Why do some cars burn one oil brand but not another?

[930.engineering]

maybe it´s just related to too high noack evaporation ? (cheaper bases?)

Probably there's some correlation between both Noack and flashpoint and oil use.

i kind of agree that going below sae xw40 you will burn some, no matter what.

I'm running 5W-30 in two of my cars and don't need to top off anything between
oil changes (~6000 mls/11000 km), but I agree that grade plays a role.

.

 

[pbm]

My 2014 3.6L Durango burned about 1/2 quart in 5,000 miles no matter what oil I put in it. At 110,000 miles I switched to HPL 5w-20 and 16,000 miles later, without an oil change, it hasn't burned anything. I believe formulation really does make a difference. BTW - I will have the 16,000 mile UOA back tomorrow.

What is HPL?
Never mind...I now see that it's 'High Performance Lubricants'

I have found that changing brands can cause some burn-off but it usually subsides after a thousand miles or so...

 

[ChristianReske]

If you read this thread, it seem like Pennzoil / Shell is the Nr. 1 oil that get burned away in engines. As i have mentioned here in this thread, my S2000 also burns it. I just have orderd ROWE oil, will see if it gets better after a oil change... if this did not work, i will try Liqui Moly next.

Thanks. This thread was the little "Slap on the back" that i needed to try a different oil.

 

[Luftmasse]

I switched from Mobil 1 5W-20 to Castrol edge 5W-20 in my Town & Country minivan. It cut oil consumption in half. I would add a half-quart every two weeks with Mobil 1. That dropped to a half quart a month with Castrol. We towed a camper four hours away and I had to add a quart of M1 each way. The next year, using Castrol Edge, I added only one quart for the entire trip.

This is the only vehicle I have owned that oil brand made a difference. I never switched back to M1 on this Town & Country, so I don't know if it would be any different. It burned/used oil from day 1 when we drove it new off the lot. M1 oil for the first 80K miles, then Castrol for the next 50K miles until we sold it.

I notice more oil consumption with Mobil 1 vs Castrol Edge also. It can't be explained.

 

[Shel_B]

I notice more oil consumption with Mobil 1 vs Castrol Edge also. It can't be explained.

Coincidentally, I used more oil with Edge EP than with M1 EP, same viscosity rating, although usage was not very much with the Edge over a few thousand miles. With the M1 thus far, zero.

 

[walterjay]

My SantaFe used oil when using PP and Valvoline.

 

[RateNate]

It depends if the car has used oil after you owned it or if it's been doing so since the beginning. If you haven't started burning oil until recently it could be a different issue like pcv valve, leaky valve gaskets, clogged rings and on and on depending on how long your oci is this can be a factor too.
For me specifically my DD lexus is350 I burned through pennzoil for 3 oci until it basically stopped, but alas I made a thread on it and this may be due to low tension rings cracking free. I recently noticed the oil level dropped, but more than likely it needs a valve gasket/spark plug boot replacement. Then I can be 100% sure it's not leaking and is burning then.

 

[vwmaniaman]

I had a Ford with a 360 in '76 It used a quart every thousand till i switched to Castrol GTX 10=40. Used that at a half quart on 3k oil change.

 

[manicrodder]

All my cars in the 80's consumed much less using Pennzoil instead of Valvoline.

 

[RTexasF]

I personally believe this is a question of anecdotal evidence with a small sample size. No signal, just noise. A properly conducted experiment would yield no significant difference in oil consumption by brand of oil of otherwise comparable specifications.

I beg to differ.
I don't know the answer to the question but I have experienced brand vs brand consumption. In the past I had a Mazda 626 V-6 5 speed manual. I changed my own oil back then and the engine used none @ 3500 mile OCI's. That was until I used Pep Boys private label which had the API seal. It sucked an entire quart during the 3500 mile interval. Changing back to the previous brand returned it to no oil usage. As I recall the previous brand was Castrol.

 

[nthach]

VIIs and base sticks. IME, I care for a oleoholic Subaru, and it drinks M1 and to a degree, Edge. When I use Idemitsu, known for their fondness of methacrylate VIIs vs. olefin ones the drinking slowed down from 1qt/1200mi to almost 1qt/4000mi. Despite the fact methacrylate VIIs are more volatile than olefin ones. I think there’s Havoline ProDS in my parent’s van. Oil use seems stable. I had Pennzoil PPP in it before hand. Oil was low when I drained it at my usual 5K OCI on it.

 

[Oillover]

i kind of agree that going below sae xw40 you will burn some, no matter what.

I disagree.
One of my cars spec's 0w20 and when I run it, it performs just fine (with no consumption/leaking) thru the OCI.
It's only 5 years old with 40k miles.

 

[sk_pete]

I believe that there is no such thing as a prefect engine. BUT... there are ones that are close. My old Honda Civic (5000mi OCI 5W-20) and now my Honda CR-V (7500-8000mi OCI 0W-20) use practically no oil over the OCI. My two motorcycles don't seem to use any oil. The 4Runner 0W-20 and Cobalt 5W-30 don't seem to use any oil either.

On the other end of the spectrum, my two Chrysler minivans 5W-20 drank oil.

Short trips? If yes then it could explain why.. (oil dilution)

I haven't seen fullsaps oils below xw30 (with That alone is big enough hint, about expected oil consumption.....

