how do YOU stop oil burning

[chad8]

My 1993 corolla with 274,000 miles has been burning a quart of oil every 500+ miles.There was no smoke at start up and hardly any soot in the exhaust. I recently switched from st oil and filter to a half and half mixture of autozone 5w30 and meijers high mileage 10w40 with a Toyota oem extra long filter.
To my surprise the oil burning has stopped. I have well over 500 miles on this change and it is still full. I don't know what I did ,but maybe the valve seals got extra lube or who knows.
I was ready to try the mmo treatment , but I guess i will hold off.
I was wondering if anybody has a few tricks for a car that is mechanically good but is starting to burn oil.

 

[tig1]

If it's started burning oil then it's not in the best mechanical condition. Thick oil will help slow down oil consumption but will not cure the problem.

 

[Eddie]

Check the PCV system.

 

[Turk]

Read my post in the oil additives section. MMO stopped oil burning on a '97 Camry.

 

[chad8]

Originally Posted By: tig1
If it's started burning oil then it's not in the best mechanical condition. Thick oil will help slow down oil consumption but will not cure the problem.

you are probably right but at my mileage I will not solve the problem without a full rebuild and would sell it or donate it first. I just wondered if hm oil can rejuvenate seals or is it just the thick oil. I had been using the hm oil to fill it up when it burned a quart with no results until now.

 

[ADFD1]

Originally Posted By: tpitcher
Read my post in the oil additives section. MMO stopped oil burning on a '97 Camry.



+1 If it is related to sludge or some kind of dirty engine MMO is the ticket. If it is a worn engine or broken parts then a thicker oil might slow the burning. For under $5/qt it is certainly worth a try.

 

[bullwinkle]

5w30 & 10w30 in an engine w/that many miles doesn't sound that thick to me-if your blowby has decreased than maybe the HM oil is helping. The problem is most vehicles w/that many miles aren't worth enough to justify a rebuilt motor-keep running with what you have, hope nothing else breaks (I've been there myself)!

 

[bobfather99]

Originally Posted By: chad8
My 1993 corolla with 274,000 miles has been burning a quart of oil every 500+ miles.There was no smoke at start up and hardly any soot in the exhaust. I recently switched from st oil and filter to a half and half mixture of autozone 5w30 and meijers high mileage 10w40 with a Toyota oem extra long filter.
To my surprise the oil burning has stopped. I have well over 500 miles on this change and it is still full. I don't know what I did ,but maybe the valve seals got extra lube or who knows.
I was ready to try the mmo treatment , but I guess i will hold off.
I was wondering if anybody has a few tricks for a car that is mechanically good but is starting to burn oil.


Oil is cheaper than buying another car, if you ask me.
Id just get a case of oil, keep it topped up, drive it til it dies.
You could also try some 15w40 HDEO in the warmer months, to crutch things along as well.

 

[demarpaint]

Originally Posted By: bobfather99
Originally Posted By: chad8
My 1993 corolla with 274,000 miles has been burning a quart of oil every 500+ miles.There was no smoke at start up and hardly any soot in the exhaust. I recently switched from st oil and filter to a half and half mixture of autozone 5w30 and meijers high mileage 10w40 with a Toyota oem extra long filter.
To my surprise the oil burning has stopped. I have well over 500 miles on this change and it is still full. I don't know what I did ,but maybe the valve seals got extra lube or who knows.
I was ready to try the mmo treatment , but I guess i will hold off.
I was wondering if anybody has a few tricks for a car that is mechanically good but is starting to burn oil.


Oil is cheaper than buying another car, if you ask me.
Id just get a case of oil, keep it topped up, drive it til it dies.
You could also try some 15w40 HDEO in the warmer months, to crutch things along as well.


