burning oil
04-18-2009, 10:15 PM
#12
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Originally Posted by slipstream444,Apr 17 2009, 03:16 AM
Your first problem is you didn't use the search engine neatly perched at the top of the page. There are literally volumes and volumes you can read on this.
When you have a specific problem you also need to give a lot more specifics - stating your car burns oil at 1 qt per 300 miles is like going to your doctor and stating you urinate more frequently - without any further info.
Specifics like: What brand oil and product line are you using (Mobil 1, Mobil 1 EP, Castrol Syntec...)? Did you recently change from one oil to another? What weight are you using? Have you ever changed you PCV valve (this is a common fix that you would have found with the search function, could have tried, and then come back)?
And for the love of God... please do all the rest of us on this site that take the time to fully explain things on this site a favor and at least try and use correct spelling - it takes no more than a split second of your time to write "what" instead of "wut".
It shows you're not completely lazy (the first indication would be you didn't search for the answer in the first place) and that our education system was not a complete waste of time.
Otherwise, those that are actually in the know will blow you off because it's not a stretch to assume you're lazy. Why would I waste my time if you aren't willing to give a little of yours. No handouts here - this isn't the current administration.
Please search and come back if the answer is not fully apparent.
When you have a specific problem you also need to give a lot more specifics - stating your car burns oil at 1 qt per 300 miles is like going to your doctor and stating you urinate more frequently - without any further info.
Specifics like: What brand oil and product line are you using (Mobil 1, Mobil 1 EP, Castrol Syntec...)? Did you recently change from one oil to another? What weight are you using? Have you ever changed you PCV valve (this is a common fix that you would have found with the search function, could have tried, and then come back)?
And for the love of God... please do all the rest of us on this site that take the time to fully explain things on this site a favor and at least try and use correct spelling - it takes no more than a split second of your time to write "what" instead of "wut".
It shows you're not completely lazy (the first indication would be you didn't search for the answer in the first place) and that our education system was not a complete waste of time.
Otherwise, those that are actually in the know will blow you off because it's not a stretch to assume you're lazy. Why would I waste my time if you aren't willing to give a little of yours. No handouts here - this isn't the current administration.
Please search and come back if the answer is not fully apparent.
... dude I used Royal purple for the first year and a half I had my car and it burned maybe, a quart/1000 miles. Thats still an assload of oil though. A small detail that has something to do with it is if you're always givin the car hell running it to the full 9 grand youll typically burn a little more oil. I started using the full synthetic Lucas oil treatment for the past 6 oil changes and it burns considerably LESS oil, it really does. And oh btw, my car has 133k miles
. Our car takes I believe 5.5 quarts of oil per oil change so the next time you change it (I hope you dont pay someone else to do it), just use 1 full bottle of the Lucas remedy and a little more than 4 quarts of your full synthetic oil. I did switch to Mobile1 a while back and I DO like it better. Give those changes a shot and see if they work for you 
04-18-2009, 11:33 PM
#13
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my norman OCI is about every 2800-3000 miles but im going to stay on amsoil for a change or 2.. and also why would i want to go with a thinner oil wpnt it burn away faster?
04-19-2009, 01:14 PM
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I'm in the exact same boat as you. My 01 (now 72k miles) burns about a quart every 300 miles as well- has done so ever since i owned the car (got it at ~40k miles).
When i first got my car i used mobil 1 10w-30 extended performance for a few cycles and noticed it burned a lot of oil (by the way, my oil change interval is every 4000 miles).
I heard great recommendations for amsoil ATM 10w-30 so i switched to that and have been using it the past couple years but my oil consumption has not decreased, I still use about a quart every 300 miles. I'm doubtful that switching to another brand will help as from what i have read amsoil 10w-30 is one of the best if not the best 10w-30 oil available.
I have changed my pcv valve a couple times over the past couple years and that did nothing to improve the oil consumption.
It is very frustrating because there are no leaks or any visible signs of oil burning (i.e smoking) and the compression and leakdown test also checks out fine on my car.
I have heard countless ideas from others as to what the problem may be. Some of the most popular suggestions are as follows:
-bad piston rings
-scorched cylinder walls
-leaking valve guides
The car runs and performs great, and I am a college student with a limited budget so I am hesitant to have the engine torn down to search for the problem. Guess i'm still half hoping there will be an easy fix. I may try krank vents, but again i have heard mixed reviews from people about these things.
I guess for now i will just keep dumping in oil and hope for the best.
When i first got my car i used mobil 1 10w-30 extended performance for a few cycles and noticed it burned a lot of oil (by the way, my oil change interval is every 4000 miles).
I heard great recommendations for amsoil ATM 10w-30 so i switched to that and have been using it the past couple years but my oil consumption has not decreased, I still use about a quart every 300 miles. I'm doubtful that switching to another brand will help as from what i have read amsoil 10w-30 is one of the best if not the best 10w-30 oil available.
I have changed my pcv valve a couple times over the past couple years and that did nothing to improve the oil consumption.
It is very frustrating because there are no leaks or any visible signs of oil burning (i.e smoking) and the compression and leakdown test also checks out fine on my car.
I have heard countless ideas from others as to what the problem may be. Some of the most popular suggestions are as follows:
-bad piston rings
-scorched cylinder walls
-leaking valve guides
The car runs and performs great, and I am a college student with a limited budget so I am hesitant to have the engine torn down to search for the problem. Guess i'm still half hoping there will be an easy fix. I may try krank vents, but again i have heard mixed reviews from people about these things.
