xj TROLL

I was just wondering if a very slight milky residue on dip stick is normal or not. The 01 jeep xj has been sitting out in sub zero weather and has a very small amount on it. I checked the oil fill cap and there is nothing on the cap or in the motor that I can see. Thanks

ivie_2006

an oily dip stick is fine but a milky dip stick is bad, it means there is water in the oil. more then likely need s a head gasket.

its_deer_not_jeep

your jeep has a defective head they crack its normal for your year.... Look up 0331 heads on this forum to learn more about it....

tjwalker

Hard to say....

I've seen a little bit of moisture on the dipstick be just some residual moisture in the crankcase caused by the engine not being run hot/long enough to burn it off.

Do you use the vehicle for short trips and how old/many miles on your oil?

But yes, you have an 01, which has the infamous 0331 head, which is prone to cracking, so you definitely need to explore and understand this.

Remember that the #1 symptom of a cracked 0331 head is unexplained coolant loss from the reservoir. So how is the coolant level?

xj TROLL

I will be paying close attention to the res.. I just took the jeep on a 500 miles trip and did fine, but time will tell. How much is a new head, where should I look for one? Thanks!

xjmuddigger

this sucks for me as well my 91 has slight milky residue on the very tip of my dip stick

tjwalker

Don't get ahead of yourself with a head.

How about those questions of when was your last oil change and do you take short trips........?

Need to answer those to determine if you have residual moisture.

xjmuddigger

my oil only 1k miles old and i only stay in town,only go outa town once r twice a week,and i got 257k miles

tjwalker

Muddigger, for yours, the chance of a cracked head is less likely as yours is a pretty hardy head. It could be residual moisture. But keep an eye on your coolant reservoir.

For the original OP, a cracked head is more of a possibility because of the 0331 cylinder head defect.

xjmuddigger

k,thanks

peep

How much milk we talkin on that dipstick, please some more detail. If the stick is oil on the bottom and some milk higher on the stem your head and gasket may be fine, especially as jeep was sittin in sub zero weather. You will see some condensation in cold conditions and mixed with oil will look milky. I am in cold climate and see brown milky residue on the dip stick and get same from the PCV hose. Monitor your rad coolant level, if it is disappearing then it could be going into the engine or cylinder. Head gasket into cylinder can show as lots of white smoke from exhaust, lots even when warmed up. Is your dipstick ALL milk? then that is a problem with water into the engine. Is the oil level increasing?

xj TROLL

the last oil change was also 700-1k ago, with some BG additive. Not that the BG means anything, but i'm just saying I guess. I took the jeep 500 miles over last weekend, but other than that there has been 5 -7 short 2-6 mile trips in last few weeks, it is not my daily driver. Weather has been fridgid here in midwest. I looked down into oil fill and cannot see a visible crack like some others have said in other posts. ive only had the jeep for a month previous owner put in new radiator, i'm hoping they never overheated, but no way for me to find out. The milk seems to be on edge of dipstick, not mixed with the oil for now. Thanks!

Coach

X2 don't get too excited until you get it figured out, gotta drive it on the road and let it get fully warmed up in order to get rid of all the moisture. Coach

Northwoods Snowman

This biggest thing to keep an eye on will be the coolant level in the overflow/reserve bottle. If that starts dropping and it's not leaking on the ground then it's going into the engine. It may seem obvious, but make sure you always check it when it's cold so your readings are consistent. I just changed my head a couple weeks ago, but I had a VERY slow leak. I found out because I pulled the oil pan on another project and had a milky layer on the bottom of it and a milky residue coating the entire crank. Turned out the head gasket was bad, but I put a TUPY 0331 head (do some searching and you'll learn about these) from an 03 WJ in anyway just so I can have some peace of mind about my head.