You guys have been so helpful but, I have another issue. Last night my oil light flickered on then off, I pulled over and checked the dipstick. Initially there was oil on the dipstick, I replaced and pulled the stick again, dry... I was close to an auto parts store so I went and purchased a jug of oil and filled back up. I am not over heating but, the temp did rise and then go back down. I checked this morning and she is full of oil, coolant level is normal. I am at a loss. I love my 94 Disco but, I can't afford a huge bill with repairs.. I am assuming head gasket but, I don't know, no leaks, other than normal drip of oil here and there. I have a Land Rover Stealership here thats asking $142/ hourly rate.

 

Don't assume or you will put your self in the poor house.
How many miles on the engine, how often do you change your oil and what oil do you use?

 

1994 Disco 1, used primarily for work, just hit 141K and I use Rotella 5W40 with oil change intervals every 5K.

 

May be time to do a serious engine flush then do an oil pressure test, when cold at idle and 2000 RPM'S and hot at idle and 2000 RPM's.
Get back to us with the numbers and don't drive it much in the mean time.

 

Engine flush, should I go ahead and change the oil and filter out, add 5 qts new oil with some sea foam and let iddle for 10-15 minutes, then drain and refill with my normal Rotella?

 

To check head gasket, Go to NAPA AUTO and buy a BLOCK TESTER. Its a fluid that you put into a bottle, with the cap off the expansion tank. You warm your car up so the thermostat is open. Pump the black little ball that comes with it and if the blue fluid turns yellow, you have exhaust gasses leaking into your coolant from somewhere. Most likely a head gasket, or your block could be cracked... I just tested mine 20 min a go and it was blue.. THANK GOD!

 

Thanks for the heads up on the Block Tester, is the method for the engine flush as I posted or am I missing somehting?

 

Your oil flush method is one of several methods that are OK. How much oil was required to come back to the normal spot on the stick? 1 quart, 2, 3, 4??? BTW Gunk makes a good oil flush.

But with a sudden loss of oil, you need to be looking at some places. Like under the truck for new places that are high volume (front or rear crank seals, oil pan gasket, oil cooler lines). Like in the coolant, because those two metal lines on the battery side of the radiator are the oil cooler in/out, and that could leak into coolant inside the radiator, with nothing going out on the ground. And what about exhaust smoke? If blue, oil is being burned off in the cylinders, could be stuck piston ring or weak valve seals. Normally if valve seals you will notice a puff of blue when taking off from a red light, etc. Valve seals can be done without doing the head gasket, but if doing the head gasket don't forget the valve seals. Spark plug color can also indicate oil consumption.

Don't be scared - now is the time to ask, not weeks or months from now when bigger troubles start "knocking".... And check oil and other fluid levels every day until resolved.

 

no smoke whatsoever, like I mentioned has her normal drip here and there, valve covers are tightened every oil change and I put 4 qts in her last night. I will check the coolant and see how that looks.

 

The reason I asked is that you sound like the truck was running on 1/3 of the oil that would normally be there. So overheating due to loss of lubrication can cause far different things than overheating due to lack of coolant.
I would not depend on seeing drips on the pavement. I would crawl under there with a flashlight and check closely for new and serious leaks. Could be blowing back on everything, and the rear door and glass.

I live in the warmer part of the state, and IMHO 5W anything is too light weight. Now that did not cause your problem, but a thicker oil may be some help now.

Certainly the oil PSI tests should be run, the idiot light comes on at like 7 psi. Being the village idiot, I had mine come on once. I had swapped with a used radiator. Cranked truck, jumped out to look for water leaks, after a few minutes I was glad there were no leaks. Returned to the seat, and wow, the oil light was still on! Turned out the oil cooler in the used radiator was 95% obstructed, starving the truck for oil. That is what killed the donor vehicle. Some have suggested that for testing or in a pinch you could bypass the oil cooler (rubber hoses and clamps) as D2's don't use an outboard engine oil cooler.

All that aside, something guzzled a gallon of dino lube from your ride, and that usually means trouble. It is possible to have an external HG oil leak, common in Mercedes 3 liter in-line six cylinders. But you should find it somewhere.

Basically, you have survived for the moment an engine killer event. Now is the time to put resources and time toward making sure everything is still OK. The shadow you see passing over the landscape is from the donkies overhead. The footsteps you hear are from Mr. Murphy, and he is angry that you gave him the slip. Are people trying to scare you? Hell yes!