Oil burning journey 2006 CR-V with 176k mi

[The Critic]

Random Data Point.

My wife's 2007 Accord 2.4 has been consuming 1 qt every 2K for the last 1-2 years.

The vehicle is on its first fill of @High Performance Lubricants 10W20.

158,186 - Oil Change w/ HPL 10W20
159,192 - Added 0.5 qt.

The vehicle is currently at 161,006 and the oil level is still full.

 

[Revving2Redline]

I would keep using a pea based fuel system cleaner along with checking the pcv valve,egr,etc. Have you used a aggressive throttle body cleaner like the CRC gdi cleaner. It's not gdi but the pea might be able to loosen some of the stuff topside. Gumout Multitune is a product you could try. Add to the oil at one ounce per quart and drive gently and change within 15 minutes. Use the rest in the fuel. I like BG EPR too and afterwards use RF7 and your oil of choice

 

[goingplacesanddoingstuff]

I would keep using a pea based fuel system cleaner along with checking the pcv valve,egr,etc. Have you used an aggressive throttle body cleaner like the CRC gdi cleaner. It's not gdi but the pea might be able to loosen some of the stuff topside. Gumout Multitune is a product you could try. Add to the oil at one ounce per quart and drive gently and change within 15 minutes. Use the rest in the fuel. I like BG EPR too and afterwards use RF7 and your oil of choice

I’ve used a buffet of Gumout, Techron, Seafoam, MMO, Amsoil PI, BG 44K, and more in the tank. As previously indicated, PCV is new.

 

[goingplacesanddoingstuff]

Update
182,733 mi
(Oil level is about 1-2 mm below top dot - that’s a small amount of burn since last topped off 631 mi ago)

It has been 3,033 mi with the Amsoil SS 0w30 and HPL EC 30. In that time I topped off with 16 oz of Amsoil and 6 oz of EC 30.

If I guesstimate the 1-2 mm at another 6 oz, then the burn rate since the Amsoil/HPL combo is 3,466 mi/qt. This is encouraging.

I’m going to keep going on this fill another ~300 miles until 183,000 mi. Part of me wants to push this fill to 184,000. What do people think? Should I change to full HPL at 183,000 mi or keep going on this fill? Cost doesn’t really matter.

The oil is pretty dark for just 3k mi.

 

[Revving2Redline]

I would use Amsoil SS 5w30 or they now have a new product out that is specifically for high mileage! Holler at @Pablo and hopefully he will reply to you if you need some help. although it may take a while because every time I turn around he's eating something or talking about eating something or thinking about eating something. you might have to bribe him with something to eat.

 

[addyguy]

I’d keep it in longer…good quality oils you have in there that will keep working for a bit

 

[goingplacesanddoingstuff]

I would use Amsoil SS 5w30 or they now have a new product out that is specifically for high mileage! Holler at @Pablo and hopefully he will reply to you if you need some help. although it may take a while because every time I turn around he's eating something or talking about eating something or thinking about eating something. you might have to bribe him with something to eat.

The purpose of this experiment is to determine if HPL will reduce consumption. I obviously have nothing against Amsoil, and may be curious to see about their options later on depending on results of my current plan.

 

[goingplacesanddoingstuff]

Update
182,733 mi
(Oil level is about 1-2 mm below top dot - that’s a small amount of burn since last topped off 631 mi ago)

It has been 3,033 mi with the Amsoil SS 0w30 and HPL EC 30. In that time I topped off with 16 oz of Amsoil and 6 oz of EC 30.

If I guesstimate the 1-2 mm at another 6 oz, then the burn rate since the Amsoil/HPL combo is 3,466 mi/qt. This is encouraging.

I’m going to keep going on this fill another ~300 miles until 183,000 mi. Part of me wants to push this fill to 184,000. What do people think? Should I change to full HPL at 183,000 mi or keep going on this fill? Cost doesn’t really matter.

The oil is pretty dark for just 3k mi.

View attachment 178707

Update
183,010 mi
No perceptible burn in the 277 mi since the last update. The oil level is right at the top dot. Last time I measured, it was 1-2 mm below the top dot, likely because the ambient temp was cooler.

The car has been driven 908 mi since the last top-off at 182,102 mi and has used no perceptible oil in that distance. Note, a single gas tank of BG 44k was used early in this interval.

I’m amazed. Consumption seems to have just suddenly effectively stopped. I want to give the Amsoil SS 0w-30/HPL EC30 combo another 1,000 mi to verify. I’m eager to cut open the filter when it comes time.

 

[TomYoung]

Random Data Point.

My wife's 2007 Accord 2.4 has been consuming 1 qt every 2K for the last 1-2 years.

The vehicle is on its first fill of @High Performance Lubricants 10W20.

158,186 - Oil Change w/ HPL 10W20
159,192 - Added 0.5 qt.

The vehicle is currently at 161,006 and the oil level is still full.

This is not exactly excessive, and the mileage is not low, but I would try to chase this down: PCV, fuel injection, filters. I work on a 2006 with the same engine and a little more mileage and it still does 5,000 mile OCI changes with no visible consumption. You have about the best engine known to man imho.

