I bought a 2002 Lexus RX300 for my wife with 74,000 miles on it. It ran great, no oil leaks and oil was clear. Oil was changed regularly. My wife was side swiped by a girl in a hurry trashing the side of the car and front right suspension. Seeing a slice that went through the entire side of the vehicle, I thought for sure it would be totaled, but American Family Insurance told me it was there choice to repair or replace. We sent it to their recommended mechanic with a lifetime guaranty on the work. It then started to smoke, a lot on start up, later continuously. It had to go back three times for more work, broken motor mounts, tires rubbing on the frame, etc. Then I noticed an oil leak in my driveway. We took it back to the mechanic who suddenly told me they don't do engine work only body work and no one ever look at the engine for damage. I made Am Fam pay for the trip to the dealer for an engine checkout. The dealer said it had a bad main seal and needed to be replaced for $9000. I took it to my mechanic who told me the real problem - oil sludge. He said their the dealers quote for repair was mainly to replace gaskets and clean the engine. He said that would last a few months and the problem would return. I confirmed this with others who had the oil sludge problem cleaned by a dealer. Lexus said they would cover half the cost of the cleaning, $4500. The best price I got on a rebuilt engine was $6000.
My questions:
Is it possible the accident played a part?
Could it have caused the PCV valve to clog?
Could it tweak the engine enough to cause the main seal to leak?
I know these engines are prone to cause the oil to gel and that is the only reason Lexus would cover part of the cost. I still owe $11K on a ship anchor.
