oil loss-Im stumped
09-28-2015, 08:39 AM
#2
Registered User
That is confusing. My first suspicions would be valve cover gasket and main seals, so I'd be checking for wetness behind the head, under the crank pulley, and on the Bell housing.
If you're satisfied they are completely dry and clean, next is compression test to see if you have rings issues. Then for good measure do a block test to check that HG. Remember that HGs can breach in various places so it's not always easy to see a clue like oil in the coolant.
10w30 should not be consumed by the quart. But you could bump up to 10w40. I assume you're checking it regularly. How much would you be adding if you checked it weekly, like every Saturday?
If it's burning it up, smoke should be bluish and you should be getting a greasy black residue buildup on the back end of your truck, well depending on where your tailpipe exits. Is tailpipe inside greasy or sooty? Wipe it out with a good degreaser and see how quickly it cruds up again. It should not accumulate quickly. I had exhaust replaced a few weeks ago and just now went to look at how much soot had built up. Barely enough to make my fingerprint grey.
Good luck.
If you're satisfied they are completely dry and clean, next is compression test to see if you have rings issues. Then for good measure do a block test to check that HG. Remember that HGs can breach in various places so it's not always easy to see a clue like oil in the coolant.
10w30 should not be consumed by the quart. But you could bump up to 10w40. I assume you're checking it regularly. How much would you be adding if you checked it weekly, like every Saturday?
If it's burning it up, smoke should be bluish and you should be getting a greasy black residue buildup on the back end of your truck, well depending on where your tailpipe exits. Is tailpipe inside greasy or sooty? Wipe it out with a good degreaser and see how quickly it cruds up again. It should not accumulate quickly. I had exhaust replaced a few weeks ago and just now went to look at how much soot had built up. Barely enough to make my fingerprint grey.
Good luck.
09-29-2015, 07:25 AM
#3
Sounds like the same issue I had when I first bought my 83 - clean coolant, clean oil, clean plugs, no smoke, ran fairly well, but I was blowing through about 2 quarts of oil at every fill up (about 200-250 miles). The only time that it actually looked like I was burning oil was when I shifted - I would get a little puff of blue smoke when shifting into each gear. Turns out that I actually had some pretty considerable blow by and was basically dumping oil out of my exhaust without burning it. I hung your typical canned vegetable can from my tail pipe and actually collected about a 1/4 can of oil after letting it idle for about 20 minutes. It was actually a mixture of oil and condensation (which is normal) but I could clearly see how much oil vs condensation I had after I let it settle. It was unreal! Most of the consumption was occurring at initial start up because the oil in the head would drip down through the worn valve seals. Think about it like this, I had 30 year old seals that are basically made of rubber - they are bound to deteriorate after that amount of time. Not to mention that the guy that owned my 83 before me was an absolute idiot and was dumping so much excess fuel through the carb that the oil was being washed from the cylinder walls by fuel so my rings weren't sealing well either - that just made it worse. So the combination of worn rings and bad seals was a double whammy for me. I was basically pressurizing my crankcase with the blow by which was forcing even more oil through my bad valve seals. Since it was leaking primarily through the valve seals and the exhaust seals typically wear quicker, not as much oil was entering the combustion chamber thus no burning oil and it was flowing right out of the exhaust.
Here's what to check:
-Look at the exhaust like I did - use a can to see how much oil you collect. It will be thinned because of condensation as well as gas in your oil. Blow by can cause unburnt fuel to seep into your oil thus thinning it and also making it burn "Cleaner" and you exhaust won't be as blue as it would be if you were burning straight oil.
-Check your PCV valve and breather hose - make sure that they aren't clogged and are free flowing. You can also check to see how much blow by you really have by take off your oil cap and flipping it over and placing it on the oil filler neck upside down with the engine idling. It should stay put on its own and not blow off even with a little bit of throttle. If it blows off then you have excessive blow by.
-Check your valve seals. You won't be able to see them very well because of the springs will be in your way, but there will be other signs. Particularly on the exhaust side, you will see caramelized oil on the springs, valve stems and rocker tappets. This is from the exhaust seeping by the seals and burning the oil. It will be in a concentric pattern around the valves but the rest of the head may look clean.
