Is engine oil sludge problem difficult to find by inspection?

I bought a used car(2000 toyota corolla) and had buyer's inspection with a local mechanic before I buy it . He said everything is fine and I bought the car. After 4 months Engine oil light came on and took it to the same mechanic....he cleaned oil pan and strainer.....and advised me to sell the car asap with the amount of sludge he removed....as it might be in Engine too and could break it anytime.


1)Is it difficult to find sludge problem or he didnt do a proper inspection when I buy it.


2)Now is there a way to determine my Engine is about to break or not for sure .....Is engine oil sludge problem difficult to find by inspection?
Engine sludge is difficult to detect without removing the oil pan. If it is detected form the top of the engine, then it's far to late. It is hard to say what will now happen to your engine, so play it safe and use good oil(synthetic) and follow a proper oil change routine.Is engine oil sludge problem difficult to find by inspection?
for the easist way to find out if the engine has sludge oil in side or not is lift the oil filler cap and look at it a clean engine will have a clean filler cap and a bad engine will have scale flaking of the oil cap mositure is ok
I would not blame this on a poor inspection, The engine would need to be torn down to see a build up. This is usually caused from oil deposits and one cause can be using different brands of oil,Like an oil burning engine that gets cheap oil dumped in at the gas station.Stay with one brand of oil.


You got a used car to save money, you always take a chance with a used car if there is no warrantee. He may be right,afterall he is the guy that was in the engine and got a good look.
An inspection wouldn't turn up sludge. Sludge would accumulate at the bottom of the engine in the oil pan. About 10 bolts along the edge of the pan hold the pan and gasket to the motor. I'm not a master mechanic, but it could me that your mechanic is full of BS. I'm not saying he is full of BS, but he could be. He could be right and saving you problems down the road. Why is there sludge in the pan? It shouldn't be there. At one time, the motor may have had a lot of goopy oil additives added to cover a serious problem.





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