Oil Burning Saturn

[theedge67]

I have an 01 Saturn that uses about 1qt/1K miles. It has about 84K miles on it. Not that I really mind the oil consumption actually, it is helping me make headway against my growing free after rebate oil stash.

I'm debating doing an Auto-RX cycle on it and see if I can get it under control.

If I do not do an Auto-RX treatment, do you guys think I should just change the filter every 5K and never change the oil, since it is replacing 5qts every 5K miles? The oil still looks fairly clear after 5K miles, and I've been using my free synthetic. Q Horsepower, Q Torque, Synpower, and eventually I'll get to some Platinum.

 

[Dr_No]

Try a oil with a seal sweller, like MaxLife or Pennzoil High Mileage
If that dosen't help try Auto-Rx


What viscosity are you running right now?

 

[theedge67]

I've been using 5-30 in it. I do have 6qts of Maxlife 5-30 in my stash, and have also been thinking about using that.

I think my plan might be this: Use up a few more misc. extra quarts of oil I have laying around, then change out for Maxlife 5-30 and see how that does. If that doesn't help, I'll go for the Auto-RX.

 

[nascarnation]

Almost all of these 1.9l Saturn oil users are oil ring issues, not valve guide seals.

I had good luck using German Castrol which seems to have had a positive effect on the oil rings. Also Shell Rotella 5W40.
Both of these were in the 2500 mi / qt range. The only reason I even bothered with this was that my daughter had the car @ college and I couldn't be sure it was maintained as well as needed. Otherwise I would have been dumping in the cheap stuff.

If you go over to saturnfans.com and search on "soak" you'll learn about using solvents in the cylinder overnight.
Right now a couple ounces of PB Blaster for a soak seems to be a winner. Others have used Marvel Mystery Oil, and there is a factory bulletin on using GM Combustion Chamber Cleaner.

Only running out of oil will kill these, so keep an eye on it. Plenty of folks with 200,000, 300,000, even 500,000 miles on S Sats, dumping in a quart every 500 miles.

 

[Triple_Se7en]

Originally Posted By: theedge67
I've been using 5-30 in it. I do have 6qts of Maxlife 5-30 in my stash, and have also been thinking about using that.

I think my plan might be this: Use up a few more misc. extra quarts of oil I have laying around, then change out for Maxlife 5-30 and see how that does. If that doesn't help, I'll go for the Auto-RX.


Exactly -- use-up the stash - then do the Maxlife last.

Some engine issues need 2-4 OCIs of seal conditioners to reduce consumption. Be patient - or go the Auto-Rx route - if you are impatient. If going the Auto-Rx route first, use conventional oil for best results with Auto-Rx wash and rinse.

 

[ThirdeYe]

Originally Posted By: nascarnation
Almost all of these 1.9l Saturn oil users are oil ring issues, not valve guide seals.

I had good luck using German Castrol which seems to have had a positive effect on the oil rings. Also Shell Rotella 5W40.
Both of these were in the 2500 mi / qt range. The only reason I even bothered with this was that my daughter had the car @ college and I couldn't be sure it was maintained as well as needed. Otherwise I would have been dumping in the cheap stuff.

If you go over to saturnfans.com and search on "soak" you'll learn about using solvents in the cylinder overnight.
Right now a couple ounces of PB Blaster for a soak seems to be a winner. Others have used Marvel Mystery Oil, and there is a factory bulletin on using GM Combustion Chamber Cleaner.

Only running out of oil will kill these, so keep an eye on it. Plenty of folks with 200,000, 300,000, even 500,000 miles on S Sats, dumping in a quart every 500 miles.



I know someone that I went to high school with that had a saturn that forgot to refill his crankcase after draining the oil, toasted his engine. Off-topic, but it reminded me of that

 

[kgb007stb]

Welcome to the club,

On mine 01 SC2 I have tried just about every oil, every viscosity to no avail. One thing I have not tried was High Mileage oils, but since I have two Saturns, they are cheap and inexpensive cars to maintain. Most models up to 02 have the faulty oil ring issue, I guess they have used some incorrect material which causes the ring to let oil sep into the chamber. I did an Auto-Rx right when I bought the car so I am unable to compare before and after, on my other Saturn I have tried LC but still the same consumption numbers.

Right now as we speak I am in the process of trying Cermax as we have discussed it some time ago here, I am looking forward to a used oil analysis to see what effect it may have on the engine itself, but it did heal my oil consumption problem. After about 3.5K miles later consumption went from 1qt/1K miles to I am unable to tell from the dip stick after a 1K interval that oil needs to be added.

Only reason why I plunged in was that as the RPMs increase so does the consumption. Lately I have been doing long interstate runs, so extended high RPM runs make the car drink oil. You may be deterred by the high price, I am still in the testing phase so the jury is still out on this one.

 

[theedge67]

Yeah, this car is run mostly on the interstate as a commuter car, 30 miles each way. So the higher rpms are really not helping the consumption.

The oil change indicator just went off last night, but since I've dumped in about 5qts since the last oil change, I think it's probably good for a while. I'll use up the last 2 misc. quarts laying around, then switch to the MaxLife. Thanks for the help guys!!

 

[The Critic]

If it's a DOHC, then I would also check the spark plug tube seal. Those are notorious for leaking. Also replace the PCV valve with a new dealer part, it costs less than $5.

Mine consumes about 1 qt every 3-4k during city driving and 1 qt every 2k during high-speed highway driving. I have a 96 SL2 with 108k miles that uses conventional 5w30 oil every 7-10k miles.

 

[Ross]

I have to ask, what is a spark plug oil tube seal. I have never heard that term before.

Best thing that I have used for an over night piston soak is undiluted regaine.

 

[ThirdeYe]

It's a little donut that goes between the valve cover & head to keep oil from leaking down into the spark plug tubes. Mine have leaked before in my Integra and I replaced them, it's a really easy job.

 

[theedge67]

It is a SOHC, so I don't think that would be the problem. Thanks for the advice though!!

 

[artificialist]

On DOHC engines, the spark plugs are surrounded by a tube that goes into the valve cover. The seal must hold up, or oil will seep around the spark plug and wire, shortening the life of the components.

This is a common problem with almost all DOHC engines.

 

[Dad2leia]

I had an original '91 SL2, and it used as well. The quantity of oil consumption would depend on the pace on which I ran the engine. The higher the RPM's, then more it would consume, but boy, did it rev nice for a 1.9L four banger!

Small, noisy, but I miss her...

 

[ARB1977]

At least your using free oil.

 

[theedge67]

Originally Posted By: ARB1977
At least your using free oil.


That is why I'm not terribly concerned about it yet. I still have quite a few free quarts to go through before I start to run low.