylinder wall. This
the point where the piston was running dry caused chunks to be torn from the piston head.

• Injection nozzles that are leaking,
dripping after injection, clogged or the
wrong type.
• Blocked injector nozzle needle due to
bent injection nozzle body (incorrect
tightening torque).
• Incorrect injection timing (start of
delivery).

3.2.6 Seizure due to lack of lubrication caused by scuffed piston rings

• Score marks and burned spots on the Fig. 1
piston ring sliding surfaces (Fig. 1 and 2).
• Longitudinal scratches on the cylinder
bores (not shown).
• In the early stages: initial rubbing marks
can be seen on the piston top land
(Fig. 3, top right).
• In a more advanced stage: the damaged
areas have spread over the entire piston
(Fig. 4).
Fig. 2
Fig. 3 Fig. 4

Damage assessment
This type of damage primarily occurs However, abnormal combustion and on the piston top land and subsequently
during the running-in phase under heavy increased temperatures or insufficient leads to seizures on the entire piston skirt
loads, when the piston rings are not yet cooling of the piston and cylinder wall can (Fig. 4).
run in and hence do not yet provide a full also affect or even destroy the lubricating
seal (mostly on diesel pistons). The com- film. Initially this causes the piston rings
bustion gases streaming past the piston to run dry without lubrication, causing
rings heat up the rings and the cylinder burn spots. The piston also has to slide
wall excessively and cause the oil film to over the non-lubricated parts of the cylin-
break down. der, which causes initial rubbing marks

• Excessive engine loads during the • The temperature on the cylinder running • Insufficient oil supply to the cylinder
running-in phase. surfaces was too high (malfunctions in running surfaces due to insufficient
• The structure of the honed cylinder sur- the cooling system or deposits in the quantities of splash oil and centrifugal
face was not perfect for good adhesion surrounding cooling ducts). oil from the connecting rod bearings and
of the engine oil (squashing of the • Abnormal combustion and the resulting crankshaft bearings.
graphite veins, peak folding formation, increased temperatures during com-
insufficient roughness and/or incorrect bustion (lean mixture, glow ignition,
honing angle). injection nozzles leaking or dripping after
• Unsuitable lubricating oil (incorrect grade injection).
and viscosity).

3.3 Seizure due to overheating
3.3.1 General information about seizure due to overheating
In the case of seizures due to overheating,

the oil film breaks down as a result of
excessively high temperatures. Initially
this causes mixed friction with individual
friction marks. The material at the friction
marks then heats up further and the piston
loses all lubrication. The seizure areas
have a dark discolouration and are badly
broken up. Depending on the cause of the
damage, the seizure due to overheating
starts at either the piston skirt or the piston
head.
Fig. 1

Seizure due to overheating 3.3
3.3.2 Seizure due to overheating centred around the piston head

• Severe seizure starting from the piston
head and lessening as it progresses
towards the skirt end.
• Seizure marks are distributed around the
entire circumference of the piston head.
• Surface of the seizure areas has a dark
discolouration with severe scoring
marks, and has broken up in places.
• Piston ring running surfaces show signs
of seizure, which decrease in intensity
towards the oil control ring.
Fig. 1
Damage assessment
The piston head has been heated up so a lack of lubrication all around the piston entitled "Seizure due to insufficient
much as a result of extreme thermal over- head. A general lack of clearance due to clearance on the piston skirt").
load that it has bridged the running clea- insufficient piston installation clearance
rance and destroyed the oil film. This can be excluded as the possible cause,
caused a combination of seizure marks because in this case the damage would
due to insufficient clearances and due to start in the skirt area (refer to the chapter

• Extended high loads during the • Bent or faulty oil injection nozzles, which
running-in phase of the engine. insufficiently cool the piston with oil from
• Overheating due to faults in the underneath.
combustion process. • Use of wrong sealing rings on the liner
• Malfunctions in the engine cooling flange of wet cylinder liners (refer to the
system. chapter entitled "Cavitation on cylinder
• Malfunctions in the oil supply liners").
(pistons with oil cooling or with oil
cooling gallery).

3.3 Seizure due to overheating
3.3.3 Seizure due to overheating centred around the piston skirt

• The piston skirt has seized on both
sides.
• The surface of the seizure marks has
• a dark discolouration and is rough and
severely broken up.
• The piston ring zone is often only
• slightly damaged or not damaged at all.
Fig. 1
Damage assessment
Severe overheating of the engine has skirt. The damage is centred on the skirt
caused the lubrication on the cylinder area; there are no seizure marks around
sliding surface to completely break down. the piston head. It is thus possible to
This has caused a seizure due to lack of exclude engine-based overstressing
lubrication with a heavily broken up piston caused by abnormal combustion.

• Overheating engine caused by the • On air-cooled engines: overheating due
following malfunctions in the cooling to dirt deposits on the exterior of the
system: cylinders, broken cooling ribs or failed or
-- Lack of coolant compromised cooling air ventilation.
-- Dirt
-- Defective water pump
-- Faulty thermostat
-- Torn or slipping V-belt
-- Inadequately ventilated cooling
systems.

Damage due to abnormal combustion 3.4
General information about piston damage due to abnormal combustion
Abnormal combustion in petrol engines rises steeply as a result and reaches its 2. K nocking combustion:
The combustion of the air-fuel mixture in maximum value shortly after TDC. How- Causes erosion of material and mecha-
the cylinder follows a precisely defined ever, this normal combustion process can nical overload on the piston and the
process. It is started by the spark from the be disturbed by various factors, which can crankshaft drive.
spark plug shortly before top dead centre essentially be reduced to three different 3. Fuel flooding:
(TDC). The flame spreads from the spark cases of combustion faults: Causes wear in conjunction with oil
plug with a circular flame front and crosses consumption as well as piston seizures.
the combustion chamber at a steadily 1. G
low ignition (pre-ignition):
increasing combustion speed of 5–30 m/s. Causes thermal overstressing of the
The pressure in the combustion chamber piston.
Normal combustion Knocking combustion Glow ignition
Fig. 1

3.4 Damage due to abnormal combustion
Additional information for 1. Glow ignition Additional information for 2. Knocking in the process that glow ignition (pre-
(pre-ignition): combustion: ignition) can take place in conjunction with
In the case of glow ignition, a part that is When the combustion is knocking, the overheating on the piston (i.e. material is
glowing in the combustion chamber trig- ignition is triggered in the normal manner melted on or removed by melting).
gers combustion before the actual ignition via the spark from the spark plug. The Severe continuous knocking will cause
point. Potential candidates are the hot flame front expanding from the spark plug fractures in the ring land and the skirt
exhaust valve, the spark plug, sealing parts generates pressure waves, which trigger after just a short time. This usually occurs
and deposits on these parts as well as the critical reactions in the unburned gas. As without any material being melted on or
surfaces enclosing the combustion cham- a result, self-ignition takes place simul- removed by melting and without seizure
ber. The flame acts uncontrolled on the taneously at many points in the residual marks.
components, causing the temperature in gas mixture. This in turn causes the com- Fig. 1 shows the pressure curve in the
the piston crown to increase sharply and bustion speed to increase by a factor of combustion chamber. The blue curve
reach the melting point temperature of the 10–15, and the pressure increase per shows the pressure curve for normal
piston material after just a few seconds of degree of the crankshaft and the pressure combustion. The red curve shows the
uninterrupted glow ignition. peak also rise substantially. In addition, pressure curve for knocking combustion,
On engines with a predominantly hemis- very high frequency pressure oscillations and pressure peaks occur in this case.
pherical combustion chamber this causes are formed in the expansion stroke. The
holes in the piston crown, which usually temperature of the surfaces enclosing the Additional information for 3. Fuel flooding:
occur on an extension of the spark plug combustion chamber also increases consi- An excessively rich mixture, gradual loss
axis. derably. Combustion chambers that have of compression pressure and ignition mal-
On combustion chambers with relatively been burned clean of any residue are an functions will generate incomplete com-
large quenching areas between the piston unmistakeable indicator of combustion bustion with concurrent fuel flooding. The
crown and the cylinder head, the piston knocking. lubrication of the pistons, piston rings and
top land usually melts at the point in the On most engines, slight temporary cylinder running surfaces becomes
quenching area (see glossary) subjected to knocking does not cause any damage, ineffective. The consequence is mixed
the greatest load. This often continues even over prolonged periods of time. friction with wear and increased oil con-
down to the oil control ring and into the More severe and longer-lasting knocking sumption as well as seizure marks (refer
interior of the piston. causes piston material to be eroded from to the chapters on oil consumption and
the piston top land and the piston crown. piston seizure).
Knocking combustion, which causes high The cylinder head and the cylinder head
surface temperatures on individual parts gasket can also sustain damage in a simi-
of the combustion chamber, can also lead lar way. Parts in the combustion chamber
to glow ignition. (e.g. the spark plug) can heat up so much

TDC
Pressure
Fig. 1 Crank angle

Abnormal combustion on diesel engines red ignition temperature is not reached injection, the pressure in the system
In order to ensure that the combustion until the compression reaches a more is reduced by a certain amount by the
process is optimised, use of an injection advanced stage, at which point the fuel pressure valve of the fuel injection pump.
nozzle with extremely fine fuel atomisa- injected so far ignites suddenly. This If the injection pressure of the injection
tion and precise delivery and correct start causes a steep, explosive pressure in- nozzles is set too low or if the pressure
of injection are also essential in addition crease that generates a noise and causes cannot be reliably maintained (mechanical
to the basic requirement that the engine is a sharp increase in the temperature of the injection nozzles), then it is possible that,
mechanically in perfect working order. piston crown. This can result in fractures, despite this pressure reduction, the injec-
This is the only way to ensure that the for example in the ring lands of the piston tion nozzles could still open several times
injected fuel can ignite with a minimum as well as heat stress cracks on the piston in sequence after the end of injection.
ignition delay and, under normal pressure crown. Injection nozzles that leak or drip after
conditions, burn completely. Here too a injection also cause an uncontrolled deli-
distinction is made into three serious Additional information for 2. Incomplete very of fuel into the combustion chamber.
types of abnormal combustion: combustion: The uncontrolled injected fuel in both
If the fuel does not reach the combustion cases ends up unburned on the piston
1. Ignition delay chamber at the right time, or if it is not crown due to the lack of oxygen. There the
2. Incomplete combustion properly atomised, then the short period fuel burns under quite high temperatures
3. Injection nozzles dripping after of time available is not enough to ensure and heats local areas of the piston mate-
injection complete combustion. The same happens rial so strongly that parts of the piston can
if there is not enough oxygen (i.e. intake be torn away from the surface under the
Additional information for 1. Ignition delay: air) in the cylinder. The causes for this effects of inertia force and erosion.
The fuel will only ignite after a certain could be a blocked air filter, intake valves This results in substantial amounts of
delay (ignition delay) if: not opening correctly, turbocharger faults material being carried away or washed
• it is not atomised finely enough, or wear on the piston rings and the valves. away erosively on the piston crown.
• if it is injected into the cylinder at the Unburned fuel partly condenses on the
wrong time, cylinder surfaces, where it adversely
• if the combustion temperature is not yet affects or destroys the lubricating film.
high enough at the start of injection. Within a very short space of time this
results in severe wear or seizure on the
The degree of atomisation depends only cylinder sliding surfaces, the piston ring
on the condition of the injection nozzle. running surfaces and ultimately also the
An injection nozzle that works perfectly as piston skirt surfaces. This means that the
tested with a nozzle tester can become engine will start to consume more oil and
jammed during installation or due to ther- lose power (example damage symptoms
mal stress such that it no longer atomises are listed in the chapters "Seizure due to
the fuel properly during operation. lack of lubrication" and "Increased oil
The compression temperature depends on consumption").
the compression pressure and therefore
on the mechanical condition of the engine. Additional information for 3. Injection
On a cold engine there is always a certain nozzles dripping after injection:
ignition delay. During compression, the The injection nozzle may open again at the
cold cylinder walls absorb a lot of heat end of injection as a result of pressure
from the (colder) intake air. As a result, the fluctuations. These pressure fluctuations
compression temperature present at the may come from the pressure valve of the
start of injection is not sufficient to imme- fuel injection pump, the lines or the injec-
diately ignite the injected fuel. The requi- tion nozzles. To prevent this incorrect

3.4.2 Removal of material by melting from the piston head

and piston skirt (petrol engines)

• The piston head has melted through
behind the piston rings.
• The piston skirt has not seized; melted
material has been worn away off the
damaged area onto the piston skirt.
Abb. 1
Damage assessment
The removal of material by melting from perature of the air-gas mixture. These are piston material to go soft. Material is car-
piston heads in petrol engines is the result essentially the spark plug, the exhaust ried away as far as the oil control ring due
of glow ignition on pistons with mostly flat valves and any oil carbon deposits on the to the combined effects of inertia force and
crowns and relatively large quenching combustion chamber walls. combustion gases entering the damage
areas. Glow ignition is triggered by In the quenching area, the piston head is area.
glowing parts in the combustion chamber heated up significantly due to the glow igni-
that are hotter than the self-ignition tem- tion. The high temperatures cause the

• Heat value of the spark plugs too low. • Glowing combustion residue on the pis- • Petrol contaminated by diesel, which
• Mixture too lean, resulting in higher com- ton crowns, the cylinder head, the valves lowers the octane rating of the fuel.
bustion temperatures. and the spark plugs. • High engine or intake air temperature
• Damaged valves or insufficient valve • Unsuitable fuel with an octane rating that caused by inadequate ventilation of the
clearance, causing the valves to not close is too low. The fuel quality must corres- engine compartment.
correctly. The hot combustion gases pond to the compression ratio of the engi- • General overheating of the engine.
streaming past cause the valves to start ne, i.e. the octane rating of the fuel must
to glow. This primarily affects the exhaust cover the octane requirements of the
valves, as the intake valves are cooled by engine under all operating conditions.
the fresh gases.

