Yotalover01

I have a buddy of mine who has a 1990 xcab sr5 3.0 that has evidently started making oil!!! He bought the truck from an old man who'd never gotten it over 45 much and it had just hit 200,000 miles! So he give it a good tune up and I had told him to replace a quart of oil with a quart of Lucas engine oil treatment and he did, and also he ran a can of sea foam through the gas tank and very little down the vacuum line! Well he has put about 4k miles on the truck and it has started to make oil somehow! Now with that being said he said to me one day that it was smoking pretty good at start up and would start smoking after about 10 mins or idling, so I go out and check the oil an it's way over full, like 2 quarts over! So he changed it that evening, now 1,000 miles onto that oil change the oil level has risen to about a half a quart over full! What's the deal any ideas? Beside the obvious, no there is no water in the crankcase and its not using any water so no it's not the head gaskets, and also no it's not fuel, the oil is still fairly clean and gold and it doesn't smell like fuel at all, so what else could it be? The only explanation I could give him at this time was maybe crud, carbon, or gunk breaking down in the engine from being babied around all it's life, now he doesn't just drive the hell out of it but he does drive it normally, at highway speeds! So with all of that being said what are your ideas? There's no other explanation i could come up with that I know of? He said he's gonna drive it about another 500 miles and change it again!

niall

2 quarts is ALOT.

that can't possibly be crud. It must be fuel or coolant. There is not other explanation.

Yotalover01

Well I may have exaggerated the 2 quarts part but it was a about 2 and a half inches above the full mark! So a solid quart or quart and a half! Once he changed the oil when it was bad over full it quit smoking he says, I said the same thing if it ain't coolant it's got to be fuel! And I'm not saying it isn't fuel it just doesn't smell like straight gas when you sniff the dipstick like other engines I've dealt with that are dumping fuel into the crankcase! He did mention that he changed the 2nd half of the intake hose because the factory one was cracked where it attached to the throttle body and it had some oil in it, why would that be in there? It's one of the craziest things I've ever seen or heard of but it doesn't smell like gas at all and it's definitely not water or coolant in the oil!

Co_94_PU

iTrader: (-1)

Odds are it's just over filled, didn't wait long enough for the oil to work it's way down or checked it when not level. To check for fuel or HC as they call it, compare the viscosity to fresh oil. It doesnt have to smell like gas to be gas. If the black stuff in the intake is ahead of the crank case vent the only other source is the pair system. In the 3v the pcv is in/on the intake hose.

Yotalover01

Well that was my first thought was that he added one quart of Lucas oil treatment and still put the 5 full quarts in, so he changed it and has put another thousand miles on it and its up above full again and he left the plug out of it for 45 mins when he changed it this past time! I dunno it's the craziest stuff I've ever heard or seen! And as far as viscosity it's just the same as a new quart of 10w-30! And it's still clean and gold colored? What is this PAIR system you speak of?

Yotalover01

The Pcv valve is on the passenger side valve cover isn't it? This oil he found was in the second half of the intake tube when he replaced it due to dry rotting and cracking, second half meaning from the throttle body down to the first elbow it makes!

yotagoon

From what i have been told by my auto-tech instructor that additives like sea-foam are not a good idea. All that carbon that is breaking loose is going to make its way through the motor to oil pan. Then when enough of it has arrived there it will start to clog up the oil sump and pretty soon its completely clogged. The motor then starves for oil and mentioned in some cases a complete loss . Not saying that has/is happening to this motor but just something to think about.

niall

you'll never have the entire auto world agree or disagree with additives. there's some that are complete junk forsure.

running a detergent agent or additive is a great idea, as long as the oil is monitored, and changed again shortly thereafter, it helps to free up any sludge in the heads, or clinging to you're rotating assembly.

i've ran seafoam issue-free in a 1200hp twin turbo, alternating every third oil change to help clear the oil passages of my turbos. thats going on about 30000km on that motor.

don't get me started on octane booster though... haha

back on topic though, if he is sure that he poured the correct amount of oil in, letting it sit for a few minutes after to run down, and confirming on the dipstick, then it HAS to be fuel or coolant.

if you're positive it isn't coolant, (proper level, no oil floating in rad/overflow), then start looking at fuel, what kind of economy is he getting?

