98 Avalon need advice

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Just purchased with 143k on it. Being a sludge engine I was going to RX it but I put on 2k miles with a change of QS 10w30 dino. The oil seems clean and has burned approximately 1/8 of a quart. The oil filler in the valve cover was black and the cap was also black with a little build up. The engine and trans have zero leaks and runs like a Singer sewing machine. Should I RX or go PP.
 
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Did you look and see if there is any visible sludge through the oil fill hole?

Change the PCV valve and definitely Auto-RX it.
 
use a good quality high mileage oil such as valvoline hm or pennzoil and a good filter and change it every 3000 miles and it should be fine flushing an old engine with anything is usually a bad idea althought i have used mmo in the past with great results i advise against flushing with anything else i see many engines come here because the owner got talked into some kind of oil flushing... SM rated oil 5w30 should be perfect.. When we rebuild those engines we put 2 coolant pellets into the top radiator hose w/ new coolant just to be on the safe side..We see a fair share of those v-6 engines in here but mostly from people that change their oil at or after 7000 miles
 
ever hear the phrase if it aint broke dont fix it?
im not knocking auto rx i am just saying from all my experence in the engine rebuilding industry (too many years to mention) when you start "cleaning a good running engine" a lot of times you are asking for trouble big trouble in most cases.. Don't mix anything with your oil unless there is a good reason for it The oil companies spend millions to formulate their oil and too add anything to it throws off the whole additive package.. Again im not saying auto rx is a bad product im just saying be careful your rings and bearings depend on it not too mention everything else..
 
Originally Posted By: crazyoildude
ever hear the phrase if it aint broke dont fix it? im not knocking auto rx i am just saying from all my experence in the engine rebuilding industry (too many years to mention) when you start "cleaning a good running engine" a lot of times you are asking for trouble big trouble in most cases.. Don't mix anything with your oil unless there is a good reason for it The oil companies spend millions to formulate their oil and too add anything to it throws off the whole additive package.. Again im not saying auto rx is a bad product im just saying be careful your rings and bearings depend on it not too mention everything else..
+1 Well said IMO. I've read several posts on Bitog where posters using rx have developed engine rattles, ticks (noises), and leaks after/while using rx.
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To the OP's question. As said earlier, I'd use a quality SM rated oil(regular or hm), a quality filter, and shorten up the OCI to 3k. If you want to run PP, that would be fine, but I wouldn't extend the OCI beyond 4-5k.

Here's why I'd say to try that first. You've got no leaks, it's running well, and 4oz of oil burn off over 2k is very low, especially with 143k on the clock.

HTH
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J
 
I am not familiar with the 98 Avalon. Does it have and I-4 or a V-6 engine in it?

It is sometime hard to see down inside the oil fill hole because of baffles they have in there. Before I did anything out of the ordinary, I would remove the valve cover to get a good visual inspection of the rocker arm area. If everything looks okay with only a small amount of varnish, proceed as stated above.
 
The Avalon comes with a V6.

Thanx to all for sharing there thoughts. I guess the logical approach would be to remove a valve cover. I also misspoke, oil was down 8oz in 2k and with all Highway miles.
 
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