3.4.3 Material removal/fusion due to melting on the piston head (diesel engines)

Fig. 1:
• Piston head completely destroyed.
• Piston top land melted as far as the ring
carrier.
• Seizure marks and damage on the piston
skirt due to melted, worn down piston
material.
• Ring carrier partially detached.
• Damage (impact marks) in all combus-
tion chambers due to piston material
and detached ring carrier parts.
Fig. 1
Fig. 2:
• Erosive-type removal of material due to
melting on the piston crown or the piston
top land in the injection direction of the
nozzle jets.
• No seizure marks on the piston skirt or
the piston ring zone.
Fig. 2

Damage assessment
This type of damage occurs particularly on oscillations in the injection line can cause The inertia force and the erosion due to
diesel direct injection engines. Precham- the injector nozzle needle to lift again. the combustion gases speeding past tear
ber engines are only affected if the Fuel is injected into the combustion cham- out individual particles from the surface
prechamber is damaged and the fuel is ber again. If the oxygen has been used up, (Fig. 2) or carry away the entire piston
therefore also injected directly into the the fuel droplets stream through the com- head (Fig. 1).
combustion chamber. bustion chamber and end up on the piston
crown. There they burn away with a great
If, in a diesel direct injection engine, the deal of heat and the piston material be-
injection nozzle of the affected cylinder comes soft.
cannot maintain its injection pressure,

• Leaking injection nozzles or stiff/jammed • Ignition delay due to insufficient
injector nozzle needles. compression caused by excessive gap
• Broken or worn nozzle springs. dimensions, incorrect valve timing or
• Faulty pressure relief valves in the fuel leaking valves.
injection pump. • Excessive ignition delay caused by diesel
• Injection quantity and injection timing that is reluctant to ignite (cetane rating
not set in accordance with the engine too low).
manufacturer's specifications. • Poor charging due to defective turbo-
• On prechamber engines: charger.
Prechamber defect in conjunction with
one of the above possible causes.

3.4.4 Cracks in the piston crown and bowl (diesel engines)

• Stress cracks on the edge of the bowl.
• Major crack extends to the piston pin
boss.
• Channel burned from the bowl to below
the oil control ring by combustion gases
streaming through the major crack.
Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Damage assessment
The piston material is heated up signifi-
cantly in localised areas – at the point
where the prechamber jets make contact
on prechamber engines (Fig. 3 and Fig. 4),
and on the edge of the bowl on direct
injection engines (Fig. 1). The material
expands more than elsewhere in these
areas. As the overheated areas are sur-
rounded by colder materials, the material
is plastically deformed here beyond its
limit of elasticity. Exactly the opposite Fig. 3 Fig. 4
happens when it then cools down again:
in the areas where before the material was
previously buckled and forced away, there
is now a shortage of material. This results in
tensile stresses, which ultimately cause
stress cracks. If there are superimposed
stresses caused by bending of the piston
pin in addition to the thermal stresses,
then the stress cracks turn into a much
larger major crack, which causes complete
breakage and failure of the piston.

• Faults in mixture preparation caused by • Pistons with an incorrect specification,
incorrect injection nozzles, malfunctions e.g. no oil cooling gallery despite the
in the fuel injection pump or damage to fact that a piston with oil gallery must be
the prechamber. used.
• High temperatures as a result of defects • Pistons made by third-party manufactu-
in the cooling system. rers without fibre reinforcement of the
• Faults on the engine brake, or excessive edge of the bowl.
use of the engine brake. This results in • Pistons with an unsuitable bowl shape for
overheating. the engine (refer to the chapter entitled
• Insufficient piston cooling on pistons with "Piston head seizure due to the use of
a oil cooling gallery, caused for example incorrect pistons").
by blocked or bent cooling oil nozzles.
• Temperature fluctuations in engines with
frequently changing loads, such as city
buses or earthmoving machines.

Ring land fractures

• Ring land fracture on one side of the
piston between the first and second
compression ring (Fig. 1).
• Fracture, starting at the groove base at
the top and running at a diagonal angle
into the piston material, emerging at the
groove base underneath (Fig. 2).
• Fracture is extended downwards. Fig. 1
• No piston seizure marks or signs of
overheating.
Fig. 2 Cross section of fracture
Damage assessment 1. Knocking combustion:

Land fractures are not caused by material The octane rating of the fuel was not ca Ring land fractures caused by knocking
faults, but by material overload. A distinc- pable of covering the engine's needs under combustion usually occur on the pressure
tion can be made between 3 different all operating and load conditions (refer to side. On a diesel engine, knocking com-
causes: the chapter entitled "General information bustion is caused by an ignition delay.
about piston damage due to abnormal
combustion in petrol engines").

2. Hydraulic locks:
Liquid (water, coolant, oil or fuel) acciden- Fig. 3 shows the course of a fracture that
tally enters the combustion chamber when occurs with knocking combustion and
the engine is stopped or running. As the hydraulic locks: the force causing the
liquid is incompressible, the piston and fracture and acting from above on the ring
crankshaft drive are subjected to enor- land causes the fracture surfaces to
mous stresses during the compression extend downwards.
cycle. This results in ring land fractures,
boss fractures or connecting rod/cranks- Fig. 3
haft damage.
3. Installation faults:
If the piston rings are incorrectly com- The ring lands fracture in the reverse
pressed, more force is required when ins- direction as the pressure comes from
talling the piston. Forcibly pressing in or below in this case (Fig. 4).
knocking in the piston causes pre-damage
to the ring lands in the form of fine hair-
line cracks.
Fig. 4

Knocking combustion on petrol engines: Knocking combustion on diesel engines: Hydraulic locks:
• Fuel without suitable anti-knock proper- • Injection nozzles with poor atomisation • Accidental intake of water while driving
ties. The fuel quality must correspond to or leaks. through water, or as a result of larger
the compression ratio of the engine, i.e. • Injection pressure of the injection nozzles quantities of water being splashed up by
the octane rating of the fuel must cover too low. passing vehicles or vehicles in front.
the octane requirements of the engine • Compression pressure too low due to in- • While the engine is stopped, cylinder
under all operating conditions. correct cylinder head gaskets, insufficient filling up with:
• Petrol contaminated by diesel, which piston protrusions, leaking valves -- water, due to leaks in the cylinder head
lowers the octane rating of the fuel. or damaged/worn pistons. gasket or cracks in components.
• Excessively high compression ratio • Defective cylinder head gaskets. -- fuel, due to leaking injection nozzles
caused by excessive machining of the • Damage to the prechamber. (only applies to petrol engines with
engine block surface and cylinder head • Improper or excessive use of starting aids a fuel injection system). The residual
mating surface, e.g. for engine recondi- (e.g. starting spray) during cold starts. pressure in the fuel injection system is
tioning or tuning purposes. • Defective turbocharger. dissipated through the leaking nozzle
• Ignition timing too advanced. into the cylinder.
• Mixture too lean, resulting in higher com- In both cases, the damage will occur
bustion temperatures. when the engine is started.
• Intake air temperatures too high, caused
for example by inadequate ventilation
of the engine compartment or incorrect
switching of the intake air flap to summer
operation (particularly on older carbu
rettor engines).

3.4.6 Impact marks on the piston head (diesel engines)

• Severe impact marks on the piston head
(Fig. 1). Nearly all oil carbon deposits
removed.
• Scarring and oil carbon deposits
pressed into the piston crown.
• Severe wear on the piston rings, parti
cularly on the oil control ring.
• Imprint of the swirl chamber on the front
edge of the piston crown (Fig. 2).
• Imprint of the valve on the right-hand side
of the crown.
• First indicators of initial dry running
damage due to lack of lubrication on
the piston skirt (Fig. 4).
Fig. 1
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 2

Damage assessment
The pistons have struck against the cylin- uncontrolled manner. This causes fuel damaged to a lesser degree, as it is
der head/swirl chamber and one of the flooding, which damages the oil film. This regularly supplied from the crankshaft
valves during operation. There have been damage leads to a higher level of mixed drive with new oil that is still capable of
no fractures yet as a result of these violent friction and therefore to wear on the piston providing lubrication. Once the abraded
impacts. However, the nature of the wear rings and increased oil consumption. particles from the moving area of the
on the piston rings and the piston skirt The characteristic damage caused by pistons mix with the lubricating oil and the
indicates that one consequence of these unburned fuel does not arise until the oil lubricating oil loses its load-bearing
impacts has been abnormal combustion film is impaired by the fuel to such an ability as a result of oil dilution, the wear
due to fuel flooding. extent that the piston is running with will spread further.
The striking of the piston results in vibra- insufficient lubrication (refer to the chapter
tions on the cylinder head. This causes the entitled "Dry running damage due to lack
injection nozzle to vibrate, and it is then of lubrication caused by fuel flooding").
unable to hold the pressure when closed In the initial stages the piston skirt is
and injects fuel into the cylinder in an

• Incorrect piston protrusion dimension. • Differing connecting rod lengths. • Over-revving the engine. The valves do
The piston protrusion was not checked or • Excessive reworking of the cylinder head not close in time due to the increased
corrected during engine reconditioning. mating surface and the resulting shift in inertia forces and strike against the
• Connecting rod bush bored eccentrically the valve timing. (The distance between piston.
during replacement. the driving pinion/sprocket and the • Excessive clearances in the connecting
• Eccentric regrinding of the crankshaft. driven pinion/sprocket changes. Depen- rod bearing or a worn-out connecting rod
• Eccentric reworking of the bearing coun- ding on the design of the chain or belt bearing, particularly in conjunction with
ter bore (when resinking the crankshaft adjustment mechanism, it may not be over-revving when driving downhill.
bearing caps). possible to correct this).
• Installation of cylinder head gaskets with • New valve seat rings have been installed,
insufficient thickness. but care was not taken to ensure that they
• Oil carbon deposits on the piston head are correctly positioned. If the valve seat
and resulting restriction or bridging of surface is not positioned deeply enough
the gap dimension. in the cylinder head, the valves will not
• Incorrect valve timing caused by incorrect be recessed correctly in the cylinder head
adjustment, chain stretching or a slipped and will protrude too far as a result.
toothed belt.

