Burning Oil?

[92saturnsl2]

I have a 2007 Suzuki SX4 w/ the 2.0 4cyl that has seemed to burn some oil since new.

I just changed the oil (after ~5500mi) and was surprised to find the oil level just below the add mark, meaning it was just over a quart low.

Vehicle has a 5L sump, and I've used synthetic since 3k mi. No leaks of any kind.

Does this suggest a problem mechanically with the engine? Are these engines known for burning oil?

 

[mechtech2]

1 qt. in 5,500 miles is not horrible, but for a small modern engine it is somewhat high usage.
Looks close for leaks - they may only appear when the engine is on and driving. Check the tailpipe for oily or sooty deposits.

 

[MrCritical]

What oil and what weight? Did you check oil level before 1st change?

 

[DmanWho]

I didn't notice any consumption with the blend I just ran for 6,500 miles on the SX4.

Interested to see what happens during your next OCI.

What oil are you using now?

 

[tom slick]

1 qt in 1000 miles is not considered excessive, 1 qt in 5500 is certainly not excessive.

 

[asiancivicmaniac]

Do new cars normally burn oil though? My car has never shown any visible oil consumption since I've owned it.

 

[fatjack]

If it was me I put dino oil in the car and run it 3000 miles to properly break in the engine and change to full synthetic at 10k.
sounds like your engine is not seating properly.

 

[92saturnsl2]

I ditched the factory oil at ~500 mi, and went with Chevron Supreme 5w-30 at that time. I ran that oil till about 3k and then went synthetic. My OCI's to this date are as follows:

3k - Switch to Synthetic (Castrol Syntec 5w-30), used ~1qt in 5k
8k - Valvoline Synpower 5w-30, used 1.25qt in 6k
14k - Pennzoil Plat 5w-30, no noticeable usage after 1k

Still curious as to why this new engine is burning oil. The break-in is long over by now.

FWIW the 3.3L supercharged engine in my Nissan w/ a tiny 4qt sump doesn't seem to burn a drop after 5-6k

 

[DmanWho]

I hope the PP works out for you. If consumption continues, maybe try the Valvoline MaxLife 5w-30 synthetic blend next. If you are not already doing so, you might try using 5 qts., instead of the spec'd 4.7 qts. I've found that when using the WIX #51396, it took slightly more than 5.0 qts. to bring it to the top of the "full" line.

 

[mechtech2]

Old big block Chevys like th 454 would use a qt every 600-800 miles when things were normal and in good condition. Nobody cared back then - big deal - add oil .
Things are getting better and better with regards to tolerances and machining, and small engines make oil usage even less because they simply are 4 times smaller than before.

 

[PT1]

Stick with one brand for 3 OCI's and see if it continues.

 

[rationull]

FWIW this sounds similar to the consumption I see with my 07 Civic 1.8 liter (now at a little over 20k miles). A little annoying but I'm in the same boat as you, don't know if it indicates a problem or is just normal. My consumption seems to have gone down a bit with my current fill of Motorcraft 5w-20, and I'm interested to see what happens on my next fill, which will be Pennzoil yellow bottle 5w-20, which is thinner than the MC.

 

[Lazy JW]

Originally Posted By: mechtech2
Old big block Chevys like th 454 would use a qt every 600-800 miles when things were normal and in good condition. Nobody cared back then - big deal - add oil .....


Yup. Us old geezers just laugh when we hear someone complaining about using a quart of oil in 5000 miles.

And yet, somehow, life goes on.

 

[rationull]

Originally Posted By: Lazy JW
Us old geezers just laugh when we hear someone complaining about using a quart of oil in 5000 miles.


For me, anyway, it's not so much that small oil loss is a problem (don't mind topping it off...), just that it could point to mechanical issues if it's not a common trait of a given engine. Also presumably it could be bad for the catalytic converter. But then, I'm talking about more use than a quart in 5000 miles there.