 

[ARB1977]

I’ve been lucky in my years of owning cars. None have consumed on all the oils I’ve had. The only one that did consume some was a 08 CRV. It wasn’t enough to worry about during the oci.

 

[BigCahuna]

Both the vehicles I currently own, will use / burn / leak any brand of oil I put in them. My oldest one has 2 very small drip leaks that I can actually see. Not enough to spend time or money to fix. The other car had the oil consumption option added at the factory, Chevy Equinox. Being several brands of oil are made and bottled by the same mfgr, I can see how changing from one brand to another is basically using the same product with a different name. And consumption stays the same. I mix my own oil brews to slowdown what my cars use. And yes I'm a believer in using a heavy grade to achieve lower consumption. Rather then spending more, for name brand hype. All I can say is I don't spend the most for oil, and what I use goes the distance.,,,

 

[Tower of Power]

Sure, and coupled with different actual viscosities, HTHS, and formulations (base stocks, VIs, additive packages), it makes sense that one oil may behave differently than another.

Then there are folks who change brands of oil when they do changes ... One brand this OCI, a different brand for previous and subsequent changes. Might the interaction between different brands and formulations contribute to the amount of oil used during an OCI?

Remember, in many engines, there's a substantial amount of oil that remains in the block when doing a change. In my car, about 1.5 quarts remain in the engine. That's a big % with a 4.5-quart change. So what you're experiencing may not be the results of what you put into the engine, but rather, the results of that mixed with whatever was in the engine previously.

A fella on YT and FB, MACTFORDEDGE mixed 8 different oils, and ran his normal 10k mile OCI in his ford edge in 8 weeks. When he uses a single brand, no oil consumption and low oxidation, and no viscosity increase. This time he started burning oil and viscosity increased significantly. Whenever I change oil or viscosities I perform new oil flush. I run three quarts of the new oil through the engine, let idle for 20 minutes till it reaches operating temp. Drain that and put in the full volume of new oil. I have oil analysis showing retention of wear metals, fuel dilution, oxidation, loss of TBN, viscosity and alteration of the additive levels within the first few miles as it mixes with the old oil. My engine retains about 15-20%, which is more than enough to effect the new oil. Machinery Lubrication has several articles on this, also applies to automobile engines. https://www.machinerylubrication.com/Read/766/residual-oil-wear-rate and Short Volume Oil Changes https://www.machinerylubrication.com/Read/31012/short-volume-oil-changes

 

[Ride_Red]

Short trips? If yes then it could explain why.. (oil dilution)

I haven't seen fullsaps oils below xw30 (with That alone is big enough hint, about expected oil consumption.....

All our vehicles run short trips. The 4Runner replaced the minivan. Same driving conditions. No oil consumption in the 4Runner.

 

[kschachn]

A fella on YT and FB, MACTFORDEDGE mixed 8 different oils, and ran his normal 10k mile OCI in his ford edge in 8 weeks. When he uses a single brand, no oil consumption and low oxidation, and no viscosity increase. This time he started burning oil and viscosity increased significantly. Whenever I change oil or viscosities I perform new oil flush. I run three quarts of the new oil through the engine, let idle for 20 minutes till it reaches operating temp. Drain that and put in the full volume of new oil. I have oil analysis showing retention of wear metals, fuel dilution, oxidation, loss of TBN, viscosity and alteration of the additive levels within the first few miles as it mixes with the old oil. My engine retains about 15-20%, which is more than enough to effect the new oil. Machinery Lubrication has several articles on this, also applies to automobile engines. https://www.machinerylubrication.com/Read/766/residual-oil-wear-rate and Short Volume Oil Changes https://www.machinerylubrication.com/Read/31012/short-volume-oil-changes

That "fella" MACTFORDEDGE knows little about what he's claiming to know. I've watched his videos before (as they have been referenced on here multiple times) and he's seriously lacking in technical knowledge and basic experimental procedures.

 

[demarpaint]

A fella on YT and FB, MACTFORDEDGE mixed 8 different oils, and ran his normal 10k mile OCI in his ford edge in 8 weeks. When he uses a single brand, no oil consumption and low oxidation, and no viscosity increase. This time he started burning oil and viscosity increased significantly. Whenever I change oil or viscosities I perform new oil flush. I run three quarts of the new oil through the engine, let idle for 20 minutes till it reaches operating temp. Drain that and put in the full volume of new oil. I have oil analysis showing retention of wear metals, fuel dilution, oxidation, loss of TBN, viscosity and alteration of the additive levels within the first few miles as it mixes with the old oil. My engine retains about 15-20%, which is more than enough to effect the new oil. Machinery Lubrication has several articles on this, also applies to automobile engines. https://www.machinerylubrication.com/Read/766/residual-oil-wear-rate and Short Volume Oil Changes https://www.machinerylubrication.com/Read/31012/short-volume-oil-changes

How many quarts of oil does your engine hold? Do you drain 3 quarts, top it up with the new oil you plan on running, run the engine 20 minutes, drain that, then swap the filter and fill with the oil you plan on using?

 

[sk_pete]

All our vehicles run short trips. The 4Runner replaced the minivan. Same driving conditions. No oil consumption in the 4Runner.

in that case level may stay or rise, due to fuel dilution. diesels are most prone.
does the oil pass sniff test?

even if the engine does not consume a drop, oils are commonly at ~10% noack.
that´s probably why i see miniscule decrease on dipstick of a thick 3,9 hths 5w40 (long ~1h trips, no gasoline smell)