3.4.7 Hole in the piston crown (petrol engines)

• Piston crown has a hole that penetrates
all the way through, covered by the
molten material.
• Skirt area displays seizure marks.
Reason: the high temperatures and the
piston material that has been ground
down.
Fig. 1
Damage assessment
This type of damage is caused by glow Within a short space of time the piston Note:
ignition. Glowing components exceed the crown heats up so much as a result of glow Such rapid heating of a localised
self-ignition temperature of the air-gas ignition that the material there becomes area on the piston crown is only possible
mixture in the combustion chamber. These soft. The softened material is then carried as a result of glow ignition.
are essentially the spark plug, the exhaust away as a result of the inertia force on the
valve and any combustion residue present reciprocal movements of the piston and
in the combustion chamber. As a result, the fast-streaming combustion gases. As
the mixture ignites before it is due to be such the combustion pressure forces a
ignited by the spark plug. This means that hole in through the remaining thickness of
the flame acts for longer on the piston the piston crown wall. In many cases there
crown than in the normal combustion pro- will not be any seizure marks.
cess.


• Heat value of the spark plugs too low. • Unsuitable fuel with an octane rating
• Mixture too lean, resulting in higher com- that is too low. The fuel quality must
bustion temperatures. correspond to the compression ratio of the
• Damaged or leaking valves, or insufficient engine, i.e. the octane rating of the fuel
valve clearance, causing the valves to not must cover the octane requirements of
close correctly. The combustion gases the engine under all operating condi-
streaming past significantly increase the tions.
temperature of the valves, and the valves • Petrol contaminated by diesel, which
start to glow. This primarily affects the lowers the octane rating of the fuel.
exhaust valves, as the intake valves are • High engine or intake air temperature
cooled by the fresh gases. caused by inadequate ventilation of the
• Glowing combustion residue and oil car- engine compartment.
bon deposits in the combustion chamber. • General overheating of the engine.
• Incorrect injector installation dimension
(missing or duplicate sealing rings).

3.4.8 Piston head seizure due to the use of incorrect pistons (diesel engines)

• Localised score marks can be seen on
the piston head, going all around the
circumference of the piston.
• Score marks start at the piston crown
and end at the second compression ring.
• Score marks are centred around the
piston top land.
Fig. 1

Damage assessment
This damage has been caused by abnor- Because of the smaller bowl diameter, the
mal combustion. However, the fault lies injection nozzle was also spraying onto
in the use of an incorrect piston, not with the edge of the bowl rather than just into
the fuel injection system. Engines are the bowl. The edge of the bowl and the
designed in accordance with the statutory piston material heated up at the points of
prescribed emission standards. The pis- contact and their thermal expansion there-
tons for the relevant emission standard are fore also increased. This led to the loca-
often barely any different to look at. lised seizure marks.
In this example, pistons with different If the pistons used are not intended for the
bowl diameters were used on the same engine type and emission standard, this
engine type to meet different emission can result in serious abnormal combustion
standards. The piston for the Euro 1 emis- with unforeseeable consequences. Other
sion standard (bowl diameter of 77 mm) less severe effects would be failure to
was replaced during engine repair with a comply with exhaust gas values, lack of
piston for the Euro 2 emission standard engine performance and increased fuel
(bowl diameter of 75 mm). consumption.

• Pistons with an incorrectly shaped bowl • Use of incorrect components or compo-
or an incorrect bowl depth or diameter. nents that are unsuitable for the intended
• Deviating piston dimensions purpose (injection nozzles, fuel injection
(e.g. compression height). pumps, cylinder head gaskets or other
• Incorrect piston design. For example, a components that affect the mixture for-
piston without an oil cooling gallery must mation or combustion process).
not be used if the engine manufacturer
specifies an oil cooling gallery for the
particular application.

3.4.9 Erosion on the piston top land and on the piston crown (petrol engines)

• Erosion-type removal of material from
the piston top land (Fig. 2) or surface
of the piston crown (Fig. 3).
Fig. 1
Fig. 2 Fig. 3

Damage assessment
Erosion-type removal of material from the ween the piston top land and the cylinder
piston top land and from the piston crown wall as far as the first compression ring.
always occurs as a result of extended At the reversal point of the pressure wave,
periods of knocking combustion (medium the kinetic energy tears out tiny particles
severity). In the process, pressure waves from the surface of the piston.
spread in the cylinder and run down bet-

• Fuel without suitable anti-knock proper- • Ignition timing too advanced. Note:
ties. The fuel quality must correspond to • Mixture too lean, resulting in higher com- Modern engines are equipped with
the compression ratio of the engine, i.e. bustion temperatures. systems designed to detect knocking
the octane rating of the fuel must cover • Intake air temperatures too high. Causes: combustion. This knock control system
the octane requirements of the engine inadequate ventilation of the engine counteracts knocking combustion by
under all operating conditions. compartment or exhaust gas back pres- adapting the ignition timing. However, the
• Petrol has been contaminated with die- sure, failure to switch the intake air flap knock control system cannot intervene
sel. Cause: accidental refuelling with the to summer operation in a timely manner until knocking combustion has already
wrong type of fuel or shared use of tanks or a faulty automatic switchover mecha- occurred. Even if the knock control system
or canisters for both types of fuel. Even nism (particularly on older carburettor is fully functional, the risk of damage
very small amounts of diesel are already engines). cannot be ruled out if:
enough to significantly lower the octane • Failure of the knock control system. -- the control range of the engine control
rating of the petrol. • Modifications to the control unit software. unit is no longer sufficient, or
• Large quantities of oil in the combustion -- the knock limit is constantly reached.
chamber, caused for example by worn
piston rings, valve guides or the exhaust
gas turbocharger, will reduce the anti-
knock properties of the fuel.
• Excessively high compression ratio.
Cause: combustion residue on the piston
crowns and cylinder head or excessive
machining of the block surface and cylin-
der head surface for engine reconditio-
ning or tuning purposes.

3.5 Piston and piston ring fractures
3.5.1 General information about piston fractures
During engine operation, pistons can

break as a result of a forced fracture or
can suffer a fatigue fracture.
A forced fracture (Fig. 1) is always caused The fracture surfaces of a forced fracture
by a foreign body that collides with the appear grey. They are not worn down
piston while the engine is running. These and display no line markings. The piston
foreign bodies could be parts of the con- breaks suddenly without any fracture
necting rod, crankshaft or valves, etc. that development.
have been torn off. A forced fracture of the
piston can also occur if water or fuel gets
into the cylinder.
Fig. 1
In the case of a fatigue fracture (Fig. 2), Excessive deformation of the piston pin
line markings form on the fracture surface due to overstressing (bending and oval
that reveal the starting point and the deformation) causes cracks in the boss or
gradual progress of the fracture. The frac- cracks in the support. Furthermore,
ture surfaces are often worn to the point fatigue fractures can also stem from heat
of being shiny. The cause for a fatigue stress cracks on the piston crowns.
fracture is overstressing of the piston
material.
Overstressing can occur due to:

-- knocking combustion,
-- severe vibrations of the piston, for
example if the piston head has mecha-
Fig. 2 nical contact with the cylinder head,
-- material defects,
-- excessive skirt clearance.

Piston and piston ring fractures 3.5
3.5.2 Piston fracture in the piston pin boss

• Formation of a cleavage fracture that
leads to the piston crown. This results
in the piston being split into two parts
(Fig. 1).
• Boss fatigue crack in the centre axis of
the piston pin bore (Fig. 2 and 3).
Fig. 1 Fig. 2
Fig. 3 Cross section of a piston pin boss
Damage assessment
Boss fatigue fractures arise as a conse- bending stresses and material fatigue. under normal loads, and will cause the
quence of mechanical overstressing. This process can be accelerated if there is piston to split.
The constant overstressing of the piston no sufficient oil supply: an incipient crack
material increasingly results in alternating in the piston pin boss will then spread even

• Abnormal combustion, in particular spon- • The cylinder has filled up with water, • Incorrect or weight-reduced piston pins.
taneous combustion caused by ignition fuel or oil whilst the engine is stopped The piston pin is deformed to an oval
delay. (hydraulic lock). shape, placing excessive loads on the
• Excessive or inappropriate use of starting • Performance enhancements (e.g. chip piston pin bed in the process.
aids during cold starts. tuning) with use of the standard produc-
tion piston.

3.5.3 Piston fracture due to the mechanical contact

between piston crown and cylinder head

• Impact marks on the piston crown (Fig. 1),
cylinder head mating surface and both
valves (not shown).
• Fracture in the direction of the piston
pin due to vibrations and the effects of
violent impact.
• Piston skirt has broken off in the lower
oil ring groove, fracture surfaces display
the characteristics of a fatigue fracture
(Fig. 2).
Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Damage assessment
The cause is an exceptionally fast cylinder and subsequently strikes the
sequence of hard impacts as the piston cylinder wall with its skirt. On pistons
crown strikes the cylinder head, which with a lower oil control ring (Fig. 2) the
subjects the piston to such violent shock skirt often breaks in the area of the lower
vibrations that cracks are generated. The oil ring groove.
piston also no longer runs straight in the

• Excessive clearances in the connecting For this reason, when carrying out Caution:
rod bearings or a worn-out connecting repairs ensure that only cylinder head Checking the freedom of movement
rod bearing, particularly in conjunction gaskets with the prescribed material by turning the engine by hand when it is
with over-revving when driving downhill. thickness are used. This ensures that cold does not guarantee that the piston
• The gap dimension (the minimum dis- the specified gap dimension will be will not strike the cylinder head when the
tance between the piston crown and the achieved after the repair. If the cylinder operating temperature is reached. Reason:
cylinder head) was too small at TDC of the block is reworked or replaced during the piston and connecting rod increase in
piston. The following scenarios may have repair work, the thickness of the gasket length as a result of thermal expansion,
caused this: must be re-determined depending on which reduces the gap between the piston
-- Pistons with an incorrect compression the piston protrusion in accordance crown and the cylinder head. Particularly
height. During engine reconditioning, with the engine manufacturer’s speci- on engines in commercial vehicles with
the mating surface of the cylinder block fications. large piston compression heights, the
is often reworked. If pistons with the differences can be significant and reduce
original compression height are then the freedom of movement of the piston at
refitted after machining, the piston TDC by several tenths of a millimetre.
protrusion may be too large. This is why
pistons with a reduced compression
height are available for repairs, enab
ling the piston protrusion to be kept
within the tolerance range specified by
the engine manufacturer.*
-- Insufficient thickness of the cylinder
head gasket. Many manufacturers
provide cylinder head gaskets with
different thicknesses for the same en
gine. This is necessary to compensate
for component tolerances during pro-
duction, and it also allows adaptation
of the piston protrusion during repairs.
* Motor Service supply pistons with a reduced compression height (KH-) for many diesel engines.
For details please refer to the "Pistons and Components" Motor Service catalogue

3.5.4 Material washout in the piston ring zone (piston ring fracture)

• Severe material washout reaching as far
as the piston crown in the ring zone in
the area of the first ring groove.
• Severe axial wear on the first ring
groove.
• Severe mechanical damage on the piston
crown.
• Running pattern of the piston skirt has
a matt, buffed appearance.
Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Damage assessment
The damage is caused by the ingress of axial clearance of the piston rings rapidly enlarging groove. The washout
contamination into the combustion cham- increased steadily as a result. In terms of shown in the picture was caused as a
ber. This is indicated by the severe axial its cross section, the piston ring was result of continuous "hammering" of this
wear on the grooves and on the first ring severely weakened, and it could no longer broken-off part. Once the washout reached
groove in particular. The contamination withstand the pressures of the combustion the piston crown, the fragments of the
was then also deposited in the ring process and broke. Consequently, the bro- piston ring entered the combustion cham-
groove, where they caused abrasive wear ken-off part of the piston ring could move ber where they caused more damage.
on the piston ring and the ring groove. The around practically unhindered in the

• Severe axial wear on the ring groove • Ring flutter caused by excessive axial
and the piston rings caused by ingress clearance of the piston rings. This is
of foreign bodies into the combustion caused if only a new set of piston rings
chamber. is installed during engine repairs, even
• If there is severe radial wear to the piston though the ring grooves in the piston are
rings without any axial wear, then a likely already worn. The excessive clearance
cause is mixed friction wear as a result of causes the piston rings to flutter and
fuel flooding. possibly break. Another reason may be
the use of an incorrect set of piston rings:
Refer to the chapter entitled "Wear caused the height of the rings may be too small
by fuel flooding". and the axial clearance in the groove
therefore too great.
• If there is no wear on the ring grooves or • A piston that is unsuitable for the inten-
piston rings and the engine has only been ded purpose. Due to the greater loads
run a short time after reconditioning, and longer service life involved, pistons
the problem is often caused by incorrect for diesel engines are equipped with a
installation of the piston. It is possible for ring carrier made of cast iron alloyed
the piston rings to be broken when the with nickel. Pistons without a ring carrier
piston is inserted if the piston rings have are sometimes used on diesel engines
not been pressed far enough into the ring for cost reasons, but only if the engines'
groove. This happens if an incorrect or service life is expected to be shorter. This
damaged insertion tool is used or if the could be the case on e.g. agricultural
piston ring scuff band is not fitted and machinery. If this type of piston without
tightened correctly around the piston. a ring carrier is used in engines that are
intended to cover high mileage, there is
a chance that the wear resistance of the
ring grooves may not be sufficient.

