I have a 1994 Camaro Z28 that was rebuilt 25k miles ago. It is now a 357 cubic inch motor with a cam slightly bigger than stock, ported heads, forged pistons, 10.5:1 compression ratio. Shorty Headers and a 3-inch catback top it off. It is my daily driver and I drive it hard most of the time when there's no traffic, but not at high speeds, mostly acceleration. 75-80% highway driving. Around 13k miles ago I had a blown head gasket, which I did all the work myself except machining of the heads. I had some trouble adjusting the valves but finally got it. It may be worth noting that when I tore the top end apart for the head gasket changes (I did both sides) almost all of the intake manifold bolts were loose and taken off by my fingers and incorrect bolts were used with some sort of bolt spacers, and the A.I.R pump was not hooked up correctly. Even after I fixed everything I had a great deal of trouble passing smog. But I did not notice unusual oil consumption at this time.
Not until the last 2-3 oil changes have I noticed the oil consumption. The first time I was 1k miles from my usual 3k oil change and my low oil light came on. I pulled over at a gas station and oil was only at the very bottom of the stick, it did not go up to any of the holes. Ever since then I have been watching it and it seems to about 1 qt every 2k miles. I have checked for leaks several times and see none. Maybe that's not too bad, but my dad and I spent a lot of money on this car and I don't see why it should be doing this. The valve train is a bit noisy but not too bad. I run stock rockers, but they are not all that much more quiet than the 1.6 roller tip rockers I ran for a short time but had issues with. I usually run synthetic 5w-30, a few times I've been running Valvoline durablend because it's been on sale, but have noticed no difference in consumption. I usually use K&N or M1 oil filters, but have thought about giving wix a try. I thought I remembered one of my build managers at the shop that built my motor say to think about running a 15w oil but couldn't remember when it came time for the real oil after break in. Plus it seemed thick for my mildly built motor. Sorry, that was a little longer than I thought it was going to be, I've read this forum here and there and honestly, the more I read, the more confused and uncertain I get, what grade oil do you recommend in my situation?
Not until the last 2-3 oil changes have I noticed the oil consumption. The first time I was 1k miles from my usual 3k oil change and my low oil light came on. I pulled over at a gas station and oil was only at the very bottom of the stick, it did not go up to any of the holes. Ever since then I have been watching it and it seems to about 1 qt every 2k miles. I have checked for leaks several times and see none. Maybe that's not too bad, but my dad and I spent a lot of money on this car and I don't see why it should be doing this. The valve train is a bit noisy but not too bad. I run stock rockers, but they are not all that much more quiet than the 1.6 roller tip rockers I ran for a short time but had issues with. I usually run synthetic 5w-30, a few times I've been running Valvoline durablend because it's been on sale, but have noticed no difference in consumption. I usually use K&N or M1 oil filters, but have thought about giving wix a try. I thought I remembered one of my build managers at the shop that built my motor say to think about running a 15w oil but couldn't remember when it came time for the real oil after break in. Plus it seemed thick for my mildly built motor. Sorry, that was a little longer than I thought it was going to be, I've read this forum here and there and honestly, the more I read, the more confused and uncertain I get, what grade oil do you recommend in my situation?
