ISX15 and QSX15 Early Life Oil Consumption Caused by Vertical Liner Lobing

Technical Service
Bulletin Number
TSB140030

Revision Level

Date

Page 1 of 5

Group Number

Technical Service Bulletin

Subject
ISX15 and QSX15 Early Life Oil Consumption Caused by Vertical Liner Lobing

Issue
A vertical lobing pattern located on the inside diameter of the cylinder liner has been linked to
early life internal oil consumption and/or frequent regen/aftertreatment fault codes. This lobing
pattern prevents the piston rings from conforming to the liner, allowing oil to by-pass, resulting
in elevated internal oil consumption and the formation of carbon deposits. Most of these early
life complaints will surface at less than 120,000 miles [2000 hrs] on the engine.
Suspect used liners may show visual evidence of the 13 equally spaced vertical lobing pattern,
as seen in Figures 1 and 2.
In many cases, if one liner is identified with lobing, additional liners in the same engine also
have the condition.
In most all cases, the pistons will have heavy carbon packing on the top lands. If these pistons
are reduced diameter top land pistons (Reference TSB100982) the carbon can be cleaned and
pistons reused. If they are not reduced diameter top land pistons, replacing the pistons with
the new reduced diameter top land piston is recommended.
Figure 1 is a worst-case example that shows a cylinder liner at 33,000 miles and 635 Miles per
Quart (MPQ) oil consumption. Carbon packing has started on all pistons but bore polish in all
liners has not become an issue yet.

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Figure 1: Cylinder Liner with Obvious Evidence of Lobing
Figure 2 shows a mild case of liner lobing that can be challenging to identify visually. This
engine had 119,000 miles and an oil consumption complaint of 460 Miles per Quart (MPQ). It
also experienced carbon packing on all pistons, which resulted in bore polish in the other
liners. This is an example of an engine that likely had a small, unnoticed oil consumption issue
early in life, but was not identified by the customer until the resulting carbon packing polished
the liners.

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Figure 2: Cylinder Liner with Subtle Evidence of Lobing
Table 1: Liner Part Numbers Affected
Liner Outside Diameter (OD)

Cylinder Liner and Kit Part Numbers

150mm / 5.906 in

4311632
2882464
4101507

152mm / 5.984 in

3685235

Verification
The lobe pattern can be difficult to identify by viewing the liner bore with the naked eye. In
some cases, once the piston is removed and the liner is cleaned, the pattern will be visible in
the area of ring travel. The lobing tends to be most pronounced in the lower ring reversal
area. Cleaning the liner and placing it on a white piece of paper has helped to see the pattern.
Taking a photograph of the liner on a white piece of paper sometimes helps to see the pattern
as well.

Resolution

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Lobed liners are considered unusable and need to be replaced. If this lobing pattern is
identified, inspect all six cylinders and replace cylinder liners as necessary.
The liner machining process was changed to eliminate the potential to produce this lobing
pattern. Liners produced earlier than the date codes listed below are suspect for the lobing
condition and should be inspected.
The date code is formatted as Day, Year, and Shift. For example, "138 2 3" would translate to
the 138th day of the year, the year 2012, and the third shift of the day. This code would be May
18th, 2012, Third Shift.




Liners with an XPLZ marking that are produced after the date code 271 3 1 are not
suspect for lobing.
Liners with an ABDJV marking that are produced after the date code 293 3 1 are not
suspect for lobing.

The liner information and date codes are etched on the liner in one of the locations shown in
Figures 3 and 4. The location of the markings is not an indicator of the XPLZ or ABDJV
marking, since they have been found in both locations.

Figure 3: (Photograph for reference only.) The date code in the photograph is suspect for
liner lobing and would require inspection. The date code is formatted as Day, Year, and
Shift. "138 2 3" translates to the 138th day of the year, the year 2012, and the third shift of
the day or May 18th, 2012, Third Shift.

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Figure 4: (Photograph for reference only.) The date code in the photograph is suspect for
liner lobing and would require inspection. The date code is formatted as Day, Year, and
Shift. "136 2 1" translates to the 136th day of the year, the year 2012, and the first shift of
the day or May 16th, 2012, First Shift.

Warranty Statement
The information in this document has no effect on present warranty coverage or repair
practices, nor does it authorize TRP or Campaign actions.

Document History
Date
2014-3-6

Details
Module Created

Last Modified: 18-Mar-2014
Copyright © 2000-2010 Cummins Inc. All rights reserved.

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