Ok... I had a 1991 RX-7 NA before my S2k... and since my oil started smelling like gas quite a bit I asked around and they said it was because it was streetported and it was normal for the size of my streetport to have some gas leaking into the oil.

Smelled the dipstick on my S2k and it is starting to smell a little bit like gas...

Just checking if this is normal for it to have that sort of smell, because I don't think the other cars I've seen had oil that smelled like gas...

Put Mobil 1 10w30 Synthetic in it about 500 miles ago...

 

Called Blowby, not a good thing. Oil lubricates the cylinder walls. Gas is a excellent Cleaner. The gas actually cleans the oil off the cylinder wall and makes the oil shit for lubrication. Mainly caused by bad piston rings.

 

I would recommend an oil analysis by Blackston labs or another lab that does similar work. They will be able to tell you how much fuel you have in the oil and the viscosity of the oil which if diluted from possible fuel insertion should be less than a 30 weight.

 

its not VERY strong or anything, but you can tell it is there. Smelled my brother's Z06 Oil (also synthetic) and his race beater 944 Turbo, and they didn't have the same apparent smell, so I'm concerned.... my warranty exprires the 25th of this month... I don't know if I could convince them to repair it or not... Where can I get his oil analysis done?

If it turns out bad, would I be eligible for a completely new engine?

 

http://www.blackstone-labs.com/

a fair number of s2ki members have had their oil analysed by Blackstone. in fact, I just sent my first batch of oil off to be analyzed-- only $20, not bad.

there are other places as well-- I think Road Rage prefers Quaker State's labs, but I'm not sure if they do analysis for him since he's in the industry, or if they will do it for the general public.

 

Make sure you ask them for a specific fuel contamination number, sometimes they will just come back with fuel <2.0%, etc. Although if you really have a big issue with fuel contamination, it will be above 2%, depending on the amount of miles on the oil.

 

Fuel dilution of the oil can lower the oil's viscosity. That's the biggest problem. This problem is pretty common with "Soccer Moms", or others that allow their engine to idle for long periods of time. If most of your miles are short trips, you're running primarily a rich fuel mixture which will contribute to fuel dilution. Also, fouled fuel injectors will cause fuel dilution.

If you take a long trip with primarily highway miles and a steady right foot (without VTEC), most of this fuel will vaporize and be removed by the PCV. Changing the oil isn't the only way of getting rid of the fuel.

If you do lots of idling and/or short trips, you should change your oil frequently anyway. An oil analysis will tell you how much your viscosity has changed, and some labs (like Blackstone) tell you the percent fuel.

 

7 miles one way to school, I don't let it idle for long periods of time... I usually even turn the engine off for when a train comes by. It is my daily driver, and I've made two steady trips from OKC and back, which is about 30 miles one way... no VTEC on those trips.

How long is the turn-around time for the oil analysis? Hopefully I can just tell the honda dealer about it and they'll wait for the analysis to be returned.

 

The oil smell is not necessarily a sign that anything is wrong with your car. As someone mentioned, running rich is a common cause for fuel in the oil and if you do lots of shorts trips in cooler weather and the engine does not get a chance to really heat up and burn it off, it may totally normal.

I had an MR2 turbo, and they are known for running pig rich at full boost, that would give the oil a gas smell very quickly after an oil change. After selling it at 122,000 hard driven miles, still running like a champ and getting good milage, I never noticed that this fuel smell (which was sometimes quite strong on the dipstick) ever caused any hint of a problem.

I would keep bring the "problem" up with the dealer to get a record of it if it makes you feel better, keep up with regular maintenence and not worry about it too much.


If you surf enough car boards you will see someone say that they blew rich black smoke out the tailpipe and other posters had them convinced they needed a new head gasket when they just needed a new air filter or 02 sensor. If it aint broke, don't fix it.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Driv300mph
7 miles one way to school, I don't let it idle for long periods of time... I usually even turn the engine off for when a train comes by.