+1 in bad times like these people tend to hold on to things longer. I had a neighbor that had an oil burning Chevy van, IIRC he added a qt of oil about every 200 miles. At the time I was changing my oil every 3000 miles in a like new Ford van, I had about 20,000 miles on it. I'd pour the waste oil into plastic bottles and give it to him. He'd get about 1200 miles worth of oil from me each time I changed the oil. I was supplying him oil from 2 vehicles. I helped get him through 2 years more driving doing this. When an engine is that bad it doesn't matter how good the oil is, as long as there's oil in it.

 

[addyguy]

Originally Posted By: demarpaint
Originally Posted By: bobfather99
Originally Posted By: chad8
My 1993 corolla with 274,000 miles has been burning a quart of oil every 500+ miles.There was no smoke at start up and hardly any soot in the exhaust. I recently switched from st oil and filter to a half and half mixture of autozone 5w30 and meijers high mileage 10w40 with a Toyota oem extra long filter.
To my surprise the oil burning has stopped. I have well over 500 miles on this change and it is still full. I don't know what I did ,but maybe the valve seals got extra lube or who knows.
I was ready to try the mmo treatment , but I guess i will hold off.
I was wondering if anybody has a few tricks for a car that is mechanically good but is starting to burn oil.


Oil is cheaper than buying another car, if you ask me.
Id just get a case of oil, keep it topped up, drive it til it dies.
You could also try some 15w40 HDEO in the warmer months, to crutch things along as well.


+1 in bad times like these people tend to hold on to things longer. I had a neighbor that had an oil burning Chevy van, IIRC he added a qt of oil about every 200 miles. At the time I was changing my oil every 3000 miles in a like new Ford van, I had about 20,000 miles on it. I'd pour the waste oil into plastic bottles and give it to him. He'd get about 1200 miles worth of oil from me each time I changed the oil. I was supplying him oil from 2 vehicles. I helped get him through 2 years more driving doing this. When an engine is that bad it doesn't matter how good the oil is, as long as there's oil in it.


That sounds like the 'M2' story in another thread...LOL!

 

[demarpaint]

Not sure what thread you're referring to, and I might have even posted in it. LOL. This van was in sad shape and the neighbor was down and out. I'd watch him pouring oil into this thing every week. One day we were talking and he told me about it. I said I had gallons of waste oil that I was going to be taking for recycling, and it was from my van. He really liked my vans and knew they were in top shape. I said to him why not take the oil and save yourself some cash. He was happy and so was I.

 

[gfh77665]

Originally Posted By: demarpaint
I had a neighbor that had an oil burning Chevy van, IIRC he added a qt of oil about every 200 miles. At the time I was changing my oil every 3000 miles in a like new Ford van, I had about 20,000 miles on it. I'd pour the waste oil into plastic bottles and give it to him. He'd get about 1200 miles worth of oil from me each time I changed the oil. I was supplying him oil from 2 vehicles. I helped get him through 2 years more driving doing this. When an engine is that bad it doesn't matter how good the oil is, as long as there's oil in it.



Excellent!

 

[demarpaint]

You'd be surprised how many clunker owners that didn't cash in on the program could use this oil. Especially getting oil from the old school guys who do the shorter OCI's, tossing away oil that still has useful life to it. They make funnels with a sreen in them so you can pre-filter the oil going into the clunker. LOL

 

[gfh77665]

I know what you mean. I drove an old beater truck for a while (80 mile/day), and a guy I worked with changed out his Camero oil every 1500 miles! He looked at me like I was crazy when I asked for his old oil, and he refused. I can easily afford to buy my own oil, but what a waste that was.

 

[demarpaint]

Sometimes it isn't always the cost. It's a sin to waste a resource like that, in an old junk heap when used oil that is burnt out in 200 miles will work just fine. For me it was a lot easier than bringing the oil to the store to recycle.

 

[mechtech2]

1 qt in 500 miles to no observable burning in the same amount of miles is a tremendous improvement.
That can't be topped or beat, even by Stephen King.