I guess for now i will just keep dumping in oil and hope for the best.
04-19-2009, 02:03 PM
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that sounds like it would be coming out of my mouth... yah i would think that my compression and leakdown tests would have shown me something but it didnt... im having sum clicking in my motor most likely my valves so im going to get a valve adjustment hopefully less oil will get past my guides so it wont burn so much
04-19-2009, 05:10 PM
#16
Originally Posted by IcebergS2000,Apr 17 2009, 08:28 PM
I am willing to guess that the Amsoil oil you are using has low 100C viscosity similar to the Mobil1 oil you were using. Assuming that you didn't try the high mileage oil. You might want to try a thicker xw-30 oil like Mobil1 10w-30 High Mileage or Castrol 0w-30 European formula(German Castrol.) Personally I think you should try M1 10w-30 HM. What M1 were you using before switching to Amsoil? Also what Amsoil are you using?
A "thinner" oil can be worked past failing oil control rings and valve guide seals more readily than a "thicker" oil. However, in a normally functioning engine and under normal conditions viscosity is not a direct determining factor in oil consumption. The flash and fire point of almost all motor oils from 0W20 all the way up to racing 60 weight is within 15C of each other.
Amsoil does not have a low 100C viscosity compared to other 10W30 oils on the market. Amsoil lists a Kinematic Viscosity at 100C of 10.7cSt which is right in the middle of the range (9.3-12.4). You don't want to start out at the high OR low end of the viscosity range due to the fact all oil thickens and then thins over time. If you start out right in the middle of the range - you stay in the range throughout the life of the oil. Castrol 0W30 starts out at 12.1 which is on the "thick" side of the 30 range. The interesting thing is the Castrol 0W30 is also "thicker" at 40C with a 66.8 cSt compared to Amsoil 10W30's 62 cSt. It actually looks more like a "10W35" than a 0W30. However there are other measures that determine an oil's viscosity range.
Much more important in relation to oil consumption is the volatility (NOACK volatility). Amsoil ATM 10W30 has the lowest volatility of any 10W30 (any 30 weight) on the market at 5.4, which is the true predictive measure of how much oil your car will consume. The only other oil that comes close is Redline's 10W30 with a NOACK of 6.
I'm positive Amsoil is NOT the problem, and constantly switching oils or switching after one change will only result in increased oil consumption. Mobil 1 has proven to be the oil with the highest reported consumption on this site - with most consumptive cars being AP1s. All Mobil 1 products have much higher volatility ratings compared to Amsoil. In fact standard Mobil 1 10W30 has nearly twice the NOACK volatility rating - and hence the horrible consumptive rates overall in comparison.
The OP just switched from Mobil 1, and it takes at least two oil changes to get the old oil out of the system. While almost all engine oils report they are "compatible" with other oils - NO manufacturer tests their oil against all the other oils on the market. The differing additive packages can have antagonistic affects on the new oil introduced, so it's important to change the oil again after a short period (1000-2000 miles).
I will NEVER use any Lucas oil products - they are all garbage IMHO. Every test I've seen to date shows their products are substandard in every respect. I'm also not a fan of RP. Once again, a product (like Lucas) that relies on marketing. RP doesn't produce a product that I would use in a street car.
Overall, 1 quart per 300 miles is extremely excessive for any car. My guess is your valve guide seals may be going bad for some reason. Compression and leak down tests will not indicate this, but would indicate if you had excessive leak down past your rings. If there wasn't excessive leak down, I'd bet your valve guide seals may be going bad.
If your consumption rate stays high after about 2000 miles on your second oil change, the last thing I'd suggest would be to try using Redline 10W30 (Group V synthetic vs the Group IV used in Mobil 1 and Amsoil). Additionally, you may want to try Krank Vents as a last resort before tearing into your engine.
04-19-2009, 05:16 PM
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thanx everyone for the input im gonna just run a few more oil changes and see what goes on... if everything works out ill be on the boost before next summer so the motors gonna need to come out anyways
04-19-2009, 05:23 PM
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Originally Posted by slipstream444,Apr 19 2009, 05:10 PM
The OP just switched from Mobil 1, and it takes at least two oil changes to get the old oil out of the system.
I switched to amsoil over 2 years ago and my consumption rate remained the same as it did with the mobil 1 extended performance oil.
Sure amsoil is good oil but it can't perform miracles.
It seems the consumption issues the OP and I are experiencing stem from a deeper problem than oil brand.
04-19-2009, 05:29 PM
#19
Originally Posted by thirstys2k,Apr 19 2009, 07:23 PM
No point in getting his hopes up, it's not going to matter.
I switched to amsoil over 2 years ago and my consumption rate remained the same as it did with the mobil 1 extended performance oil.
Sure amsoil is good oil but it can't perform miracles.
It seems the consumption issues the OP and I are experiencing stem from a deeper problem than oil brand.
I switched to amsoil over 2 years ago and my consumption rate remained the same as it did with the mobil 1 extended performance oil.
Sure amsoil is good oil but it can't perform miracles.
It seems the consumption issues the OP and I are experiencing stem from a deeper problem than oil brand.
04-19-2009, 10:33 PM
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yah im just going to let things take its course and hope for the best... some more oil changes and top offs but as long as my car runs fine im cool with that cuz i want to build a block on the side for my boost project