When would you replace an oil burner?

[Palut]

How would you decide when to scrap a car with severe oil consumption? I ask because I'm wondering how to decide to pull the plug on a car with an increasingly severe problem. I'd like to keep it as long as I can, but some time down the road I'll need to make a decision.

The car in question is a 1997 Civic LX with a 1.6L I-4 and about 150,000 miles. My wife let the oil drop off of the dipstick twice before we were married, now it makes a knocking sound when started cold below 50°F until it warms up (which I assume is piston slap), and is burning 1 quart of 15W-40 every 200-500 miles. Some starts, but not all, will produce a big cloud of blue smoke.

The oil consumption is the only real issue the car has. We do have a 3rd car, so if I needed to I could hang onto the Civic until the engine fails and not be put out. I don't believe that replacing the engine would be worth it given the cars age and mileage, right now I'd rather put that money towards the replacement.

I'd appreciate your thoughts.

 

[PT1]

Have you tried running 5w20 dino oil in it? If so how much consumption?

 

[bigsteve]

Does the car have a vtec engine?

 

[bepperb]

Swapping a d series engine isn't very complex, but obviously there is a lot of stuff in a small space. I guess I'm saying you might be able to sell it as is.

But, I'd keep driving it until something gets worse.

 

[Mr Nice]

This is a non Vtech engine.

Just keep adding the least expensive oil you can find until it finally blows up.

 

[Chris142]

I'd throw some valve stem seals at it and see if that helps any.

 

[GMFan]

Originally Posted By: LT4 Vette
This is a non Vtech engine.

Just keep adding the least expensive oil you can find until it finally blows up.


+1

A guy on saturnfans.com has been adding a quart ever 300 miles and his engine has almost 600,000 miles on it.

 

[JHZR2]

Is there a significant difference in use between, say a 5w-30 and a 15w-40?

Are you required to pass emissions?

If you have to deal with emissions, the name of the game is to be friendly to the cats, otherwise to minimize use. Realize that burning oil is doing nothing good for the environment or the poor driver behind you.

I'd try to attend to it, if the vehicle is worth keeping, via a repair. Otherwise I'd nurse it until emissions time or until you can get a good deal...

 

[gathermewool]

At only 150k, I'd say do a compression/leakdown test and replace the seals or give'er a ring job if necessary. Unless you've got other problems or are just plain looking for a reason to get rid of this car I wouldn't hesitate to spend money on a car that will most likely go another 150k.

 

[Tdbo]

+2
I Drove a 1979 LTD that burned oil for a couple of years out of college until I could afford a new car. Kept a case of what was the cheapest oil I could find at the time (< than $1 a quart.) Added about 2 quarts at every fill up. Traded it on a new 1985 Accord at 78K miles. Goes to show that American cars have improved.

 

[Virtuoso]

I drove a Saturn SL1 that eventually was burning a quart every 300 miles or so. I'd usually be able to just toss a quart of oil in every tankfull and be ok.

I dediced it was time to replace it when a receptionist at my daughters dentist office asked if our car was on fire, since it was smoking so bad! LOL Yeah, it was time to go..

 

[Win]

Oil burning sent my Honda to the junkyard - at about three years of age and 70K miles.

If you like the car and feel it could still be servicable, get an engine exchange. That's a lot cheaper than a new car.

My conscience would not permit me to keep a car that burns that amount of oil on the road, but reasonable people can surely differ about that.

 

[Nick R]

If I could afford to buy a new car to replace it, once I hit the 1qt/1k mile mark, I would probably start looking to replace it. My cav right now burns about 1qt/4k miles, which isn't that bad at all, so it doesn't bother me too much.

 

[levi]

I'm just glad I don't have to follow behind you and breathe all the smoke from your tailpipe.

 

[eljefino]

Even in its current condition you could get $2800 for it.

 

[andyd]

You could try some Restore or somesuch. I would be planning the next move. If you dont need the car, sell it. If you like the car, fix it.

 

[Norm Olt]

What kind of mpg do you usually get with the CIVIC? It can burn an awfully lot of oil (@ a $1 a quart) per 1000 miles before the benefits of good gas mileage (if you are still getting good gas mileage).

At least you don't have to drive it through DEQ to get plates!

Cheers!

 

[Gary Allan]

Petroleum in the crankcase ..petroleum in the fuel tank, what's the difference? It comes down to $$$ and utility. If the consumption isn't causing other service issues, then it's merely a convenience/social conditioning issue.

 

[Palut]

The car's mileage is still in the low to mid 30's, so not bad yet.

If I could do an engine swap myself then I'd do that in a heartbeat. I just don't want to put $1.5k-$2k into a 150k+ mile care just to have something else big go out on me.

The fact that it knocks when cold is what makes me hesitant to spend repair money even on valve stem seals. Even if I replaced the pistons & rings I'd still have damaged cylinder walls. Plus, by the time I'm that deep into the engine I might as well replace it.

Selling, possibly to someone who wants to drop in a hotter engine sounds like a good plan. I might check around to see if I can get some specific prices on valve seals or engine replacement so that my bases are covered.

Assuming that I decide to drive it until it dies, how would you decide when to give up on it? Wait until catastrophic engine failure, or sometime before then?

 

[Palut]

By the way, the consumption is lower with 15W-40 than it was with 5W-30, but it hasn't been on the thicker oil long enough for me to get a really good trend.

I figure that the thick oil is okay as the car is garaged for its morning start and the commute home occurs in early afternoon, so the oil will rarely be colder than than 30°.