Quaker State Full Synthetic oil consumption.

[Lubener]

It's a 22 year old vehicle, no matter what the mileage is. Valve seals likely have hardened up, cracked or broken and leak some. I think your stretching your oil change interval too long. I would change every 4-5k miles.

 

[Blinker]

@atikovi

You gotta play fair man, what you referenced is for vehicles without the OLM. My gut says most if not all of these had the OLM as standard by 2001.

 

[atikovi]

@atikovi

You gotta play fair man, what you referenced is for vehicles without the OLM. My gut says most if not all of these had the OLM as standard by 2001.

1) OP made no mention of having an OLM.
2) OLM is a marketing tool to help sell cars by implying they are low maintenance. Changing oil according to is will get the engine through the warranty period, but 7000-8000 mile OCI ain't that great for longevity as OP is finding out.

 

[ARCOgraphite]

My diluter and oil gulping D.I. Ford was switched to QSFS 10W30 after a miserable experience with Edge 5W20. Didn't use a drop and engine ran better and smoother then with other oils. Car also picked up 1.7mpg LTA and that was stating at the tail of Winter with some 20 deg F starts.

I recently installed QSFS 5W20 hoping for the same experience, but no, the 10W30 flavour is better - BY FAR

- Ken

 

[CharBaby]

Before doing anything else, go back to the oil that you were using before the QSFS. Then see if the oil usage disappears.

My BIL always used 15W40(from his shop) in his 1998 Oldsmobile Delta 88 w/3800 even in our northeast winters..
In AZ, maybe you want to change to a heavier grade oil, a high mileage oil or both.

 

[Blinker]

1) OP made no mention of having an OLM.
2) OLM is a marketing tool to help sell cars by implying they are low maintenance. Changing oil according to is will get the engine through the warranty period, but 7000-8000 mile OCI ain't that great for longevity as OP is finding out.

😂 a marketing tool to sell more cars? Well I guess the marketers should be fired then, I ran a couple GM 3800’s over 200k miles going strictly by the OLM and the engines ran just like new with no oil consumption.

 

[Rod Knock]

Recommended oil change interval for a 2001 Buick is 3,000 miles. Seems like trying to save a few bucks by extending oil change intervals is going to cost you in terms of increased engine wear.

Directly from the owners manual https://cdn.dealereprocess.org/cdn/servicemanuals/buick/2001-lesabre.pdf

View attachment 129648

1) OP made no mention of having an OLM.
2) OLM is a marketing tool to help sell cars by implying they are low maintenance. Changing oil according to is will get the engine through the warranty period, but 7000-8000 mile OCI ain't that great for longevity as OP is finding out.

There was this thread that you managed to get locked: https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/hpl-supercar-0w20-65-for-6-qt.362597

In the thread I just linked you tried to make the case that HPL Supercar 0W-20 is overpriced, without even bothering to research what that oil is.

Now you're here trying to convince the OP to do 3000 mile oil changes. That is wasteful, time consuming, and gets expensive very fast. In fact, it is far more expensive to do what you're suggesting than spending money on high quality motor oil.

Are you bored? Or do you like to troll others for fun?

 

[OVERKILL]

1) OP made no mention of having an OLM.
2) OLM is a marketing tool to help sell cars by implying they are low maintenance. Changing oil according to is will get the engine through the warranty period, but 7000-8000 mile OCI ain't that great for longevity as OP is finding out.

Riddle me this:
- Does a 3,000 mile interval take operating conditions, idle hours, and other variables that can have a significant impact on the operating life of the fluid, into account?
- What part of developing a data-driven mechanism using all of those parameters and then varying the service interval based on that data, was done by the marketing department?

Fluids, just like other components, have a variable service life that depends on myriad other factors. Just like we don't change pole transformers when they are 3 years old or reactor pressure vessels when a plant turns 30, is the same reason we've moved on from changing oil based on mileage. It's not marketing, it's based on science and statistics, something I would have hoped you'd have picked-up on in your 12 years on this forum, but I'm constantly being surprised on here.

 

[PimTac]

I’ve seen this before when using one brand of oil for a long time and then switching to another brand. The consumption should taper off over time.

 

[doublebase]

1) OP made no mention of having an OLM.
2) OLM is a marketing tool to help sell cars by implying they are low maintenance. Changing oil according to is will get the engine through the warranty period, but 7000-8000 mile OCI ain't that great for longevity as OP is finding out.

The maintenance schedule you posted was for short tripped/city driven vehicles....frequent 5-10 miles in cold weather, to go along with the usual other conditions (extensive idling, dusty roads, towing, stop and go traffic). Otherwise it is recommended for 7,500 mile intervals. I worked on these vehicles for ten years, 7,500 was the oil change interval in our fleet...the 3.8 liter almost never suffered engine problems and easily handled very high mileage. The only issue I can even remember with these vehicles was a design flaw with the EGR tube running through the intake manifold, that would occasionally cause a coolant leak into the manifold. A TSB and redesigned gasket took care of that.