 

[TomYoung]

Update
182,733 mi
(Oil level is about 1-2 mm below top dot - that’s a small amount of burn since last topped off 631 mi ago)

It has been 3,033 mi with the Amsoil SS 0w30 and HPL EC 30. In that time I topped off with 16 oz of Amsoil and 6 oz of EC 30.

If I guesstimate the 1-2 mm at another 6 oz, then the burn rate since the Amsoil/HPL combo is 3,466 mi/qt. This is encouraging.

I’m going to keep going on this fill another ~300 miles until 183,000 mi. Part of me wants to push this fill to 184,000. What do people think? Should I change to full HPL at 183,000 mi or keep going on this fill? Cost doesn’t really matter.

The oil is pretty dark for just 3k mi.

View attachment 178707

I would say that oil looks absolutely perfect for 3,000 miles.

 

[MSCH]

a dipstick is not the most accurate device known to man
and the way in which oil level is determined using that device
can be quite subjective.

is it always parked in the same spot, is the level checked after a certain amount of time elaspsed before checking the level.?
does the dipstick get wiped off and reinserted and checked several times?
does one side of the dipstick read higher than the other?
anyway it's one thing to look at it
and another thing to wait over a long period of time
and add oil when it is finally below the ADD mark for sure
and then waiting again for the time period to add that next quart.

judging something based on a mm or 2 viewpoint after 200 miles of driving isn't a good way judge oil consumption.

 

[goingplacesanddoingstuff]

Please read the thread before commenting.

 

[MSCH]

Read the thread.

I have, hence offering my opinion on oil level checking and judging a book by its cover.
2 mm is a rounding error on a dipstick.

 

[goingplacesanddoingstuff]

I have, hence offering my opinion on oil level checking and judging a book by its cover.
2 mm is a rounding error on a dipstick.

That is not how I am measuring burn.

 

[TomYoung]

It's a 17 year old Honda that likes to consume oil.
Ant leaks?
If It doesn't impact emission inspections then top it off and let it be.
How much does a Qt of oil cost?
Grab a qt and add as needed.
Trying to fix an unfixable problem will, surely, cost too much $ than
actually accepting it and keeping it full with oil.
Happy Holiday!
God Bless America

It's not the cost of a quart of oil, it's the cost to your engine's health in burning that quart of oil. Most folks on BITOG in my opinion would prefer to experiment out of this situation... especially on a varnished engine that has been run on conventional forever. Improving this situation is easy pickings, and this is the right engine to try it on. With complete respect to the original poster's thoughtful plan, I would probably try something less expensive, like seafoam ahead of an oil change and moving to a good, but not boutique, full synthetic like Castrol GTX, Pennzoil, Quaker State, Mobil 1. I would do a few shorter OCI's. All that said, the original poster's plan worked great, so it's all good.

 

[TomYoung]

I have, hence offering my opinion on oil level checking and judging a book by its cover.
2 mm is a rounding error on a dipstick.

That's not what a rounding error is.

 

[MSCH]

That's not what a rounding error is.

on a dipstick it is.. 2 mm is .08 inches., which is rounded up for clarity..

 

[goingplacesanddoingstuff]

on a dipstick it is.. 2 mm is .08 inches., which is rounded up for clarity..

I never definitively inferred burn from that 1-2mm. I accounted for it in an estimate while giving a clear "if" statement. I then later gave an explanation for why it may have appeared and then disappeared, and I treated it appropriately as a measurement error.

All prior burn measurements are based off of adding at least 0.5 qt.

 

[TomYoung]

on a dipstick it is.. 2 mm is .08 inches., which is rounded up for clarity..

Rounded up to what? What are you talking about? A dipstick typically has three zones: not enough oil, an adequate amount of oil, and an overfill zone. You can determine experimentally, I suppose, the dimension of the "adequate" zone, which is probably between a half quart and a quart in most applications (based on my experience). But if you are suggesting that a 2mm perceived movement (easily explained by ambient temperature, engine temperature, stance of car, level of car, barometric pressure changes has any meaning, that is unreasonable. With regard to "rounding up," and in doing so introducing error, that's just not how measurement and math work.

 

[MSCH]

Rounded up to what? What are you talking about? A dipstick typically has three zones: not enough oil, an adequate amount of oil, and an overfill zone. You can determine experimentally, I suppose, the dimension of the "adequate" zone, which is probably between a half quart and a quart in most applications (based on my experience). But if you are suggesting that a 2mm perceived movement (easily explained by ambient temperature, engine temperature, stance of car, level of car, barometric pressure changes has any meaning, that is unreasonable. With regard to "rounding up," and in doing so introducing error, that's just not how measurement and math work.

I dont know what your experience is, but it makes little sense to add small amounts of oil when there is an ADD line and a Full line.
Especially knowing the measuring system itself is not particularly accurate.
Even stuff like settling time and how the vehicle is parked change the view on the dipstick.