What is "normal" oil consumption? Topic is solved

Post by **erikv11** » 11 Apr 2018, 17:25

My P80 Volvos do not burn much oil, including the V70 (at 275k miles right now). Using an OCI of approx 6k miles, I do not have to top them off between changes.

Post by **rguzz** » 11 Apr 2018, 17:59

Check crank vent system, examine plugs, do a compression test, experiment a bit with different oils, think about valve stem seals maybe later, and make sure you aren't leaking enough to make a difference. My 1 quart/1000 mile usage dropped to nothing after vent system done, then valve stem seals, which ended up being the most likely culprit. Probably never would have done them except I burned a valve, so there I was. Bottom end has well in to the 200k miles, rings are fine. I agree, unlike VAG products, these motors don't normally use any oil to speak of.

WhatAmIDoing · Post by **WhatAmIDoing** » 11 Apr 2018, 18:13

My motto always was: if you don't have to add oil between oil changes, than oil consumption is acceptable.

+1 for Mobil1 10W-40. Was leaking 1 quart ever 600 miles with 10W-30 out the bad RMS. Now I got it down to a quart every 2k miles. Only down side is that fuel economy took a hit by -3mpg.

Post by **oragex** » 11 Apr 2018, 19:36

I have the later 2.4 non turbo and it runs on 0W-40. Doesn't take any oil between changes and I do rev it once in a while. Oil consumption is mainly from PCV as mentioned above, or from issues with the piston oil rings. The PCV is a big issue on these cars, because when the problems starts it creates positive pressure and blows oil into the piston compression rings and causes them to get stuck after a while. Plus it affects some engine seals, and can create sludge inside the oil pan which affects rod bearing lubrication.

I'd definitely replace the PCV as preventative maintenance at an early stage, rather than wait for it to fail. Something like every 50K miles.

callahanoffroad · Post by **callahanoffroad** » 11 Apr 2018, 20:31

Thanks for all the responses. Pcv system was changed in entirety, about 3k miles ago. Sucks strong. So it's not that.

Running 10-30 oil, was running 10-40 but it was eating about the same amount of oil. So I took the +2mpg and have been running with it.

I'm getting an oil change tomorrow (which is hilarious to say bc I burn through about 3qts of oil between oil changes).

I'm sure you've all seen my build thread "Herman and Operation 30mpg"

I'll be honest about at-205, in technical school they beat it into our heads that those type of products were just Band-Aids and that when they stopped working it was because of catastrophic failure. So I'm open to trying it but I'm terrified it'll swell the valve stem seals and they'll just fail. Hahaha! Yeah I've got issues.

I'm off tomorrow so I'll pull the plugs and see what they look like. I think I'm going to do a compression test too weather depending.

I'm not very confident the motor is in good shape. It sat for about 2 years before I bought the car.

It's days like today that I really wish I had rented a place with a garage!!!

Post by **nickelghandi** » 12 Apr 2018, 07:15

Mine doesn't even use half a quart between changes every 5000 miles.

Something is definitely up. Compression test, thicker oil, PCV, etc. as others have mentioned. Start small.

Post by **misha** » 12 Apr 2018, 10:11

In 5k miles it wouldn't use any...wait for other 3-5k miles and you will see how much it will burn.
Oil degrades as it gets old and abused with city stop&go traffic.
Oil change interval is 3-5k or 6 month whichever comes first for severe service(lots stop & go city traffic)...8-10k or one year...again whichever comes first for regular service(mostly open road or highway).

Post by **nickelghandi** » 12 Apr 2018, 10:46

Mostly open road. Very little stop and go. Every 5k or 6 months, whichever comes first (always 5k) and I run 10w30 synthetic. I am pretty easy on this car though. I have a quart in the trunk just in case, but I have never had to top off. If I drove it harder and kept it in boost more, I am sure I would use some more oil. Even when my head gasket failed allowing oil to enter the cooling system, it didn't show any real sign of losing oil. The cooling system may be one place to check. Coolant should be green, blue, or red depending on what you have in there. Anything other than what it should be and you have something corroding or contaminating it.

That 5k or 6 months is the standard I use on all of my vehicles except my Pathfinder which uses a bit of oil between changes, but the VQ3500DE is known to use some oil between changes. Maybe it helps them run better longer, maybe I just like wasting money. Either way, I have no problems that I would associate with my engine oil.

The main idea here is that generally, these cars don't burn much oil, but his is using it or leaking it from somewhere.

When you did the PCV did you also clean/replace the PTC valve near the turbo inlet?

Are you absolutely sure it isn't leaking from somewhere? You can dye the oil and find out pretty quickly with a UV light.