3.6 Piston pin fractures
3.6.1 General information about piston pin fractures
Piston pin fractures can occur as a result connecting rod eye that is subjected to the
of overstressing caused by abnormal com- greatest shear stresses and bending
bustion or by foreign bodies in the com- stress, the crack then changes direction
bustion chamber. Excessive or inappropri- and becomes a lateral crack. This then ulti-
ate use of starting aids (e.g. starting mately causes the piston pin to break right
spray) should be viewed in the same way through. In addition to the damage des
as the effects of extreme abnormal com- cribed here, fractures can also arise as a
bustion. result of some other kind of damage.
The piston pin is deformed into an oval

shape by the pressure exerted on the
piston from the combustion gases.
Under excessive loads a longitudinal crack
can form at the ends of the piston pin, with
its starting point either at the outer or
inner diameter of the pin. The crack then
spreads as a fatigue fracture towards the
centre of the piston pin. In the area
between the piston pin bore and the

Piston pin fractures 3.6
3.6.2 Fractured piston pin

• Lateral fracture on the piston pin (Fig. 1)
at the transition between the connecting
rod and the piston pin boss.
• Shorter fragment split along its length.
• Fracture surfaces display the characte-
ristics of a fatigue fracture. Fig. 1
Damage assessment
Piston pin fractures are caused by exces- Fig. 2 shows that an incipient crack may not
sive loads. Under overstressing condi- only be caused by overstressing, but also
tions, the deformation of the piston pin as a result of improper installation of the
into an oval shape in the piston pin bores piston pin. The end face of the broken
initially causes a longitudinal crack at the piston pin clearly shows that the incipient
ends of the piston pin. This crack can origi- crack was caused by impact damage
nate both in the exterior surface and on (hammer blow). An incipient crack can lead
the interior of the bore. The crack then to breakage of the piston pin, even under
spreads towards the centre of the pin. In normal load conditions.
the area between the piston pin bore and
the connecting rod eye that is subjected to
the greatest shear stresses and bending
stress, the crack then changes direction
and becomes a lateral crack. This then ulti-
mately causes the entire piston pin to Abb. 2
break right through.

• Abnormal combustion, often as a result • Overloading of piston pin through
of knocking combustion. improved engine performance.
• Hydraulic locks. • Weakening of piston pin through tuning
• Improper handling of the piston pin measures (weight reduction).
during installation. • Incorrect piston pin.

3.7 Damage to the piston pin circlips
3.7.1 General information about damage to the piston pin circlips
Wire circlips or what are known as Seeger rapidly alternating sequence against the
type circlips are used as retainers for the piston pin circlips and gradually forces
piston pins. It is possible for both types to them out of the groove. They are then
break, or jump or be knocked out of the forced on as far as the cylinder running
groove in the piston. surface, where they are worn away. Ulti-
If the circlips fracture or their ends break mately the circlips will break up. Some
off, this is due to excessive loads or fragments become trapped between the
improper handling while inserting the piston and the cylinder, while other parts
circlips. The circlips are only subjected to are thrown back and forth under inertia
axial loads if the piston pin has an axial forces in the recess of the piston pin
movement forced upon it. This occurs if bosses, where they cause substantial
the connecting rod is misaligned or is material washout. It is also not uncommon
oscillating in a mostly asymmetric fashion, for fragments to move through the inner
which causes the piston pin axis and the bore in the piston pin right through to the
crankshaft axis to no longer be parallel. other side of the piston, where they then
The piston pin then strikes in a very also cause substantial damage.

Damage to the piston pin circlips 3.7
3.7.2 Piston damage caused by broken piston pin circlips
Damage description I
• End of the piston pin bore on both sides
of the piston suffered serious damage,
in some places as far as the ring zone
(Fig. 1).
• Circlip jumped out of the retaining
groove and broke into fragments.
• Second circlip damaged.
• Due to the lack of retention, the piston
pin has wandered outwards towards the
cylinder running surface.
• Front face of the piston pin worn to a
convex shape due to prolonged contact
with the cylinder running surface (Fig. 2).
• Asymmetrical running pattern of the
piston.
Fig. 1
Fig. 2

3.7 Damage to the piston pin circlips
Damage description II
• Asymmetrical piston wear pattern
(Fig. 4).
• Piston pin boss and piston pin broken
(Fig. 5 and 6).
• Pin bore hammered out in the area
of the circlips.
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6

Damage to the piston pin circlips 3.7
Damage assessment
Whether as wire circlips or Seeger-type movements result in alternating axial There, it is worn away and finally breaks
circlips, the piston pin circlips are only thrust, which effectively hammers out the into several fragments. Within a short
forced out or hammered out in operation circlip. Once the circlip has jumped out, it space of time the fragment inertia forces
by means of axial thrust of the piston pin. is then clamped between the piston pin hammer into the piston material as the
This is based on the requirement that the moving in an outwards direction, the piston moves up and down (Fig. 2). Indi
circlip has been correctly inserted and has piston and the cylinder running surface. vidual fragments also move through the
not been damaged. Axial thrust in the hollow piston pin and cause correspon-
piston pin always occurs when the piston ding destruction on the opposite side of
pin axis is not parallel to the crankshaft the piston.
axis. This is the case when a bent connec-
ting rod leads to the piston running at a
considerable angle. The reciprocating

• Axial thrust of the piston pin during • Use of old or damaged circlips.
engine operation caused by: • Improperly installed circlips.
-- Bending or twisting of the connecting
rod.
-- Connecting rod eye bored at an angle
(axes not parallel).
-- Cylinder axis not perpendicular to
crankshaft axis.
-- Excessive connecting rod bearing
clearance, particularly in conjunction
with asymmetrical connecting rods.
-- Connecting rod pins not parallel with
crankshaft axis (machining fault).

3.8 Seizure in the piston pin bosses
3.8.1 General information about seizure in the piston pin bosses
The piston pin boss is not forcibly supplied Due to the high temperature increase, the Note:
with oil. Only splash oil or centrifugal oil is piston also expands a great deal more on During the process of shrinking the
available. As a result, seizures on the the skirt in the area of the piston pin piston pin into the connecting rod, the
piston pin bed are nearly always seizures bores. There, this can lead to a lack of abovementioned lubrication of the piston
due to lack of lubrication, with severely clearances as well as seizures due to lack pin is not the only aspect to consider.
torn-up surfaces and fusion of materials. of lubrication in the cylinder bore (refer to Immediately after the piston pin is
the chapter entitled "45° seizure marks"). inserted, the piston pin bed must not be
On floating-fit piston pins, damage to the checked for freedom of movement by
piston pin bores primarily arises: For piston pins that are shrunk into the tilting the piston back and forth! This is
• if the piston pin has insufficient clearance connecting rod, the clearance in the piston because the temperatures are equalized
in the connecting rod bush. pin bore is sufficiently dimensioned to between the two components in this phase
• if the piston pin seizes or jams in the ensure that an adequate oil film can form (cool piston pin, hot connecting rod). The
connecting rod bush. there. When re-using used shrink-fit con- piston pin can become very hot; it expands
necting rods it is important to ensure that significantly and seizes in the piston pin
This is indicated by piston pins with blue the bore in the connecting rod has not boss. If the bed is moved in this state, it
tempering colours around the connecting become distorted or damaged in any other can cause initial rubbing marks or seizure
rod bush. way. Otherwise, once the piston pin has marks. This may cause subsequent stiff-
been shrunk in place it could become ness of the bed and thus increased friction
If the freedom of movement of the piston deformed to such an extent that the and heat generation. For this reason
pin is restricted in the connecting rod clearance in the piston pin bores is no always allow the assembled components
bush, the pin is forced to rotate in the longer sufficient, as a result of which slight to cool down first before checking the bed
piston pin boss. However, the clearance seizure marks could form. for freedom of movement.
of a floating-fit piston pin in the piston pin Always lubricate the piston pin bed when
bores is too small for this. Extreme build- installing the pistons to ensure that
up of heat, the collapse of the lubrication enough lubricant is provided for the first
system and seizures due to lack of lubrica- few revolutions.
tion in the piston pin boss will occur as a
result.

Seizure in the piston pin bosses 3.8
3.8.2 Seizure in the piston pin bosses (floating-fit piston pin)

• Piston pin has seized in the piston pin
bores.
• Piston material has been welded onto
the piston pin (Fig. 1).
• Piston pin displays a blue discolouration
in the area of the connecting rod bush.
Fig. 1
Damage assessment
The blue discolouration of the piston pin rod bush with difficulty or not at all. The caused overheating in the bearing, as
in the area of the connecting rod bush indi only rotation of the piston pin took place a result of which the oil film became in-
cates that the clearance there was insuf- in the piston pin bore. However, the effective and the piston pin seizure arose.
ficient, and that as a result the piston pin clearance of a floating-fit piston pin is too
was only able to rotate in the connecting small for this. The increased friction

• The clearance between the connecting Note:
rod bush and the piston pin was not made It is essential to generously lubricate
large enough. the piston pin bed when installing the pis-
• The clearance in the connecting rod bush tons to ensure that sufficient lubrication is
was bridged by a misalignment of the present during the first few revolutions of
connecting rod and the piston pin be the engine and to prevent initial rubbing
came seized as a result. marks from being formed when the engine
• The piston pin bed was not lubricated is started.
when the pistons were installed.

3.8 Seizure in the piston pin bosses
3.8.3 Seizure in the piston pin bosses (shrink-fit connecting rod)

• Piston has only run for a short length of
time.
• No wear marks on the piston skirt.
• The piston pin bosses have seized on the
upper side, i.e. the side under pressure
load (Fig. 1).
• The surface at the seizures is clean bare
metal; no traces of burned-in oil.
Fig. 1
Damage assessment
The piston has barely any wear marks and
can therefore only have been run for a
short time. The piston pin already seized
during the first revolutions of the engine.
The clean bare metal seizures are a clear
indication of a lack of oil in the piston pin
bed.

• Piston pin bed was not lubricated before
the piston was installed.
• When shrink-fitting the piston pin into the
connecting rod, the freedom of movement
of the piston pin bed was checked imme-
diately after inserting the piston pin by
tilting the piston back and forth. The bed
can suffer at this point as a result of the
unusual temperature differences between
the components that do not occur in
normal operation.

Seizure in the piston pin bosses 3.8
3.8.4 Seizure in the piston pin bosses (with piston skirt seizure)

• Piston skirt has seized on both sides,
starting at the piston head.
• Compression rings have become blocked
in the ring grooves.
• Seizure marks are present in the piston
pin bosses.
Fig. 1
Damage assessment
The focus of the seizures on the piston The combustion gases streamed past the
head indicates that this is where the seized compression rings and heated up
damage originated as a result of abnormal the piston to such a point that the oil film
combustion. Subsequently the piston in the piston pin bed became ineffective,
rings seized up, and the seizure marks and seizures developed here as well.
spread increasingly down onto the skirt
area.

Abnormal combustion leads to a seizure
due to the combined effects of insufficient
clearance and lack of lubrication on the
piston head and piston skirt and subse-
quently also causes seizures in the piston
pin bed.