Yotalover01

He is getting an average of 16 and that's mostly in town! I dunno what it is!!! It's the craziest thing I've ever seen before! The day he bought the truck it was dead on full like its suppose to be and he drove it for a few weeks before Changing it and it never added oil lol, so i don't know it has to be something that come from running that Lucas oil additive and sea foam down the vacuum line? It's odd and he is gonna change the oil in it one more time and see if it does it again! I told him to drive it for 10-15 miles at highway speeds and have it good and warmed up and drop the plug then so all the oil will be thinned out and to just walk away and let it drain for an hour then change his filter and refill it and we will see how that works! There's no oil in the radiator and no coolant in the oil! It looks like good clean oil, no gassy smells and its not thin! So I don't know I just wondered if anyone might've had this or heard of this problem before!!! I know I sure haven't! My 3.0 stays right on full where I left it lol! I guess if it continues to make oil he should get him a barrel and just drain some out once or twice a month and start selling it lol

Co_94_PU

iTrader: (-1)

Consult the manual x2

You need to actually test the oil, unless you've been doing oil changes for 10hrs day for 20 years, and I'd still say test it you maybe having an off day.

Yeah I forget the 3v is a split intake after the throttle. Check the intake tube on the front side at the air cleaner box and TB, if the air box side is clean it has to be the pcv which the tests are covered in the manual. Or realtivly cheap if you just wanna throw money at it.

You should also inspect the oil pan for dents and deformation, something as small as a half inch dent over a signifigant portion of the pan would raise the level a full quart.

Also you can't blindly pour in oil no matter how long it has sat you need to check the level once you have most of it in, let it sit and check it again then top it off. You're not jiffy lube do it right

It is of course a good idea to drop the pan every once in awhile and clean the sludge out, it'll alter the level also. And is a good time to make sure the sump screen is clean.

Yotalover01

Well I don't have time to drop the pan lol! The only way that'll ever happen is if by chance I have the engine out for some unknown and unforeseen reason, god forbid that ever have to happen! And I guess I should've been more clear, I meant refill to mean put only 5 quarts back in it! I am no jiffy lube but I've changed a lot of oil in my time and I've never blindly put oil into an engine! But on the other hand it's his truck and he most likely wont listen to what I tell him to do anyhow lol!

Yotalover01

You've also got a good point about the dent in the pan but this doesn't just happen, he puts the 5 quarts in and it's dead on full! Drives it for say 1000 miles and its risen some! And yes this is checked on a level surface, with the engine cold and all of that! I'm no genius by no means, and I also know that they're a lot of nimrods on here but I sir am not a complete dumbass! Ha! Thanks for the info!

niall

the engine is cold when doing the oil change? how cold? it can take quite some time on an older gummed up engine for the oil to drain from the head to the pan.

i always do an fill with oil, about .5 of a litre (quart-ish for you 'mericans) then fire it up, let it idle for a minute, then hold the throttle about 2500-3000 rpm for about 10 seconds.

it helps run everything through. then check you're level.

Yotalover01

I don't know what temperature it was when he done the previous oil change? I just suggested that he get the truck. Good and warm an change it while it was warm so the oil would be good and thin and flow better! I'm sure when he changed it last time the engine was whatever the ambient temp was, most likely in the 60-75 degree range!

iliketoyota

the most likley thing to me seems to be that oil is staying in the heads and taking awhile to drain down. So it has too much oil all the time, just sometimes its in the pan sometimes its still in the heads.

BamaYota1

Does it have the correct dipstick for the engine? Different motors take different dipsticks.

Have you physically measured the amount that comes out a change?

Pat8942

If it were me I would drain the oil and measure the amount, if it's the same as you put in then you have crud in the pan making it show high on the stick.
Hardware stores sell paint buckets with measurements on them, which make it easy.