 

[JohnBrowning]

Find and Fix the problem is itis easily fixed. DIrty pistons, dirty PCV system and dirty engine in general will all cause problems. If something is mechanicly wrong witht he valve stem,guides,seals or piston rings then only replaceing those parts will fix it.

So I would start with soaking the pistons over night with something like lube control or if you donot have that handy B12 Chemtool. You have to remove the spark plugs from the engine cold and then you slowly put an once or two inthe each cylinder and turn the engine over by hand by putting a breaker bar and socket on the end of the crank pulley bolt.

Another good way is to fog the cylinders witht he engine running for that I preffer to use B12 Chemtool in the can unless you an atmozer on hand. YOu take the intake snorkle off the air box and run the engine up to about 2000 rpms and spray the botlle of B12 into the intake snorkle. It works much like the old water inthe carb tricke but is much safer it is almost inpossale to hydro-lock the engine this way.

Last but not least a can of B12 added to the crankcase oil and ran for 30 minutes often helps a lot too!

In all of the case's above I would actauly use a mix of Lube COntrol and N131 but since most people on this site now do not know about the Molakule engine soak I have made material sources drasticly easier not better just weasier!

 

[Cmarti]

FWIW

Seafoam and flushes did not do as much as a new PCV valve and Valvoline Maxlife 10W-40 in one of my kids 96 dodge stratus. Went from 1.5 quarts per 1000 miles to .5 quarts, when switching from Supertech 5w30. It has become our test lab. Penzoil HM and Supertech HM have a slightly higher use rate.

 

[typ901]

Originally Posted By: demarpaint
Sometimes it isn't always the cost. It's a sin to waste a resource like that, in an old junk heap when used oil that is burnt out in 200 miles will work just fine. For me it was a lot easier than bringing the oil to the store to recycle.


I used to do the same thing with a buddy I worked with. Give him oil for his brother's old farm tractors. He knew I changed at decent intervals 5-6k and used only synthetics. I have a neighbor who still insists on the 3k oil change. Will even change it earlier if he does a lot of towing...

 

[chad8]

Today I checked the pcv . it is very clean and working as it should. The car now has 616 miles on this change. No oil burning yet. I just checked my mileage , which I do every tank, I am getting 38.59 mpg.
Just a little background on me and my vehicles. I have been toying with cars for about 40 years. I have owned dozens and have never had a major breakdown. I have never replaced an engine or transmission unless it was for the experience of building one..
I attribute a lot of it to luck and having mechanics as friends teach me some very good habits. I also drive very conservatively as shown by my mileage on the corolla. I am pretty conscious about maintenance , especially fluid changes. I think that on this site we obsess way too much about oil. Good oil is like good paint. They are all about the same. Yes, synthetic has major advantages for longer oci's but good dino oil works almost as well in many applications.I do believe that the cheap st oil I was using either stuck a ring or hardened a seal.I am not bashing their product because my motor should be dead by now anyway. I really think that engine life is a product of luck and picking a motor with a good longevity track record as well as oci's and what i discuss below.
I attribute some of my "luck" to regular yearly engine washes with degreaser and a pressure washer. I believe that removing a layer of filth on a motor does more to extend the life of engines and transmissions that anyone realizes.That dirt/grease layer holds a lot of heat and as us oil fanatics know is the bane of all engines both inside and out.
I also use a regular program of b-g or lucas fuel system and intake cleaner sucked through a vacuum line. I have never ever had a check engine light relating to injectors ,map's ,mas's, o2 sensors, clogged converters, or the like , so maybe my program is working.
I was wondering how many of you wash your motors on a regular basis like I do. I know its kinda off the original topic ,but i just thought of it when I was checking my pcv valve.
I do not want to come off as an a## , I just wanted to share what has served me well for over 1,000,000 miles of driving.
I know this started off as an oil burning thread , but I just wanted some of the doubters to see that I am sincere what i say and just looking for answers that will help a few people out.