3.9 Piston noises
3.9.1 General information about piston noises
Piston running noises can be caused by a • Tilting of the piston caused by a stiff • Piston pin striking alternately against
wide variety of influences during engine connecting rod bearing: the piston pin circlips:
operation. The clearance between the piston pin and Axial thrust in the piston pin is always
the connecting rod bush can either be the result of misalignment between the
• Tilting of the pistons due to excessive too small by design, or it may have been axis of the piston pin and the crankshaft
running clearance: eliminated by jamming or distortion. This axis. As described, bending or twisting
The piston can tilt if the dimensions of the can happen as a result of connecting rod of the connecting rod and asymmetry of
cylinder bore are too large or as a result misalignment (bending and twisting). the connecting rod are the most common
of wear or skirt collapse, stimulated by • Piston striking in the direction of the causes. Excessive connecting rod bearing
the pendulum motion of the connecting piston pin: clearances (connecting rod bearing jour-
rod and the change of bearing surfaces Any lateral striking of the cylinder bore by nal on the crankshaft) can cause a lateral
of the piston in the cylinder. The piston the piston mostly stems from misalign- pendulum movement of the connecting
head hits hard against the cylinder run- ment of the connecting rod (bending or in rod, particularly at lower engine speeds.
ning surface as a result. particular twisting): the piston performs a The piston pin is skewed as a result in
• The correct installation direction of the pendulum movement during its upward/ the connecting rod eye and is pushed
piston was ignored: downward stroke in the longitudinal axis back and forth in the piston pin bore due
In order to smooth out the change of the of the engine, as a result of which the to the pendulum motion. The piston pin
bearing surfaces of the piston before TDC piston strikes in an alternating sequence strikes against the piston pin circlips as a
and before the power stroke, the piston against the cylinder. Asymmetrical consequence.
pin axis is offset by some millimetres connecting rods or eccentric support for
towards the piston pressure side. If the the piston by the connecting rod have the
piston is inserted the wrong way round same effect.
into the cylinder (i.e. rotated by 180°) and
therefore the piston pin axis is offset to
the wrong side, then the piston changes
bearing surface at the wrong time. The
piston tilting is then much heavier and
much noisier.

Piston noises 3.9
3.9.2 Radial impact points on the piston top land

• Piston top land has impact marks in the
tilting direction (Fig. 1).
• The piston skirt displays a more pro-
nounced running pattern to the top and
bottom than in the middle of the skirt.
Abb. 1
Damage assessment
Piston noise that is clearly audible exter- Depending on the cause, the piston top
nally is caused by the piston head alterna- land strikes either in the tilting direction
ting striking the cylinder running surface. or in the oval plane (piston pin direction)
against the cylinder wall.
Possible damage reasons for impact

points in the tilting direction Possible damage reasons for impact
• Excessive installation clearances and -- Insufficient clearance in the connecting points in the piston pin direction
hence poor guidance of the piston due rod eye or in the piston pin bore. • If the connecting rod is misaligned, parti-
to excessively large bored or honed -- Excessively narrow fit of the piston pin cularly in the case of a twisted connecting
cylinders. in the connecting rod bush (shrink-fit rod or excessive connecting rod bearing
• The installation direction was not ob- connecting rod). If the fit of the piston clearances, the piston head moves in a
served for pistons with a piston pin axis pin is too tight in the connecting rod pendulum motion in the piston pin direc-
offset. eye when the piston pin is shrunk in, tion and strikes against the cylinder.
• Tight connection of the piston pin bed: the connecting rod eye is deformed • Connecting rod misalignment (distortion/
as a result, the piston head strikes in the direction of the narrowest wall twisting): this results in alternating axial
against the cylinder running surface thickness. The connecting rod eye and thrust in the piston pin, as a result of
around the tilting axis of the piston pin. the piston pin take on an oval form in which the piston pin strikes alternately
Reasons for this are: the process. This results in restricted against the circlips.
clearance between the piston pin and
the piston.
-- Seized piston pin.

3.10 Cylinders and cylinder liners

Cylinders and cylinder liners 3.10
3.10.1 Longitudinal cylinder liner cracks

• Vertical crack, extending from the liner
flange.
• Dry cylinder liners can also be affected
because of their relatively thin cylinder
wall thickness.
Fig. 1
Damage assessment
Cracks of this nature are frequently caused subsequent operation of the engine. faces, the longitudinal cracks often occur
by careless handling of the cylinder liners Incorrect liner flange seat surfaces and in conjunction with lateral cracks.
(as a result of impacts or blows). Even if dirt between the cylinder liner and the
the cylinder liner does not suffer visible cylinder block can also cause this type of
damage straight away, a microscopic crack damage. In the case of longitudinal cracks
or notch can generate a fracture during caused by faulty liner flange seating sur-

• Cracks or notches due to improper hand- • Faulty flange seat (refer to the chapter
ling of the cylinder liners during transport entitled "Torn-off flange on the cylinder
or repairs. liner").
• Hydraulic locks. • Material erosion on edge of the cylinder
• Foreign bodies underneath contact or liner through knocking combustion and
sealing surfaces. consequent weakening of the cylinder
liner.

3.10.2 Torn-off flange on the cylinder liner

• Liner flange has been torn off.
• The flange crack starts at the base of
the bottom edge of the liner flange and
extends upwards at an angle of approx.
30°.
Fig. 1
Damage assessment Note:

This type of damage is caused by bending The distortion of the seating surface
moments that arise as a result of improper cannot be detected by visual inspection
installation (dirt/form defects). In most alone unless the appropriate measuring
cases, the cylinder liner flange is already aids are used. One simple way to check for
pressed off when the cylinder head is tigh- this distortion is the use of bearing ink:
tened down. On the latest generations of thinly apply the ink around the seating sur-
engines for commercial vehicles with face of the liner flange on the engine block.
pump-nozzle unit or common rail fuel injec- Then insert the new liner without gaskets
tion systems, the engine block is subjected and press it onto the seat. Remove the Fig. 2
to increasing loads as a result of the cylinder liner again. The seating surface on
increasing combustion pressures. The use the cylinder liner should now be evenly
of very hard steel cylinder head gaskets on coated with ink around the entire circum
these engine types can cause distortion of ference. If this is not the case, the liner seat
the crankcase in the area of the liner flange needs to be reworked. This reworking is
seating surface after the engine has been best performed on a stationary boring
in operation for a long time. machine or with a mobile liner flange seat
facing attachment. This ensures parallelism
with respect to the housing surface (Fig. 2).


• Worn liner flange seating surfaces on the • Reworking of the liner seat without due
engine after an extended running period. care for the proper form. The form of the
• Dirty or corroded liner flange seating liner seat must correspond to the form
surfaces. of the cylinder liner. The transition from
• Failure to ensure that the flange seat the flange surface to the precision-fit
is perfectly rectangular and/or parallel seat diameter must have a chamfer of
(Fig. 2 and Fig. 5). 0.5 – 1.0 mm х 45° to prevent the fillet
• Incorrect cylinder head gaskets. on the liner flange from making contact
• Non-compliance with the engine with the edge. If this is not ensured then
manufacturer's prescribed tightening it is very easy for the liner flange to be
torques and tightening angles when pressed off when the cylinder head is Fig. 3
installing the cylinder head. tightened down (Fig. 3). Furthermore,
• Wrong number of sealing rings. the rounding radius of the liner seat
• Sealing rings jammed underneath the ("D" in Fig. 4) must not be so large that it
liner flange. prevents the cylinder liner from bearing
• Use of incorrectly dimensioned gaskets. loads at the inner or outer edge on the
• Use of liquid sealants. liner flange.
• In the case of dry press fit cylinder liners:
installation fault through excessively high
press-in force. Note:
• Prescribed liner protrusion not complied When reworking the liner flange
with (Fig. 6): seating surface during engine recon Fig. 4
-- If the protrusion of the cylinder liner ditioning, the necessary protrusion of the
is too great, then the liner flange is cylinder liner over the cylinder surface
pressed off when the cylinder head must be ensured, either by inserting steel
bolts are tightened. washers underneath or by using a cylinder
-- If the protrusion is too small, the liner with an oversized flange* (recommen-
cylinder liner is not pressed onto the ded).
liner seat with enough force and adopts
a pendulum motion as a result of the
piston movement. These forces cause
the liner flange to be torn off.
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
* Motorservice supply cylinder liners with oversized flanges for most engines.
For details please refer to the current "Pistons and Components" catalogue.

3.10.3 Cavitation on cylinder liners

• Severe cavitation on the water jacket of
the wet cylinder liner (Fig. 1 and 2).
• Coolant has penetrated through into the
combustion chamber.
Fig. 2
Fig. 1
Fig. 3 Cross section of cylinder liner
Damage assessment
Cavitation is more likely to occur in the til- the water film separating from the cylinder A special feature of cavitation is the fact
ting plane of the piston (on the pressure or liner. Vapour bubbles form in the resulting that the size of the holes increases further
anti-thrust side) and is triggered by high- area of low pressure, and when the cylin- inside the material (Fig. 3), resulting in the
frequency vibrations of the cylinder wall. der wall vibrates back at exceptionally cavities in the material.
These vibrations are caused by the lateral high speed, these bubbles implode.
forces exerted by the pistons, the combus- The water displaced by the bubbles hits Causes of cavitation
tion pressure and the change of bearing the surface of the cylinder very suddenly. • Coolant temperature too high.
surfaces at TDC and BDC. If the coolant is The impact energy generated in this way • Coolant pressure too low.
no longer capable of following the vibra- dissolves tiny particles. With time, complete • Coolant boiling point too low.
tions of the cylinder wall, this results in holes are torn out (washed out). • Combination of the above.


• Failure to comply with the correct piston • Unsuitable coolants such as salt water • Incorrect number of sealing rings.
clearance, e.g. re-installation of pistons (sea water), aggressive or acidic water • Engine operating temperature too low:
that have already been used, or use of or other liquids. if the engine does not reach its normal
cylinders manufactured too large. • Insufficient pre-pressure in the cooling operating temperature due to particular
• Irregularity in liner flange seating sur- system. Reason: unsuitable radiator cap operating conditions or thermostat de-
face – poor or inaccurate seating of the (not enough pressure can be maintained fects, no overpressure can build up in the
cylinder liner in the housing (refer to the due to a defective pressure relief valve) cooling system because of the reduced
chapter entitled "Torn-off flange on the or because of a leak in the cooling thermal expansion of the coolant. The
cylinder liner"). system. If the pre-pressure in the cooling low operating temperature also means
• The required permanent anti-freeze system is in accordance with the require- that the pistons do not expand in the
protection with corrosion protection or ments, the boiling point of the coolant is required manner. As a result they run with
corresponding additives in the coolant higher than under atmospheric pressure. inwcreased piston clearance. Both cases
are missing. The anti-corrosion agent Although the pre-pressure does not eli- assist the formation of the bubbles and
contains inhibitors that prevent foaming. minate the cause of the formation of the hence the cavitation.
However, these inhibitors are used up vapour bubbles, it can at least inhibit the • Installation of additional sealing rings in
with time. Therefore it is necessary to formation of the bubbles. the undercut on the liner flange (Fig. 4):
change the anti-corrosion agent every 2 • Incorrect sealing rings and/or sealing sealing rings may only be installed at this
years and to use the correct mixture ratio. compound or silicone on the liner flange. position if they are specifically required
by the manufacturer.
1 Liner protrusion
4 2 Tombak shim
3 Undercut
4 O-ring
Fig. 4

3.10.4 Irregular sliding surface wear

• Corrosion on the outside diameter of
the cylinder liner (Fig. 1).
• Uneven wear pattern with individual
bright areas on the cylinder surface
(Fig. 2).
• Piston undamaged.
• Oil loss at the sealing points, in parti
cular the radial oil seals.
Abb. 1 Abb. 2
Damage assessment
Bright irregular running patterns on the The oil escapes past the rings into the Furthermore, oil is forced through the
sliding surfaces in the cylinders always combustion chamber, where it is burned. valve guides into the intake and exhaust
indicate cylinder distortion. Wet or dry The increasing quantities of combustion ducts, from where it is then burned by the
cylinder liners can be distorted imme gases streaming past the piston cause the engine or eliminated.
diately after installation. If the cylinder pressure in the crankcase to rise. This
bores are distorted the piston rings cannot overpressure causes oil loss at sealing
provide a perfectly tight seal against oil or points around the engine, particularly at
combustion gases. the radial oil seals.