If you do have considerable blow by and worn valve stem seals, there are no permanent solutions short of at least a basic rebuild; however, there are a couple of short term "fixes" that you can try. DO NOT run any cleaning additives through your engine (ie: Seafoam, carbon deposit remover additives, etc..). They will "clean off" the carbon build up that has been helping to keep your cylinders sealed - even if it seems like it isn't. Try a high viscosity motor oil. I bumped up to Shell Rotella 15W-40 diesel oil and it dropped my consumption down to about a 1/2 quart between fill ups. Your oil pressure will increase slightly, but it won't cause any damage to your engine. You can also try STP's Oil Treatment. I LIVE BY THIS STUFF! I have put it in at every oil change on every vehicle that I have owned (New and old) and I have driven well over a half million miles without a single engine problem. It just raises the viscosity of the oil and helps moisten and lubricate seals. But like I said, these aren't solutions, they are fixes that will keep you running half way decent until you can yank the engine for a rebuild.
Here's what to check:
-Look at the exhaust like I did - use a can to see how much oil you collect. It will be thinned because of condensation as well as gas in your oil. Blow by can cause unburnt fuel to seep into your oil thus thinning it and also making it burn "Cleaner" and you exhaust won't be as blue as it would be if you were burning straight oil.
-Check your PCV valve and breather hose - make sure that they aren't clogged and are free flowing. You can also check to see how much blow by you really have by take off your oil cap and flipping it over and placing it on the oil filler neck upside down with the engine idling. It should stay put on its own and not blow off even with a little bit of throttle. If it blows off then you have excessive blow by.
-Check your valve seals. You won't be able to see them very well because of the springs will be in your way, but there will be other signs. Particularly on the exhaust side, you will see caramelized oil on the springs, valve stems and rocker tappets. This is from the exhaust seeping by the seals and burning the oil. It will be in a concentric pattern around the valves but the rest of the head may look clean.
If you do have considerable blow by and worn valve stem seals, there are no permanent solutions short of at least a basic rebuild; however, there are a couple of short term "fixes" that you can try. DO NOT run any cleaning additives through your engine (ie: Seafoam, carbon deposit remover additives, etc..). They will "clean off" the carbon build up that has been helping to keep your cylinders sealed - even if it seems like it isn't. Try a high viscosity motor oil. I bumped up to Shell Rotella 15W-40 diesel oil and it dropped my consumption down to about a 1/2 quart between fill ups. Your oil pressure will increase slightly, but it won't cause any damage to your engine. You can also try STP's Oil Treatment. I LIVE BY THIS STUFF! I have put it in at every oil change on every vehicle that I have owned (New and old) and I have driven well over a half million miles without a single engine problem. It just raises the viscosity of the oil and helps moisten and lubricate seals. But like I said, these aren't solutions, they are fixes that will keep you running half way decent until you can yank the engine for a rebuild.
Last edited by kawazx636; 09-29-2015 at 07:32 AM.
09-30-2015, 08:05 AM
#5
I noticed that you said that you use Castrol GTX - I usually use Mobile One synthetic in my wife's Camry, but I ended up using Castrol synthetic oil once and noticed that it consumed nearly 2.5 quarts when I changed the oil the next time. Her car typically only consumes about a 1/4 quart of oil in between oil changes. I put the usual Mobile One back in and it has been fine every since. I'm not saying that Castrol is a bad oil and I certainly don't want to start an oil brand battle her, but I think that was a pretty weird phenomena.
I use only Mobile One for a synthetic, Rotella T5 Synthetic Blend for diesel and Valvoline for convention oil (which is what I use in my 83 22R). That's not to say that other oils aren't better, but that is what has always worked for me so I stick with it. Maybe try switching oils to see what happens - sounds stupid, but you never know.
I use only Mobile One for a synthetic, Rotella T5 Synthetic Blend for diesel and Valvoline for convention oil (which is what I use in my 83 22R). That's not to say that other oils aren't better, but that is what has always worked for me so I stick with it. Maybe try switching oils to see what happens - sounds stupid, but you never know.
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10-06-2015, 05:39 AM
#8
Well used some stp oil treatment and dropped a quart of oil in that i had leftover,going up a fairly long steep bridge herein town and have a car pass me,saw in my rear view mirror the haze of smoke ive never seen in the day time,let off the gas then stomped it again in 4th gear,more haze.guess it starts blowing by at higher rpms and a strain.
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