where did the oil go?
hey all, We just returned from our first TT trip from NC to Key West. It is about 900 miles one way. F150 4,6l v8 4x4 with towing pkg. Towing a aerolite 718fd, 3050 dry wght. My question is is i...
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Most vehicle mfg will say that as long as oil consumption is less than a quart every 600ish miles it is considered "normal". At least in terms of anything they will consider fixing under warranty. That said, I'd consider that excessive on a newer vehicle.
My experience with current vehicles is that the vast majority use significantly less oil than that. With newer vehicles that I have owned and friends have owned, consumption seems to vary all over the map. My mercedes with 140K uses less than 1/2 qt. every 7500 miles between changes. My son's s-10 with 250K has used a quart every 3000 since new, Duramax with 110K uses a quart about every 5K on synthetic, almost none on conventional oil (different viscosity), mostly towing. I've had hondas that use about 1 quart every 3-5K and some that used virtually none. And my old chevy van (87) with small block was a quart every 3K or so from new till 180K when I sold it, partly from the common exhaust valve guide seal getting hard and the puff of smoke on hot start.
Personally, as long as consumption isn't changing drastically for the same driving conditions as mileage increases and stays higher than a quart every 2K miles or so, I'm not concerned in the least. If oil consumption starts to increase rapidly, then I'd be looking to see what is going on. But that's just my comfort zone, your's may be different.
Engines must use at least a small amount of oil to avoid cylinder damage. If the bottom oil control ring removes ALL the oil film from the cylinder wall, then there is NO lubrication film when the compression and second ring are moving over the cylinder wall. NOT good. The amount left can be very small, but it is there and is then consumed during the combustion cycle.
It's when the oil control ring or valve guide seals quite doing there job that you need to be concerned about oil consumption.
My experience with current vehicles is that the vast majority use significantly less oil than that. With newer vehicles that I have owned and friends have owned, consumption seems to vary all over the map. My mercedes with 140K uses less than 1/2 qt. every 7500 miles between changes. My son's s-10 with 250K has used a quart every 3000 since new, Duramax with 110K uses a quart about every 5K on synthetic, almost none on conventional oil (different viscosity), mostly towing. I've had hondas that use about 1 quart every 3-5K and some that used virtually none. And my old chevy van (87) with small block was a quart every 3K or so from new till 180K when I sold it, partly from the common exhaust valve guide seal getting hard and the puff of smoke on hot start.
Personally, as long as consumption isn't changing drastically for the same driving conditions as mileage increases and stays higher than a quart every 2K miles or so, I'm not concerned in the least. If oil consumption starts to increase rapidly, then I'd be looking to see what is going on. But that's just my comfort zone, your's may be different.
Engines must use at least a small amount of oil to avoid cylinder damage. If the bottom oil control ring removes ALL the oil film from the cylinder wall, then there is NO lubrication film when the compression and second ring are moving over the cylinder wall. NOT good. The amount left can be very small, but it is there and is then consumed during the combustion cycle.
It's when the oil control ring or valve guide seals quite doing there job that you need to be concerned about oil consumption.