• With dry cylinder liners, significant • Uneven engine block and cylinder head For engines without cylinder liners in
unevenness is often caused by contact mating surfaces. particular:
corrosion in the counter bores in the • Dirty or distorted threads on the cylinder • Distorted cylinder bores. Certain engines
engine block (contact corrosion, Fig. 1). head bolts. tend to become distorted when the cylin-
In this case the cylinder counter bore • Unsuitable or incorrect cylinder head der head is installed. If these engines are
should be cleaned carefully. If this does gaskets. bored and honed as normal, problems
not rectify the problem, then the cylinder • Substantial cylinder distortion due to with distortion may arise later on during
counter bores should be reworked, and faulty liner flange contact in the housing, operation.
afterwards a cylinder liner with out- incorrect liner protrusion and distorted
side oversize* should be installed. The and/or a worn-out lower liner guide. Recommendation:
cylinder liners have thin walls and must • Liner seat too loose or too tight in the On engine blocks without cylinder liners
be able to make contact across their housing (on dry cylinder liners). where the cylinders are bored directly into
full length and width. If this is not the the engine block, we recommend bolting a
case then the cylinder liners will already For ribbed cylinders in particular: torque plate (also referred to as a honing
become deformed on installation in the • Misalignment of the ribbed cylinders. mask) onto the mating surface of the cylin-
counter bores. This deformation becomes Individual ribbed cylinders must lie der before machining the cylinder. This
more pronounced during operation. exactly plane-parallel to the crankcase torque plate has the same openings as the
With dry cylinder liners, a distinction is and the cylinder head and must be at the engine block (apart from the water ducts)
made between press-fit and slip-fit types. same height. and is several centimetres thick. The act
Press-fit cylinder liners are pressed into • Incorrectly installed or missing air baffles. of bolting on the torque plate and tighte-
the engine block and need to be bored • Attachment bolts touch the cylinder ning it to the specified tightening torque
and honed after being pressed in. Slip- housing in the bores. creates the same tension conditions as if
fit cylinder liners are already finished • Mechanical contact with the adjacent the cylinder head were installed. Any dis-
off and only need to be slipped into cylinder. tortion in the cylinder bores that could
the counter bore. Due to the clearance • Misaligned sealing surfaces at the intake arise when tightening the cylinder head
between the cylinder liner and the and exhaust manifolds. The intake and bolts is therefore deliberately simulated
cylinder counter bore, this type of liner exhaust manifolds must be pre-installed and is therefore taken into account during
has a greater tendency to problems with before the cylinder heads are tightened. machining. This ensures that the cylinder
distortion and corrosion than press-fit Reason: all sealing surfaces must be alig- bore is (to a great extent) round and
cylinder liners. ned; ribbed cylinders and cylinder heads cylindrical during subsequent operation of
• Uneven or incorrect tightening of the must not be distorted when the manifold the engine (provided that the machining is
cylinder head bolts. is tightened. carried out properly).
* Motorservice supply cylinder liners with outside oversize for many engines.
For details please refer to the "Pistons and Components" Motor Service catalogue

3.10.5 Bright spots in upper sliding surface area

• Bright, bare areas with no honing
structure on cylinder sliding surface
(Fig. 1 and 2).
• No signs of wear on the piston.
• Oil carbon deposits on the piston
top land.
• Increased oil consumption.
Fig. 1 Fig. 2
Fig. 3

Damage assessment
This type of damage pattern occurs when type of damage, it is important to note
a hard oil carbon coating forms in opera- that, in this case, the bright spots all coin-
tion on the piston top land as a result of cide with points in the cylinder that come
burned oil and combustion residue (Fig. 3). into contact with the carbonised piston top
This coating has abrasive properties, land. If the bright spots are also present at
which lead to increased wear in the upper other points, then the cause for the
part of the cylinder in operation due to the damage is more likely to be found
reciprocal motion and the change of bea- -- in distortion of the cylinder (refer to
ring surfaces of the piston. The increased the chapter entitled "Irregular sliding
oil consumption is not caused by the surface wear"),
bright spots themselves, as the polished -- fuel flooding (refer to the chapter
areas do not cause noticeable out-of- entitled "Wear on pistons, piston rings
roundness of the cylinder, and the piston and cylinders caused by fuel floo-
rings can still continue to perform their ding"),
sealing duties. -- or ingress of dirt or contaminants
The lubrication of the cylinder is also (refer to the chapter entitled "Wear on
unaffected, as it is still possible to retain pistons, piston rings and cylinder run-
enough oil in the open graphite veins of ning surfaces caused by the ingress of
the cylinder surface despite the loss of the dirt").
honing structure. When assessing this

• Excessively high ingress of engine oil • Inadequate cylinder finishing, resulting in
into the combustion chamber due to a increased ingress of oil into the combus-
defective turbocharger, inadequate oil tion chamber (refer to the chapter entitled
separation in the engine ventilation "Piston ring wear soon after engine
system, defective valve stem seals, etc. reconditioning").
• Overpressure in the crankcase due to • Use of non-approved engine oils or en
increased emissions of blow-by gases or gine oils of a lower quality.
due to a defective crankcase ventilation
valve.

3.10.6 Cylinder liner crack due to hydraulic lock

• Upper area of cylinder liner displays
severe damage due to a crack and
seizure marks on the sliding surface
(Fig. 2 and 3).
• Piston displays seizure marks on the
pressure and anti-thrust sides.
• In the piston crown: bowl-shaped recess
in the area of the seizure marks (Fig. 4).
Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3 Fig. 4

Damage assessment
The cylinder liner was damaged by a hyd- The piston material has been squashed the hydraulic lock occurred while the
raulic lock, which burst the cylinder liner outwards, causing a significant restriction engine was running or while it was being
and pressed in a dent in the piston crown. of the piston clearance in the cylinder started.
bore. It is not possible to identify whether

• Accidental intake of water while driving
through water, or as a result of larger
quantities of water being splashed up by
passing vehicles or vehicles in front.
• While the engine is stopped, cylinder
filling up with:
-- coolant due to leaks in the cylinder
head gasket or cracks in components.
-- fuel due to leaking injection nozzles.
The residual pressure in the fuel
injection system is dissipated through
the leaking nozzle into the cylinder.
The damage occurs when the engine is
started.

3.11 Increased oil consumption
3.11.1 General information about increased oil consumption
The total amount of oil used by an engine ration. During combustion the oil film on Note:
is primarily made up of oil consumption the cylinder wall is subjected to the hot A separate brochure entitled
(oil burned in the combustion chamber) combustion. The quantity of engine oil "Oil consumption and oil loss" has been
and oil loss (leaks). The amount of oil that that evaporates or burns here depends on published on this topic.
passes the piston rings and cylinder wall the engine output, engine load, engine oil
into the combustion chamber and is used grade and temperature.
there is negligible today. As a result of the In the majority of cases, wear on pistons,
continuous further development of engine piston rings and cylinders and the resul-
components, material compositions and ting increased oil consumption is not
production processes, the wear on cylin- caused by the components themselves.
ders, pistons and piston rings has been Instead, wear on these components can
reduced and in turn, oil consumption has nearly always be explained as the result of
also decreased. This is underlined by the an external event: abnormal combustion
high mileages and the reduction of inci- due to incorrect mixture preparation, dirt
dents of damage to the crankshaft drive. entering the engine from outside, inade-
Although the oil consumption in the com- quate engine cooling, lack of oil, use of
bustion chamber cannot be eliminated incorrect oil grades or faults made during
entirely, it can be minimised: the interac- installation. The following pages contain
ting sliding parts (piston, piston rings and detailed descriptions of different types of
cylinder running surface) require con damage that affect pistons and cylinders.
tinuous lubrication to ensure smooth ope-

Increased oil consumption 3.11
3.11.2 Incorrectly installed oil control ring

• No signs of wear on piston rings or
piston (Fig. 1).
• End of the expander spring of the 3-piece
oil control ring broken off.
• Scratches in the groove base of the oil
control ring.
Fig. 1
Damage assessment
Due to the overlapping of the expander The blades are no longer pressed tightly
spring during installation, its circumferen- against the cylinder wall and no longer
tial length is shortened. This results in a scrape off the oil. Oil enters the combus-
fracture in the expander spring and/or loss tion chamber, where it is burned. This
of tension for the 3-piece oil control rings. results in excessive oil consumption.

• Incorrect oil control rings. Caution:
• Installation faults. Both coloured parts of the expander
Overlapped joint spring must be visible after installation of
the 3-piece oil control rings. These colour-
coded marks should therefore always be
checked (even on pre-installed piston
rings) before installation of the pistons
Correct position (Fig. 2).
Fig. 2

3.11.3 Wear on pistons, piston rings and cylinder running surfaces

caused by the ingress of dirt

• Piston: matt, ground wear pattern on
the skirt with fine, small longitudinal
scratches on the piston top land and the
piston skirt.
• Tool marks created during machining
worn away.
• Worn compression ring edges, on the
first piston ring in particular as well as
ring groove edges (Fig. 2).
• Axial clearance of the compression rings
substantially increased, in particular on Fig. 1
the first piston ring.
Fig. 3
Fig. 2

Damage assessment
Abrasive foreign bodies in the oil circuit tion gases streaming past the cylinder.
cause scratches on the piston and piston This may cause oil to escape at radial oil
rings, a matt wear pattern on the piston seals, valve stem seals and other sealing
skirt and roll marks on the ring flanks points. Roll marks on the piston rings are
(Fig. 4 and 5). As the piston rings are worn caused by dirt particles that become
on the running surfaces and edges, they lodged in the ring groove. As the piston
can no longer seal the cylinder against oil ring rotates in the groove it keeps running
passing into the combustion chamber. over the dirt particles, which creates the
At the same time, the pressure in the characteristic roll marks.
crankcase increases as a result of combus-
Fig. 4

• Abrasive dirt particles that enter the en • If the first oil change is performed too
gine with the intake air due to inadequate late, the abraded particles generated
filtration, including: when the engine is run in are spread
-- Missing, defective, deformed or poorly through the oil circuit to the other inter
maintained air filters. acting sliding parts where they cause
-- Leaking points in the intake system, more damage. The sharp oil-scraping
such as distorted flanges, missing edges of the piston rings are particularly
gaskets or defective or porous hoses. prone to damage. Fig. 5
• Residual particles of dirt from engine
reconditioning. Parts of the engine are
often blasted with sand or glass beads
during reconditioning work in order to
remove persistent deposits or combus
tion residue from the surfaces. If the
blasting material becomes deposited in
the material and is not cleaned out pro-
perly, it may work its way loose when the
engine is running, thus causing abrasive
wear. Fig. 6 and 7 show microscopic Fig. 6
images of damage caused by dirt, under
polarised light. Fragments of the glass
blasting material and entire beads of the
glass can clearly be seen.
Fig. 7

3.11.4 Wear on pistons, piston rings and cylinders caused by fuel flooding

• Severe signs of wear on the piston top
land and piston skirt.
• Friction marks on the piston skirt,
characteristic of dry running due to fuel
flooding.
• Piston rings display severe radial wear
(Fig. 1). Both webs (support surfaces) on
the oil control ring have been worn down
(Fig. 2). By way of comparison in Fig. 3:
profile of a new and worn oil control ring
(double-bevelled spiral expander ring).
• Increased oil consumption.
Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3

Damage assessment
Fuel flooding due to abnormal combustion In the initial stages the piston skirt is
always damages the oil film. This leads to damaged to a lesser degree, as it is regularly
a higher level of mixed friction and increa- supplied with new oil that is still capable of
sed radial wear on the piston rings within providing lubrication from the crankshaft
a short period. The characteristic fuel fric- drive. Once the abraded particles from the
tion only occurs after the oil film has been moving area become mixed with the lubrica-
so badly impaired by the fuel that lubricating oil and the lubricating oil loses its load-
tion is then insufficient (refer to the chap- bearing ability as a result of increasing oil
ter entitled "Dry running damage due to lack dilution, the wear will spread to all bearing
of lubrication caused by fuel flooding"). points in the engine. This affects the piston
The increasingly ineffective lubrication pins and crankshaft journals in particular.
results in high levels of wear on the piston
rings, piston ring grooves and cylinder
sliding surfaces.

