Castrol 0W40, 4341 mi, 06 Infiniti M45

[himemsys]

Looks like things are clearing up on our M45. Iron and Aluminum are still a little higher than universal averages, but not enough for Blackstone to flag. Everything else is settling down nicely. Previous two oils are M1 0W40 and Supertech 5W30. The oil in there now is M1 5W30 HM SN+. We'll drain and sample sometime in July. We're sticking to ~4200 miles on the OCIs, which comes out to about 3 oil changes per year.

 

[himemsys]

So BS's comment about make-up oil is about my comment to them. I only added .5 qt on this OCI, but I actually started with .5 qt more than the previous OCI. Because of this, I told them to put 1 qt as the qty of the make-up oil. This is a strange car where if you put in the specified amount of oil (5.75qts) it only gets about 70% to the high mark on the dipstick. 6 qts gets it about 80% to the high mark. 6.5 qts gets to the high mark. So previous oil change, I filled with 6 qts and added 1qt at 2700 miles. 7 qts total. This OCI, I filled with 6.5 qts and added .5 qt at 3500 miles. 7 qts total. And there appears to be about 2 qts between the high and low marks on the dipstick. By my calculations, it's using about 1qt every 2000 miles or so. That's pretty normal for this engine, as I've seen plenty of reports of this engine consuming 1qt every 1200 miles. Something about the piston rings allowing too much blow-by.

 

[Donatello]

I believe it to be related to the PCV system actually. Here's why, if you remove your intake manifold, rather if you separate it in half via the bolts, you will definitely see oil in the intake. And most M45 on startup, definitely oil getting sucked into the intake. Also many folks with VK and VQ have stopped oil consumption with a catch can. Something worth looking into.

 

[himemsys]

I believe it to be related to the PCV system actually. Here's why, if you remove your intake manifold, rather if you separate it in half via the bolts, you will definitely see oil in the intake. And most M45 on startup, definitely oil getting sucked into the intake. Also many folks with VK and VQ have stopped oil consumption with a catch can. Something worth looking into.

The car seems to consume the same amount of oil no matter what. It's just about time to change the M1 HM 5W30 we put in back in March, and oil consumption is roughly the same. Put in 6 qts, and at 2800 miles it was down to the fill mark on the dipstick. This time I topped off with a qt of M1 HM 10W40.

We have cleaned and replaced PCV valves with no difference. I'm going to keep experimenting with different thick, HM oils. Next summer I'll try a full sump of M1 HM 10W40.

This winter, we're going to try Pennzoil Platinum HM 5W30.

I'll look into a catch can, thanks for the tip.

We have tried M1 0W40, Castrol Edge 0W40, and now M1 HM 5W30. So far the oil level has dropped at a consistent rate for all three of these oils.

 

[Donatello]

The car seems to consume the same amount of oil no matter what. It's just about time to change the M1 HM 5W30 we put in back in March, and oil consumption is roughly the same. Put in 6 qts, and at 2800 miles it was down to the fill mark on the dipstick. This time I topped off with a qt of M1 HM 10W40.

We have cleaned and replaced PCV valves with no difference. I'm going to keep experimenting with different thick, HM oils. Next summer I'll try a full sump of M1 HM 10W40.

This winter, we're going to try Pennzoil Platinum HM 5W30.

I'll look into a catch can, thanks for the tip.

We have tried M1 0W40, Castrol Edge 0W40, and now M1 HM 5W30. So far the oil level has dropped at a consistent rate for all three of these oils.

Yep, as expected. At least with ring issues, different oils will react differently to burning. But the PCV design on the VK45 simply sucks up the oil and burns it through the exhaust, so wouldn't matter what kind of oil was being used.

 

[Bullwinkle007]

You could just figure out a way to vent the PCV back out to just the atmosphere. I do that on my Accord. Disconnect the line going back into the intake and put a breather filter. I really don't have any oil gathering in the lower I take manifold. This is on my 2012 Honda Accord 4cyl. Of course for emissions testing back to stock for a day. That's only every 2 years.