2azfe oil consumption

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Jan 17, 2022
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I have a 2003 Camry that has been burning a lot of oil for awhile now. I haven't documented exactly how much, but from reading a bunch of posts on the issue I think it's a relatively bad case. I've tried BG EPR and have been
running mobile one synthetic for about 10k miles. I'm wondering whether you all might have advice about what to do next.

I'm a big fan of the car care nut channel on YouTube, and I saw a video on the channel saying if you have visible damage on the cylinder walls, your car is probably toast and there isn't much you can do. So is the best first step
putting a borescope down the cylinders? I've also read a handful of posts saying a piston soak sometimes helps. Should I try that, or is it a waste of time if the cylinder walls are trashed?

For context, normally I'd just go ahead and do the piston soak since it's cheap and easy, but I live in a condo and park in an underground garage. I'm a little worried about starting the car in the garage after the piston soak since I'm not sure how much smoke to expect.
 
If a piston soak hasn’t helped then it is time to pull pistons. Could gamble on a used engine, but this series was known for problems. But have you check for the usual suspects? leaks, pcv valve?

Borescope might be fun, but I would start by looking at the rest of the car. Is it worth putting money into?
 
There's a guy here with a Scion xB that had some success with doing a piston soak, think his name here is Elkins45.

Running a good synthetic like Mobil1 at reasonable intervals is a good start from keeping things from getting any worse but you will probably need multiple piston soaks to have any chance at reversing the main issue. The main issue on these engines is that the oil return holes in the piston underneath the oil control rings get clogged with carbon, the rings coke up and it's downhill from there.

How many miles on this engine?

For frame of reference on choosing a good oil going forward. I have a 07 camry with the 2AZ-FE, i've owned it from new and from day one I've run mobil1 0w20 AFE at 5000 mile OCI's. It now has about 280,000 miles, It burns a quart in around 4000-5000 miles and has been that way since new.
 
Thanks for the reply! I haven’t actually done a piston soak yet. I guess I was wondering whether I ought to do a borescope inspection first. The reason is that I park in an underground parking garage and am worried about doing the piston soak and having to blow all that smoke off underground. Although I might be able to park the car on the street for the weekend and do the piston soak that way…

I replaced the pcv valve about 15k miles ago with a Toyota part. I’ve also taken it into the shop countless time asking them to find a leak, and they haven’t been able to find one yet. I also used some oil dye a few months ago and nothing.

The car seems to be in good shape otherwise. It’s a manual and sometimes it’s hard to get in gear during the cold, but I just drained and refilled the transmission and am hoping that might help.
 
The guy with the scion xB did a piston soak and i believe hundreds of miles on an sae 30 presumably rotella t1 and also used a whole can of seafoam in the oil. Could try that.

Also what oil are you running and whats your consumption like.
 
Personally, I'd just do the piston soak anyways, but I understand the apprehension to do it in an underground garage. You could see if there's an indy shop nearby that would be willing to do it for you. A piston soak is probably the best/most effective way to approach it. A borescope will show you the condition of the cylinder, but unless you spend a lot of money on a decent one, you may have a hard time getting an accurate/clear picture of the walls. I have a cheaper one (I think I paid $40ish on Amazon) and it doesn't really give a good, clear picture. Plus, you may see scuffs, but what you can't tell is how deep they are. I'd just go ahead and start with trying to locate an indy shop that will do the soak for you. If you can't, then other options can be explored, whether that's doing it yourself in the parking garage or maybe relocating somewhere else overnight.
 
I have a 2003 Camry that has been burning a lot of oil for awhile now. I haven't documented exactly how much, but from reading a bunch of posts on the issue I think it's a relatively bad case. I've tried BG EPR and have been
running mobile one synthetic for about 10k miles. I'm wondering whether you all might have advice about what to do next.

I'm a big fan of the car care nut channel on YouTube, and I saw a video on the channel saying if you have visible damage on the cylinder walls, your car is probably toast and there isn't much you can do. So is the best first step
putting a borescope down the cylinders? I've also read a handful of posts saying a piston soak sometimes helps. Should I try that, or is it a waste of time if the cylinder walls are trashed?

For context, normally I'd just go ahead and do the piston soak since it's cheap and easy, but I live in a condo and park in an underground garage. I'm a little worried about starting the car in the garage after the piston soak since I'm not sure how much smoke to expect.

Scored cylinder walls and burning oil?

How many miles are on the car?
 
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