chazzguitar

Hey all

I'm brand new to these parts, not to S2000 ownership, though. I've had my 2001 Spa Yellow S2000 for appx. 1 1/2 years now and have loved every day of it. 47k miles and no real problems yet.

I've been browsing through the forums here and have found out that many of these fine cars have a tendency to burn oil and run rich. So I guess I sound like a broken record when I say that mine does too. I'm worried though; getting on the freeway this morning I VTEC'ed and, in the rear-view mirror I saw a large black cloud, presumably fuel that didn't burn. I have been noticing heavy oil consumption as well. I know that everyone around here believes that its normal but its hard for me to believe, seeing the cloud that I did this morning. I've actually been babying the car for the last couple of months because of the oil issue, don't VTEC very often. The tips of my exhaust are black (I cleaned them two weeks ago and they have become coated again) and the car burns about 1 qt. per 1k miles of Mobil 1 10w-30.

Again, please understand that I don't want to clutter the board with repeat posts but I just need some reassurance-- is this normal or should I have something checked out?

Thanks in advance!

-chazzguitar

Ek9

You haven't said enough for anyone to have an opinion. How much oil consumption are we talking about? How many MPG do you get out of the car?

chazzguitar

The car is burning appx. 1 qt per 1000 miles and my gas mileage has gone up recently (wierd?) from about 23 MPG to 27-28 MPG. The gas in Milwaukee is "reformulated", up to 10% ethanol added, if that means anything. Thanks for your help

xviper

Can we assume that the car is new only to you? That is, you bought is recently and it's an older car? This car tends to consume more oil the more you get into the high end of the rev range (ie. "VTEC"). Since the car may be new to you, I'm going to consider that you are likely driving it quite vigorously since you got it. As you begin to "calm down" more and drive it more sedately, see what the oil consumption is. If it continues to burn as much as you just stated, then I would say you are on the verge of excessive oil consumption. Getting what you are getting if you drive it hard all the time, is not unusual.
Another suggestion would be to switch back to non-synthetic oil for the next change interval and keep track of the consumption. Some have noticed more oil usage on synthetic while others don't. Yours may just be one of former.
Black smoke may simply be a buildup of soot and carbon as a result of the rich running condition. Maybe you just needed to blow it out from it not being driven vigorously before you got it. However, if it continues to blow black smoke, check to see if your catalytic converter is still present. Perhaps the last owner took it out. Otherwise, you might consider having the car tuned with a VAFC to lean it out to a more ideal air/fuel mix.
Of course, there are always the issues to do with maintenance. Have you checked your air filter, spark plugs, injectors for being clogged? A new air filter and new, properly gapped plugs and a shot of fuel injector cleaner might be in order.

Ek9

I'd replace the PCV valve with a real honda one to start with. Most oil consumption seems to be from the PCV. I'd get the fuel pressure checked and have someone look at both the "Long" and "Short" term fuel trim (with a scanner). That'll tell you if the ECU's been having trouble with the mixture.

My bone stock 2002 with 54K miles doesn't blow black smoke and hasn't used a drop of oil since I got it. It does have a brand new PCV valve and I regularly run a good injector cleaner/decarbonizer through it. While the conventional wisdom is that, a quart in 1000 miles is still acceptable, I'd want to find out where it's going.

You're sure it's black smoke and not blue? Black = Gas or carbon, blue = oil.

It might be worth pulling the valve cover and looking at the general condition of the engine. I could eat off my valvetrain (if I didn't mind the oil), if you notice any kind of sludge it means the oil's not been changed often enough. What kind and weight oil are you using?

Emil St-Hilaire

If you drive it hard(ie:Vtec a lot)it is not unuasual to burn 1 quart of oil per 1000 miles;mine does.
But I never seen clouds of black smoke,though.
As Xviper said,check the mechanical conditions of the car(plugs,filters injectors etc...)and fix if needed,and drive it more conservatively for the next 1000 miles or so.
If you don't burn oil,your car is O.K.Mine does'nt burn oil in those conditions.

chazzguitar

Thanks for your help.

I did buy the car used but 1 1/2 years ago, I've put 20k miles on it since then and have calmed down since then. I have actually been babying it for the last 4+ months because of the oil burning (before I checked the boards here I didn't know that it was a common issue)-- I've been treating 5500 RPM as my max so as to not VTEC. Today was the first time in weeks that I've hit the 6k rev mark. Perhaps the black cloud is a result of my own light left foot, I'll be glad to try and drive it like it should be driven for a while to see if it goes away. Are the maintainance points you recommend able to be taken care of at home or is a shop enviornment necessary?

Thanks again, you are helping put my mind at ease.

Ek9

PCV can be done at home easily as can the plugs and air filter. You'll need a torque wrench to do the plugs properly.

Viper's comments about carbon buildup are sounding more like it. 5500 RPM, that's my normal dawdling around shift point. Driving like that kind of defeats the purpose of owning a '2k. Maybe, you should do some vtecing and see if you blow out the carbon that's probably collected.

If you really worry that the engine's got problems, get it leak down tested. That'll tell you alot about the condition of the engine.

S2KenC

Most if not all the maintenace stuff can be done in your garage with basic tools. Check the FAQ section up top. There are tons and tons of Do-It-Yourself procedures on basic things like oil change to more complex things like clutch replacement.

S2KenC

O...and just to note, when I had my 2002 model, that thing will go through 1 quart of Mobil 1 in 3k miles. I switched to regular conventional oil and the consumption went to 1/2 quart in 3k miles.

My 2005 model doesn't seem to burn any measurable amount. Its always at full.