 

[loneryder]

If you are in any large metro area, that is considered severe duty. Everyday you are sitting in traffic, idling, inching along, stop and go, just like a taxi or police car. Most people don't think about that.

 

[atikovi]

The maintenance schedule you posted was for short tripped/city driven vehicles....frequent 5-10 miles in cold weather, to go along with the usual other conditions (extensive idling, dusty roads, towing, stop and go traffic). Otherwise it is recommended for 7,500 mile intervals.

OP has a 65,000 mile car. Almost a given that a 20 year old 65k car wasn't a highway cruiser.

 

[ChristianReske]

There are reports that some engines consume GTL based oils (Shell, Quaker state, Pennzoil). Simply choose a different brand.

 

[Rod Knock]

There are reports that some engines consume GTL based oils (Shell, Quaker state, Pennzoil). Simply choose a different brand.

That sounds like hearsay. I'd like to see some irrefutable proof of this claim.

OP has a 65,000 mile car. Almost a given that a 20 year old 65k car wasn't a highway cruiser.

Do you recognize yourself somewhere in this movie?

 

[ChristianReske]

I read it here often. Hersay, of course.

But: There was one thread in the german Honda S2000 community, where the members posted wich oil they used and compared the oil consumption. The "Winner" was the only member wich used Shell Helix Ultra, he reported the highest oil Consumption. Up to 2.5 Quarts at 600 Miles on the racetrack and 1 Quart at 600 Miles at road use.

My Honda S2000 also had a very high oil Consumption with the Shell Helix Ultra. I cut it in half as i switched to a different brand.

So, what i wrote is based partly on what i read in Internet forums - like many others here - and partly own expirience.

 

[OVERKILL]

I read it here often. Hersay, of course.

But: There was one thread in the german Honda S2000 community, where the members posted wich oil they used and compared the oil consumption. The "Winner" was the only member wich used Shell Helix Ultra, he reported the highest oil Consumption. Up to 2.5 Quarts at 600 Miles on the racetrack and 1 Quart at 600 Miles at road use.

My Honda S2000 also had a very high oil Consumption with the Shell Helix Ultra. I cut it in half as i switched to a different brand.

So, what i wrote is based partly on what i read in Internet forums - like many others here - and partly own expirience.

That may be more related to the weight of the base oil not the type of the base oil.

 

[ChristianReske]

5w-40 as allways.... And every member in the German Honda S2000 Community uses 5w-40.
If you dont belive me, fine.
I think it´s a pitty because these shell GTL oils are really good and cheap.

 

[OVERKILL]

5w-40 as allways.... And every member in the German Honda S2000 Community uses 5w-40.
If you dont belive me, fine.
I think it´s a pitty because these shell GTL oils are really good and cheap.

Base oil, not viscosity of the final product, lol.

It could use a lot of 4cSt base oil in the blend, which may be more prone to consumption.

 

[Rod Knock]

I read it here often. Hersay, of course.

But: There was one thread in the german Honda S2000 community, where the members posted wich oil they used and compared the oil consumption. The "Winner" was the only member wich used Shell Helix Ultra, he reported the highest oil Consumption. Up to 2.5 Quarts at 600 Miles on the racetrack and 1 Quart at 600 Miles at road use.

My Honda S2000 also had a very high oil Consumption with the Shell Helix Ultra. I cut it in half as i switched to a different brand.

So, what i wrote is based partly on what i read in Internet forums - like many others here - and partly own expirience.

5w-40 as allways.... And every member in the German Honda S2000 Community uses 5w-40.
If you dont belive me, fine.
I think it´s a pitty because these shell GTL oils are really good and cheap.

To add to what @OVERKILL already said: if you use a motor oil blended with thin base oils in the environment you describe, you will get oil consumption. It doesn't have to be GTL. It can be blended with thin PAO, thin Group III, or a mix. They're all hydrocarbons, they all burn eventually. Add some fuel dilution to the mix and you accelerate that.

The marketing departments of various oil companies have done a terrific job at convincing the general public that petroleum products are "synthetic", "conventional", and "semi-synthetic". Or my favorite: "dino juice". Mobil had it right way back when they first marketed their high end products and called them: Synthetized Hydrocarbons. I see that acronym still used in Germany on motor oil bottles as "SHC technology". I find it rather amusing when I see engine oil that's majority PAO marketed as "100% Synthetic" or "Vol Synthetische" or "Teil Synthetische" if God forbid it has some Group III in it. PAO is also made from petroleum.

Conclusively there is no point in purse-swinging at GTL, or any other base oil. What matters is the final blend and how that performs.

 

[Blinker]

Base oil, not viscosity of the final product, lol.

It could use a lot of 4cSt base oil in the blend, which may be more prone to consumption.

This should be a sticky at the top of the page.