• Frequent operation over short distances • Incorrect piston protrusion dimension: • Incorrectly routed injection lines
and resulting oil dilution with fuel. the piston strikes against the cylinder (vibrations).
• Coolant admixture in engine oil. head. On diesel engines with direct • Poor charging through faulty or worn
• Poor engine oil grade. injection, the resulting vibrations cause turbocharger.
• Fuel flooding due to incomplete combus- uncontrolled injection of fuel from the • Poor fuel quality (poor self-ignition and
tion as a result of malfunctions in the injection nozzles and thus fuel flooding in incomplete combustion).
mixture preparation. the cylinder (refer to the chapter entitled
• Malfunctions in ignition system "Impact marks on the piston head").
(misfiring). • Poor filling through clogged-up air filter.
• Insufficient compression pressure or poor • Faulty and leaking injection nozzles.
filling through worn or fractured piston • Faulty or incorrectly set fuel injection
rings. pump.

3.11.5 Piston ring wear soon after engine reconditioning

• No damage or wear on piston.
• Superficial inspection of piston rings
reveals no wear marks, however, closer Fig. 1
inspection reveals abnormal wear on
the oil-scraping ring edges, mostly on
the bottom ring edges (see magnified
image).
• Tangible burr on the bottom edge of the
piston ring running surface.
Damage assessment
The worn piston ring edges lead to high the upward/downward motion of the
hydrodynamic forces (Fig. 2) between the piston and are lifted off slightly from the
running surfaces of the piston rings and the cylinder running surface. In this way, an
cylinder running surface as a result of the increased quantity of lubricating oil
formation of an oil wedge. reaches the combustion chamber where it
The piston rings float on the oil film during is burned.
Fig. 2


The burring is caused if the piston rings A second set of piston rings installed as
are refitted in less than ideal conditions replacement rings will encounter much
after the engine reconditioning. The main better, virtually normal operating condi-
reasons are insufficient or inappropriate tions. This is because the first set of piston
cylinder finishing. If blunt honing stones rings will have removed most of the disad-
are used for finish honing or excessive vantageous edge layer on the cylinder run-
pressure is applied during honing, burrs ning surface (the "peak folding formation")
and elevations form on the cylinder wall. through wear. The oil consumption will
These metal edges are folded over in the return to normal levels after replacing the
direction of machining (Fig. 3). This is piston rings. In many cases this is incor-
referred to as the "peak folding formation" rectly attributed to poor-quality materials
and causes increased friction during the in the first piston rings that were installed. Fig. 3
running-in phase, preventing engine oil The microscopic enlargement in Fig. 4
from becoming deposited in the fine shows the bent-over peaks through a sec-
g raphite veins. tion of the cylinder surface after the disad-
If these burrs are not removed in a final vantageous honing of the cylinder running
machining process referred to as plateau surface (peak folding). Fig. 5 shows the
honing, this will result in premature wear surface after plateau honing. The burrs
at the piston ring edges during the run- and peaks have been mostly removed, and
ning-in phase. The piston rings then take the graphite veins have been exposed. The
on the undesired duty of wearing away the piston rings will encounter good condi-
folded peaks and cleaning the graphite tions for running-in and should therefore
veins. However, this leads to wear on the provide a long service life. Hone-brushing
piston ring edges and the formation of the surface to create the plateau finish Fig. 4
burrs. From experience, burrs created in delivers particularly good results.
this way on the piston ring edge can only
be run off with great difficulty. The dama-
ged piston rings need to be replaced.
Fig. 5

3.11.6 Asymmetrical piston wear pattern

Fig. 1:
• Asymmetrical wear pattern on piston
over its entire height.
• Top land on left of piston above the
piston pin bore and on opposite side
at lower edge of piston rubbed bare.
• Uneven wear pattern on compression
ring.
Fig. 2:
• Piston running skew, with the wear main-
ly on the lower, right-hand edge of the Fig. 1
piston at the recess for the cooling-oil
nozzle and under the piston pin bore.
Fig. 2

Damage assessment
This type of asymmetrical wear pattern and heat up the piston rings and the cylin- an axial thrust can be applied to the piston
indicates that the piston has not been run- der wall excessively. This weakens the oil pin, which can lead to wear or fracturing of
ning perfectly straight in the cylinder bore film, which may result in a seizure due to the piston pin circlips (refer to the chapter
and that the piston pin axis and the lack of lubrication. As the piston is running entitled "Piston damage caused by broken
crankshaft axis are not parallel to each skew in the cylinder, its reciprocating piston pin circlips").
other. The piston rings cannot perform movement creates a pumping effect at the
their sealing function properly due to the piston rings, which pumps oil into the
lack of proper contact with the cylinder. combustion chamber and thus increases
The hot combustion gases blow through oil consumption. Under certain conditions

• Bent or twisted connecting rods. • Connecting rod eye bored at an angle
• Connecting rod eyes bored at an angle. (axes not parallel).
• Cylinder bore not perpendicular to • Excessive connecting rod bearing
crankshaft axis. clearance, particularly in conjunction
• Individual cylinders not installed straight with asymmetrical connecting rods
(distorted during installation). (centre offset between connecting rod eye
• Connecting rod pins not parallel with and the large connecting rod bearing).
crankshaft axis.

4 Glossary – technical terms and piston designations
1
4
2 3 26 27
5 21
6
23
7
9
24
10
12 25
14
28 22
29
19
30
13
11
20
8 16
15
18 17
1 Ø of bowl 12 Oil return bore 22 Skirt zone

2 Piston crown 13 Piston pin boss 23 Ring zone
3 Bowl 14 Retention for groove distance 24 Compression height
4 Piston crown edge 15 Circlip groove 25 Piston length
5 Piston top land (fire land) 16 Distance between bosses 26 Oil cooling gallery
6 Compression ring groove 17 Register diameter 27 Ring carrier
7 Ring land 18 Bottom edge of piston skirt 28 Piston pin bush
8 Groove base 19 Piston diameter 90 ° 29 Ø of measuring window
9 Recessed ring land against piston pin bore 30 Crown elevation
10 Groove walls 20 Piston pin bore
11 Oil control ring groove 21 Bowl depth

Glossary 4
Explanation of the technical terms used in this document
abrasive which then collapse again immediately. convexity

Rubbing/grinding. As the bubbles collapse, the water column Slight barrel-shaped form of the piston
bounces back with high kinetic energy in the skirt area.
anti-knock properties onto the material and tears out tiny partic-
Capability of the petrol fuel to resist self les from the surface of the material. The course of fracture
ignition. formation of these bubbles is triggered by Direction of fracture.
vibrations or a strong vacuum.
anti-thrust side dead centre
The side of the piston or cylinder that is centrifugal oil The point at which the reciprocating move-
opposite the pressure side. Oil that emerges from the bearings of the ment of the piston reverses direction in the
crankshaft in a planned manner and cylinder. A distinction is made between
assembly serves to coat and lubricate the cylinder top dead centre (TDC) and bottom dead
Repair kit containing the cylinder liner and sliding surfaces with oil from underneath. centre (BDC).
piston.
change of bearing surfaces direct injection engine
asymmetric The changing of the piston from the anti- Engine in which the fuel is injected directly
Not symmetric. thrust side to the pressure side in the into the combustion chamber.
cylinder or vice versa. During the upwards
axis offset stroke the piston bears against the anti- downward piston stroke
By design the piston pin axis is offset by thrust side of the cylinder and then chan- Movement of the piston towards the
some tenths of a millimetre towards the ges to the pressure side around TDC. crankshaft during the intake and power
piston pressure side. As a result, the strokes (4-stroke engine).
piston changes bearing surfaces at TDC cetane rating
before the actual combustion takes place. Index that indicates the ignition qualities erosion
This makes the change of bearing surface of diesel fuel. The higher the cetane The removal of material as a result of the
quieter and less harsh than if the change rating, the higher the ignition quality. effects of the kinetic energy of solids,
of bearing surface took place due to the liquids or gases acting on the surface.
starting combustion under far greater chip tuning
loads. On diesel engines the offset of the Modifications to the software of an engine exhaust emissions regulations
piston pin axis may also be towards the control unit in order to increase the power National or international legislation gover-
anti-thrust side as a result of the high output of the engine. ning the limits for exhaust emissions from
temperatures. motor vehicles.
common rail
blow-by Name for the latest generation of diesel expansion stroke
Quantity of leakage gases that flows past direct injection systems. The electrically Combustion stroke/power stroke.
the piston rings into the crankcase during actuated injection valves are supplied with
combustion. The worse the sealing on the highly pressurised fuel from a shared fatigue fracture
piston in the cylinder, the more blow-by injection rail. A fracture that develops slowly, as oppo-
gases can flow past. Blow-by gas emission sed to occurring suddenly due to material
is on average 1% of the air quantity taken connecting rod misalignment overload. The speed at which the fracture
in. Lack of parallelism between the cranks- spreads can range from a few seconds to
haft axis and the piston pin axis. several hours or even days. The fracture
cavitation starts from an incipient crack, a point of
Hollowing-out of material that is situated continuous knocking damage or as a result of vibrations. The
in water or other liquids. If a vacuum is Knocking combustion that persists con fracture surfaces are not irregularly grey
formed and a high temperature is present tinuously while the engine is running. and matt, but instead have line markings
at the surface, vapour bubbles are formed that document the gradual progress of the
(analogously to the process of boiling), fracture.

4 Glossary
fibre reinforcement plug. The glow ignition takes place due to lambda control
Fibre reinforcement of the edge of the components that have started to glow Closed-loop control device on petrol
bowl for pistons in diesel direct injection (cylinder head gasket, spark plug, exhaust engines for controlling the ratio of the
engines. Before casting, a fibre ring made valve, oil carbon deposits, etc.). added air and fuel.
of aluminium oxide is laid into the piston
mould. This ring is then penetrated by graphite veins line markings
liquid aluminium during casting. As a Graphite deposits in the base material Lines that can be found on the fracture
result, the edge of the bowl is more resis- during lamellar graphite casting (grey cast surfaces of fatigue fractures and that are
tant to the formation of cracks. Fibre rein- iron). If the veins that become exposed caused by the relatively fast spreading of
forcements are only possible for the pro- during the cylinder finishing are cleaned the fracture. The fracture occurs step-by-
cess of squeeze casting, in which the alu- with honing brushes, then oil can be depo- step. A new line is created every time a
minium is forced into the mould under high sited there for lubrication of the piston. new piece becomes fractured. The fracture
pressure (approx. 1000 bar). starts from the centre of the line markings.
graphite exposure rate
forced fracture The number of graphite veins exposed material collapse
A fracture that occurs within a fraction of during hone brushing. The benchmark Microstructural changes and resulting
a second as a result of overloading a mate- is ≥ 20%. changes in shape to the piston skirt on
rial, with no incipient crack beforehand. a used piston (see "piston installation
The fracture surfaces are matt, granular hone brushing clearance").
and not smeared. The last stage of the honing process.
The peaks and burrs are removed from the mixed friction
fuel flooding surface of the cylinder, and the graphite Where two interacting sliding parts are
Excessive ingress of fuel into the combus- veins are exposed and cleaned. With hone mechanically separated from one another
tion chamber. Fuel is deposited on the brushing a graphite exposure rate up to by an oil film, mixed friction arises when
components as a result of poor atomisa- 50% is possible. this oil film is weakened. Individual mate-
tion or an overly rich mixture, from where rial elevations on one of the sliding parts
it can dilute or wash off the oil film on the honing then come into contact with the material
cylinder sliding surface. This results in Cylinder finishing by means of cross peaks of the other, causing metallic fric-
insufficient lubrication, which may cause grinding. tion. Mixed friction is also referred to as
rubbing marks or seizures. semi-liquid friction.
honing structure
gap/dimension width Characteristic grinding pattern created octane rating
Remaining space between the piston during cross grinding (honing). The octane rating of a fuel (RON =
crown and the cylinder head at TDC of the Research Octane Number) indicates the
piston. When reconditioning an engine, initial rubbing marks anti-knock properties of petrol fuel. The
the manufacturer's specifications for the Pre-seizure stage occurring due to lack of higher the octane rating, the better the
dimensions of this gap must be observed lubricating oil or a starting restriction of anti-knock properties of the fuel.
(see "piston protrusion"). clearances.
The gap dimension is also referred to as octane requirement
the lead dimension as it can be measured insufficient lubrication/lack of lubrication The octane requirement of an engine
with lead wire. The lead wire is inserted in Insufficient lubrication arises if the oil film results from its design characteristics.
the cylinder during assembly, and the is weakened and its function impaired as a It increases with increasing compression
engine is then turned over once. The lead result. Causes: not enough oil present, oil ratio, engine temperature, advanced igni-
wire is squashed flat as a result and can film diluted by fuel or oil film breaking up. tion, charge, engine load and disadvanta-
then be re-measured. The size measured It initially results in mixed friction and ulti- geous combustion chamber design. The
from the squashed wire is the lead gap. mately in rubbing marks or seizure of the octane rating request of an engine (MON =
components. Motor Octane Number) should always be a
glow ignition few points below the octane rating of the
Self-ignition of the air-fuel mixture before available fuel to prevent engine knocking
the actual ignition by means of the spark in all operating conditions.

