The damage detectives
Practical training by MAHLE: damage prevention in the engine environment and in turbochargers
When eleven damage appraisers took on the challenges set by three MAHLE Aftermarket technical experts, they really got down to business. A different kind of practical training involving an exciting mission to track down causes of damage.
It’s their job to take a close look: as damage appraisers, they are at home in the depths of the engine. They meticulously search for the cause of engine damage for insurance companies, courts, workshops, and private individuals. Their work is often carried out in the context of disputes that can only be settled with the help of a neutral expert. The group came together at MAHLE Aftermarket’s training center in Schorndorf, southwestern Germany, to get up to speed on engine and turbocharger issues.
Three versus eleven?
The eleven appraisers sat facing three MAHLE specialists: Jan Reichenbach, Christoph Dutschke, and Manuel Diaz-Diaz have pretty much seen it all when it comes to damage scenarios in the engine block, in turbochargers, and in thermal management. They are technical trainers and usually work with car mechanics or mechatronics specialists. They had come up with something very special for the two-day training course with the three appraisers.
“I’m really impressed by this workshop format. Inspection, discussion, analysis—this is exactly how we need to appraise damage.”
This is what the 1-day hands-on training sessions are all about
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P-DP
P-DP is about appraising damage to combustion engine components, such as pistons and cylinders, bearings, valves, filters, thermostats and thermal switches, turbochargers, starter motors, and alternators. Points covered: What are the most common causes of failure and damage? What diagnostic methods can be used, and how can mistakes during maintenance, service, and installation be avoided?
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P-TC
P-TC is about recognizing common damage scenarios and causes in turbochargers. The professionals also show how to check controls and the overall system before carrying out repairs and highlight the key steps when replacing a turbocharger.
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Real-world examples
On the first day of training, the participants were asked to analyze ten damage scenarios based on defective parts from the engine environment. In addition to broken pistons, corroded cylinder liners, bent valves, jammed thermostats, and deformed oil filters, they were also given a brief description of each individual case, containing key information about the damage scenario at hand. Each case of damage related to a complaint received by MAHLE specialists from workshop customers.
And so the trail was laid.
It quickly became clear that the appraisers were also true experts who knew their stuff, as their suspicions proved to be correct in most cases. Christoph Dutschke is a fan of this workshop format: “It allows us to present our participants with real workshop situations, and the practical examples and our quiz format even provide some excitement. Anyone familiar with training courses knows that’s not common.”
And that was just day 1. Day 2 saw the detectives shift their attention to the causes of ten turbocharger damage scenarios. The three MAHLE engine specialists had more tricky trails of clues in store for them—much to the delight of Uwe Raber and his ten appraiser colleagues.
“It was really challenging, given how the trainers initially tried to throw us off the scent. This showed us how important it is to pay attention to even the most unremarkable details in a damage scenario.”
From frowns to knowing grins
Then it was time for the appraisers to begin their painstaking hunt for the causes. In small groups, they worked their way from one station to another in the training center.
At one station, they explored what might have led a valve to collide with the engine piston crown in a gasoline engine belonging to a passenger car from Switzerland. At others, they investigated the causes of deep score marks in the bearing shells and the seizure points on the antithrust side of the piston skirt.
Moments of deep thought gave way to initial hypotheses, followed by animated discussion.
“Using genuine damaged parts is a great idea. You can pick them up and even feel how everything is connected. MAHLE’s trainers do a super job here.”
Interested in a MAHLE training?
Go here for the complete training program:
To arrange a date or if you have any questions, please contact your MAHLE Aftermarket trading partner or send an e-mail to ma.training@mahle.com.
A short quiz before the solutions are revealed
Then it was quiz time. Before the causes of the individual damage scenarios were explained, each participant had to use the calculator-sized orange keypads on their desks. They could choose from four answers and offer a theory about each example.
The solutions were then projected onto the wall. Reichenbach and his colleagues repeatedly referred to the technical information and assistance offered by MAHLE Aftermarket, including Technical Messenger and the technical videos on MAHLE's Youtube channel.
Identifying the causes
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A large cylinder liner belonging to a bus from Egypt, which had more than 3.7 million kilometers in the North African desert under its belt, also caused damage appraiser Uwe Raber and his colleagues to furrow their brows. This led to an animated technical discussion about casting quality. Was the severe corrosion and massive cavitation damage on the outer surfaces actually caused by a casting defect during manufacture or by the lack of coolant? MAHLE trainer Jan Reichenbach stood alongside, listening with interest, nodding gently, and following the participants’ ideas about the cause with a slight smile. “You mustn’t forget that MAHLE cylinder liners are cast in a centrifugal casting process, which virtually eliminates shrinkage cavities and inclusions and thus casting defects,” explained Reichenbach.
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“Exchanging ideas with colleagues is very valuable. As your fellow participants don’t come from the same area, you don’t feel that you’re in competition. People swap business cards and are happy to recommend customers to others.”
Centrifugal casting
MAHLE cylinder liners are produced using the centrifugal casting process. Here, the melt flows into a rapidly rotating permanent mold (casting die). Centrifugal force spins out the melt onto the inner walls of the mold, where it solidifies.
Using centrifugal force produces a microstructure that’s more compressed and stronger than that obtained through gravity die casting. This means that the material is free of gas bubbles, voids, and impurities that are less dense than the melt.