Thoughts on some Oil Burning.

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The 06 Sentra in my sig is a project car to play with. I changed the oil when I bought it for $600 at 159k with ST 5-30 and a Fram Ultra filter. Filter is Fram Tough Guard and I intend on three 3k OCI's with it. I changed the oil today after about 3500 miles with the last 500 or so using 12oz Mystery Oil. I didn't keep a good track of how much additional oil I had to add to the sump over the OCI. I will certainly do a better job on this OCI. And I will not be using MMO anymore so that helps keep the results legitimate. I do believe I added about a quart. The sump is about 3.5 quarts.

I spoke to the original owner and driver of all 159k miles and he stated he did 4-5k OCI's at a shop using a 10-30 bulk oil. He is unaware of any burning and didn't check much and said that's part of why he did earlier than required changes. Wondering if my using 5-30 (spec for the 1.8) causes additional burning of oil after it has had 10-30 for basically 160k. Interested to see the results of this oil change. It's also a different world for me as I've never had such a small sump. A much smaller amount of oil burning represents a larger decrease on the stick than a larger sump.

No wars, just looking for thoughts. I'll wait to see a measured result with this oil change and I'll also send a UOA for fun. Wondering what the thought is on move to a 10W or should be a ok with the 5W. I am guessing it shouldn't make a difference but I don't make a living with a wrench.

With exception of a late 80's Chevy TrailBlazer I've never had a burner!
 
My wifes '11 chevy equinox calls for 5w30 oil. I tried going that route and that thing eats oil. Doesn't make any smoke that I can see. Or does it have any leaks that I can see. I can't say where it goes. So being chevy didn't want to do anything about it under any warranty, I changed it to 10w30 wt, with a 1/2 qt of 20w50 wt, substituted to make it a 5 qt change. I can't say it stopped the oil consumption, but it really slowed it down. The car as of right now has a little over 65k on it. My sister bought it new so I know it was dealer maintained. They never mentioned anything about being low on oil to her when she had it. If I were you, I'd keep an eye on the oil and when it's time to change it, go back to 10w30. It won't hurt anything. The minor difference between the weights is the fine line between letting oil slip by the rings, or not. Both cost the same, and you won't have to check the oil out of worry.,,,
 
Why not go with a 5w30 HM oil? Especially if it gets cold in your region.

Sure could. I've never used one. from what I read if I did go that route seems hard to beat MaxLife. Not quite there yet. I'll see what happens this oil change.
 
My wifes '11 chevy equinox calls for 5w30 oil. I tried going that route and that thing eats oil. Doesn't make any smoke that I can see. Or does it have any leaks that I can see. I can't say where it goes. So being chevy didn't want to do anything about it under any warranty, I changed it to 10w30 wt, with a 1/2 qt of 20w50 wt, substituted to make it a 5 qt change. I can't say it stopped the oil consumption, but it really slowed it down. The car as of right now has a little over 65k on it. My sister bought it new so I know it was dealer maintained. They never mentioned anything about being low on oil to her when she had it. If I were you, I'd keep an eye on the oil and when it's time to change it, go back to 10w30. It won't hurt anything. The minor difference between the weights is the fine line between letting oil slip by the rings, or not. Both cost the same, and you won't have to check the oil out of worry.,,,

No reason to rush but that is pretty much the plan. For the low cost it's a fun experiment so far. I need to do front and rear struts and tires soon so I'll figure out if it's worth it before I dump the $$ into it. No rush.
 
I wonder if the viscosity of the base oil has an impact on oil consumption. 5w30 oil should require more VII’s than a 10w30, and the 10w30 may use a higher viscosity base oil as well. This may also explain the reason why some vehicles consume more oil on 0w20 vs 5w20.
 
I got a Honda CR-V with the mighty B20Z2 engine. Burns oil like a mother-trucker: 1qt per 2 tanks of gas, or 1qt per 1 tank of gas if I am in mountains. Cheap oil is the key. (by cheap I mean catching deals on full synthetics for $2/qt) Keep it topped off and oil burner engine will outlive the rest of the vehicle. I ran anything from Idemitsu 0W20 to Mobil1 15W50 and it burns all at the same rate.
 
I got a Honda CR-V with the mighty B20Z2 engine. Burns oil like a mother-trucker: 1qt per 2 tanks of gas, or 1qt per 1 tank of gas if I am in mountains. Cheap oil is the key. (by cheap I mean catching deals on full synthetics for $2/qt) Keep it topped off and oil burner engine will outlive the rest of the vehicle. I ran anything from Idemitsu 0W20 to Mobil1 15W50 and it burns all at the same rate.

If it gets there I will dump a cheap dino down the tube and use a quality filter and change it 15k or so. Just interested in what happens with this engine based of the conditions is all. Like to hear everyones thoughts.

Especially theory like Critic posted.
 
I wonder if the viscosity of the base oil has an impact on oil consumption. 5w30 oil should require more VII’s than a 10w30, and the 10w30 may use a higher viscosity base oil as well. This may also explain the reason why some vehicles consume more oil on 0w20 vs 5w20.

I wish I could find out what the bulk oil used was.....That would help.
 
My lady's 98 Camry burns oil has well.

Strangely enough it burns some oils more than others. Motorcraft 5w30 burned the least at 1/2 to 2/3 a qt in 3,400 miles. While it burned through 2 and 1/3 qts of Warren Oil 5w30 in 4k miles. It has burned through 1 and 1/2 qts of Warren Distribution made Federated Auto parts full synthetic 5w30 in around 3,200 miles. I also noted that after it burned through a full quart of Federated Auto parts oil and I added the same back in the motor that the burning stopped for about 800 miles.

And when I first change the oil in the 98 Camry it stays fairly stable for the first 800 to 1200 miles. No real burn off during that time.

So I think trying different oils in the car and track the amount added/burned off. Then you can pick the one that burns the least.
 
Piston rings must be replaced in these oil burning engines
In collision shops in my area there is a rule: If the repair cost is more than 75% of the vehicle's value, then the vehicle is totaled. If this rule is applied across the board, then our oil burners are mechanically totaled, considering the prices on the piston ring job alone, even more with a proper rebuild. Sooo, topping off and keep on rolling. Like I said earlier - oil burners will outlast the vehicle they are in as long as the oil is topped off.

P.S. My Honda only smokes above 5000rpm. It works wonders when someone is tailgating me: I just floor it, and people back off immediately, or disappear in the blue cloud. James Bond smoke screen...
 
In your NH climate, I believe 5w-30 is the correct choice. Instead of MaxLife, which is a great product, I would use SuperTech HM 5w-30 to save several dollars per change.

I love 10w-30, but I live on the Gulf Coast.
 
My bmw n52 engine burns almost 1 quart per 2200 miles.

These engines are known for this and there is not a single one that doesnt use oil.
Its mostly because of low ring tension to improve horsepower, efficiency etc...

Ive read lots of threads from people wbo rebuils the engine because they thought they bought a lemon.
However it was never totally gone.

So my conclusion is, some engine use oil by design, some dont use oil by design.

Unless a cylinder scored or something i wouldnt really bother about it. Maybe switch a grade thicker.

On some designs bad pcv can cause increased oil consumption but on most japanese cars these are pretty simple.
 
My thoughts on adding the MMO the last 500 miles was to act like a solvent. I did an oil change with ST synthetic 5-30. No indication of any solid crud on the drain so I stuck with the plan to keep the filter in place for 3, 3k OCI's. When I change it I will cut it open and share.

I hit 600 miles on the current OCI. Checked the oil level this morning and the dip is showing full. Yes, I am a little bored! Interested to see what we get as the mileage builds.
 
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