Glossary 4
oil dilution caused by insufficient lubrication, over to ensure that the compression ratio
Oil dilution describes the thinning of oil heating or mechanical overload, which can remains correct and the piston does not
with fuel. Causes: if the vehicle is fre- result in even greater deformation and strike against the cylinder head.
quently driven for short journeys, if there dimensional changes.
are malfunctions during mixture prepara- piston running clearance
tion or in the ignition system or there is In the event of damage, the piston installa- The piston running clearance settles
insufficient compression due to mechani- tion clearance is often used to assess the during operation once the thermal expan-
cal engine problems. Unburned fuel is wear, or installation clearances are sion of the components is complete. Due
then deposited on the cylinder wall, where incorrectly calculated afterwards, even to their different design characteristics
it is mixed with the oil and thus also though this is not possible as the used and wall thicknesses, the piston changes
reaches the oil pan. The viscosity and lub- piston no longer has the original shape or shape as it is heated up. The piston
ricating capacity of the oil are reduced, dimensions that it had when it was new. In expands more in areas where the wall
leading to increased wear and oil con- many cases the maximum piston size on thickness is greater, which is taken into
sumption. the skirt is deemed to be too small, and account accordingly in the design.
wear is attributed to the piston even
peak folding though the fine machining marks or the piston running skew
Torn-out and squashed material that coating on the piston skirt are completely A piston running skewed in the cylinder
covers the cylinder running surface if intact. due to a twisted or bent connecting rod.
cylinder finishing is incorrect or incom- Upon removal it reveals an asymmetrical
plete (honing/cross grinding). These piston dimensions measured on a wear pattern.
used piston and the installation clearan-
peak folding formation ces calculated from them cannot be used piston tilting
Squashing of material at the cylinder to assess either the quality of the engine The changing of the piston bearing surface
sliding surface caused by blunt honing repair work carried out, or the quality of in the cylinder from the pressure side to
stones or excessive grinding from the materials and the dimensional accuracy the anti-thrust side and vice versa. The
honing stones. of the piston when new. tilting of the pistons is the second loudest
noise on a reciprocating internal combus-
piston installation clearance If the installation clearance is too small tion engine after the combustion noise
The clearance between the piston and the then a seizure due to insufficient clearance itself.
cylinder that ensures the freedom of move- may occur (refer to the chapter entitled
ment of the new piston in the cylinder "Seizure due to insufficient clearance"). If piston wear pattern
during installation and operation. the installation clearance is too large then The wear pattern on the piston skirt where
the engine will generate more noise when the skirt lies against the cylinder.
During the first hours of operation the cold as a result of piston tilting. Piston sei-
new piston is still subject to deformation zures, increased oil consumption or other piston with an oil cooling gallery
(i.e. collapse). This is caused on the one forms of damage cannot occur as a result. Pistons subject to greater thermal loads
hand by the temperature rise and the are designed with a oil cooling gallery in
resulting microstructural changes that still The installation clearance must not be con- the piston crown. When the engine is run-
take place, and on the other hand by the fused with the running clearance of the ning, oil is sprayed into this cast oil coo-
mechanical loads. The maximum piston piston. The running clearance is not estab- ling gallery.
size (which always lies in the skirt area) lished until the thermal expansion of the
is therefore subject to a certain amount of piston is complete, and cannot be measu- plateau honing
variation during the running-in phase. This red. The finishing process when machining
variation will vary according to the design, cylinders, during which the peaks on the
material composition and specific load. piston protrusion material surface are cut away to create a
This is a completely normal response for Protrusion of the diesel piston beyond the plateau. This process smooths out the sur-
aluminium pistons in operation and does cylinder block sealing face at TDC. The face, improves the running-in behaviour
not represent a cause for concern. The protrusion is an important measurement and reduces wear.
piston skirt will also be subject to plastic that must be accurately checked and
deformation in the event of piston damage observed when reconditioning an engine

4 Glossary
prechamber ring carrier slag line

Part of the combustion chamber on indi- A cast iron ring with a high nickel content Slag residue that is embedded in the mate-
rect injection diesel engines. Fuel is injec- that is cast into the aluminium piston. The rial during hot deformation of engine parts
ted into the prechamber where it then first ring groove is cut into the ring carrier. during manufacture (valves, piston pins,
ignites. The overpressure generated in the As a result, the first (and sometimes the etc.). During subsequent operation of the
prechamber forces the piston down. second) compression ring sits in a wear engine it may weaken the material, the-
resistant groove, allowing for higher ope- reby causing a fracture.
press-fit rating pressures and therefore higher
Type of dry cylinder liner that is pressed loads. Ring carriers are used on diesel pis- slip-fit
into the cylinder counter bore using a tons in accordance with the Al-Fin method. A type of dry cylinder liner that can be
specially designated lubricant. These inserted into the cylinder block by hand.
liners are almost always semi-finished roll marks Usually, this type of liner is already end
liners, i.e. the cylinder bore then needs to Wear marks on the piston ring flanks finished, so the cylinder bore does not
be finished by boring and honing. caused by the ingress of dust or dirt into need to be bored and honed afterwards.
The advantage of this is that the liner fits the engine. The dirt particles trapped in The disadvantage is the clearance that
tightly within the cylinder counter bore. the piston ring groove cause wear marks remains between the cylinder liner and the
on the grooves and the piston ring flanks. counter bore.
pressure side They are caused due to the rotation of the
The side of the piston or cylinder upon piston ring, which causes the dirt to swirl chamber
which the piston rests during combustion. scratch a regular pattern into the surface. Part of the combustion chamber on indi-
The pressure side is opposite to the direc- rect injection diesel engines. The diffe-
tion of rotation of the crankshaft. rubbing marks rence to a prechamber is that the outlet
The initial contact between two interacting opening of the chamber is larger and
pump-nozzle unit sliding parts made when the lubricating opens tangentially into the combustion
A special design used on diesel direct film becomes damaged. In contrast to a chamber. During compression, the shape
injection engines whereby the injection seizure, rubbing changes the microstruc- of the chamber imparts a substantial swirl
nozzle and pressure generator (pump) ture of the surface but does not particu- on the air streaming into the chamber,
form a single unit that is installed directly larly change its dimensions. which helps to improve the combustion
in the cylinder head. The injection process.
pressure is generated by a pump piston shrink-fit connecting rod
that is actuated directly by the engine's Connecting rod with a rigid link between tangential tension
camshaft (in contrast to a distributor injec- the piston pin and the connecting rod. Force that presses the installed piston ring
tion pump or an in-line injection pump). When the piston and connecting rod are against the cylinder wall.
The injection nozzles are actuated electri- assembled, the connecting rod eye is
cally. The injection time and quantity are heated up and the piston pin is signifi- tilting direction
controlled electronically by a control unit. cantly cooled down. As a result of the Direction of rotation around the piston pin
shrinking of the piston pin and the expan- axis. As the piston does not rotate around
quenching area sion of the connecting rod bore, an air gap this axis and instead only tips back and
The part of the piston crown that gets very is generated that makes it possible to slide forth in the cylinder, this is also referred to
close to the cylinder head. At the end of in the piston pin by hand. As the compo- as the tilting direction.
the compression cycle the mixture is nents then cool down/heat up again, the
squashed ever more tightly from the edge clearance is eliminated and the piston pin upward piston stroke
area into the middle of the combustion is firmly clamped in the connecting rod. Movement of the piston away from the
chamber. This causes the gases to swirl The piston does not need to be heated up crankshaft towards the cylinder head
and improves combustion. when the piston pin is shrunk into the con- (during the compression and exhaust
necting rod eye. strokes, on a 4-stroke engine).
ribbed cylinder
Cylinders on engines cooled primarily by
air cooling. The cylinders have cooling ribs
on the outside for cooling the engine.

Know-how
Transfer
PI 1575
SI 1210
For technical personnel only!
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Engine bearings with polymer coating Tips and tricks ...

…for correct installation and long service life of the Systemkomponenten
und Service
new short block
für eine fachgerechte Reparatur
• Please note that cylinder heads which • Check the correct operation of the vis- until oil pressure has built up, so that all
may be included in the delivery are not cous fan. bearing points have been supplied with
fully assembled. These must be aligned • Clean water cooler and check for blocka- oil before initial start-up.
with the exhaust manifold or intake • Check for correct function in the oil
manifold and the cylinder head bolts pump, oil pressure control valve, water
must be tightened according to the charge air cooler thoroughly and check pump and vibration damper.
for blockages, it is imperative to replace •
• Clean all attachments thoroughly before this in the case of previous turbocharger -
installation and check for damage. damage. cle manufacturer.
• Clean oil cooler thoroughly and check for • Check engine monitoring instruments for
© MS Motorservice International GmbH – 04/15 EN

blockages, it is imperative to replace this correct operation and replace in case of
in the case of previous engine damage. defects.
www.ms-motorservice.com
• • Never start the engine without oil and
coolant.
• Check connections and intake pipes to • Manually supply (inject) the engine oil
the engine for tightness.
• Check injection system, set start of with oil and crank without injection
delivery according to manufacturer's nozzles (max. 10–15 seconds per
sequence to avoid damage to the starter)
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Piston Damage Recognising and Rectifying - 51730 PDF

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Piston damage –

recognising and rectifying

5th edition 07.2015 (112016) Liability

All content including pictures and diagrams is

2 | Piston damage – recognising and rectifying

Table of contents Page

Piston damage – recognising and rectifying | 3

The issue Additional information

4 | Piston damage – recognising and rectifying

Seizure due to insufficient clearance 10

Piston damage – recognising and rectifying | 5

Piston skirt damage

Seizure due to insufficient 11 45° seizure marks 12

Piston skirt seizure 18 Seizure due to overheating 26

Seizure due to lack 17 Seizure due to insufficient 14

Dry running damage due to lack 20 Wear on pistons, piston rings 80

Piston head seizure

Piston head seizure 21 Piston head seizure due to 42

Seizure due to overheating 25 Seizure due to lack of 22

6 | Piston damage – recognising and rectifying

Piston ring damage

Seizure due to lack of 22 Wear on pistons, piston rings 78

Incorrectly installed 77 Wear on pistons, piston rings 80

Piston ring wear soon after 82

Further damage in the ring and skirt area

Ring land fractures 36 Material washout in the piston 50

Piston damage caused 55 Radial impact points 63

Asymmetrical piston wear 84

Piston damage – recognising and rectifying | 7

Piston head damage

Piston pin seizure and piston pin fractures

Seizure in the piston pin 61 Seizure in the piston pin 59

Seizure in the piston 60 Fractured piston pin 53

8 | Piston damage – recognising and rectifying

Damage to cylinder liners and cylinder bores

Piston damage – recognising and rectifying | 9

3.1.1 General information about seizures due to insufficient clearance

10 | Piston damage – recognising and rectifying

3.1.2 Seizure due to insufficient clearance on the piston skirt

Description of the damage

Damage assessment Note:

Possible causes for the damage

Piston damage – recognising and rectifying | 11

3.1.3 45° seizure marks

Description of the damage

12 | Piston damage – recognising and rectifying

Possible causes for the damage

Piston damage – recognising and rectifying | 13

3.1.4 Seizure due to insufficient clearance at the bottom skirt end

Description of the damage

14 | Piston damage – recognising and rectifying

Possible causes for the damage

Piston damage – recognising and rectifying | 15

3.2.1 General information about seizures due to lack of lubrication

Characteristic features of a seizure due to lack of lubrication:

If the oil film is destroyed altogether:

If there is a lack of oil:

16 | Piston damage – recognising and rectifying

3.2.2 Seizure due to lack of lubrication on the piston skirt

Description of the damage

Possible causes for the damage

Piston damage – recognising and rectifying | 17

3.2.3 Piston skirt seizure on one side only without matching