OK I've come to the guru's to ask for some serious advice.

I just recently noticed that I have been burning about 1/3 - 1/2 a quart of oil after every 600-800 miles.

I don't have any oil leaks that I can see. ( my car is garage kept). No smoke comes out of the exhaust when revved or while driving.

Ok quick background. I had my engine replaced at 20,000 miles (long story). Since my new engine I was completely ignorant and did not follow some of the break in advice.

1) I changed the oil after 3,000 miles on the new engine
2) I immediately changed to mobil 1 (thinking I was babying my car)
3) I went on a semi-long road trip (300 miles) during the first 1,000 miles...


a few months ago I noticed the car idling hard... I never checked oil levels because I changed oil every 3,000 miles so I never thought it was an issue. When I checked the oil level... there was no oil on the dipstick. I had to add 3 and a half quarts to get the oil back to level.

I thought it was a fluke... did a oil change... didn't check oil for about 2,000 miles but when I checked it... NO oil again!! WTF??? So added about 3 quarts.

Now i've been checking oil after every other fillup and each time, I'm about half way down the full/low marks.. so i need about 1/3-1/2 a quart every other fill up.

I read about that oil seal so my main question is...

1) What do i need to do to get that oil seal to seal?

2) The car runs fine but I do notice it's alot more temperamental at low rpms... the car will buck going from 2,000 rpm-3,000 rpm... Is the engine damaged?

What would you guys do?? Please post any comments...and yes I know I'm an idiot

Thank for any input!!

 

This was most likely your single BIGGEST mistake. You are supposed to check the oil at intervals equal to every tank of gas FOREVER with this car. Running so low on oil causes oil starvation to many of the critical parts of the engine. On top of this, the decreased volume of oil also depletes the concentration of additives that help to protect the engine. Furthermore, that low a volume oil contributes greatly to the inability of what oil is left to carry away HEAT. The function of removing heat is more critical for this engine than most other engines.
These two diminished functions could have caused all kinds of damage or maybe none. You won't know for sure until something blows or till you tear the motor apart.

 

Ya I'm hoping no critical damage was done by being so low on oil. (hoping the fact that it was a new engine might help... who knows)

At this point, should I expect to continue to have the 1/2 quart burn off from now on? I figure that's about 2 to 2 1/2 quarts an oil change... which isn't too bad but still money using mobil 1. I read stories of people's oil burn consumption go up and down during the life of the car.. just wondering if they're doing something I'm not.

 

That is not necessarily bad.

Your engine needs time to wear itself in. Synthetic oil is more slippery than conventional oil. Going synthetic too soon will cause the engine to not wear itself in properly. The rings need time to seat themselves although the way I drove my car, the rings were seated well before 3k miles

[QUOTE=Spa4eva,Mar 22 2005, 04:37 PM]a few months ago I noticed the car idling hard... I never checked oil levels because I changed oil every 3,000 miles so I never thought it was an issue.

 

 

LOL ok, I get the picture.

I figured there wasn't much I could do at this point . The car is still ok and now that I know a little bit more about the temperament of the car, I'll be a bit more religious with checking oil.

All my other cars that I've ever owned did not seem to consume as much oil as this car... (considering the car has no visible leaks)

Thanks for the input. We'll see how long this engine lasts for

 

This is kind of a "ghetto" fix but you can go with a heavier weight oil like a 15W-50 or even 20W-50 to slow oil consumption. I did this in my old 4runner with the 22RE motor and it stopped burning oil the day I switched.

The way I see it, if damage is already done the honey-thick oil will help prolong the life of the engine. I'm not sure of your financial situation and if you can afford another motor (again) but most people I know can't or don't want to. Changing to the thicker oil won't cost much of anything. Just something to think about.

 

Not in this case. Let's say he's been lucky and no damage has been done. An anythingW-50 is not a good choice for an engine that revs to 9000 rpm that is used in a street car. On cold starts, if the outside temp is even cool, this oil pump can pump in excess of 85 psi. On a really cold day, even with a 5W30, the oil pressure can get over 95 psi. With a 90 weight oil, you will be risking blowing out oil seals, damaging the oil pump, not getting oil to critically small tolerance journals, not providing the proper spray patterns for the oiljet bolts.
Even if the engine is already slightly damaged, using a 90 weight oil would cause more concern than it is worth.

 

Ive been running 15W50 Mobil 1 since I built my turbo setup...would you advise against this with all of the extra heat? Cruising oil pressures are 85-90 psi, Ive never seen more than 100psi on the guage, cool or warm.

 

If this is a new/reconditioned engine with only 3000miles it may be worth running it on non-synthetic oil for a few more changes. You may find that the oil rings havent bedded in fully and that oil consumption will reduce as the rings settle down.

Cut your oil filter open at the next oil change and check for metal. If there isnt any metal you were very lucky. You can get tools like giant can openers from speed shops that are made to cut open filters. Pull apart the filter paper and look for white/silver metal.

Chris.