losing oil

[h3ctic]

G'day guys,

i have a 97 wide body cam and it seems to be losing oil. i did a service at home about a month or so ago and gave her a nice amount of oil sitting smack in the middle of the dip stick. now she's below low. i've been doing some long distance driving, but other then that, nothing new. anyone got any ideas why or how she could be losing oil? i've looked around the head and there doesnt seem to be a leak. could there be an oil seal leak somewhere burning oil?

thanks for the input

[Guni]

G'day guys,

i have a 97 wide body cam and it seems to be losing oil. i did a service at home about a month or so ago and gave her a nice amount of oil sitting smack in the middle of the dip stick. now she's below low. i've been doing some long distance driving, but other then that, nothing new. anyone got any ideas why or how she could be losing oil? i've looked around the head and there doesnt seem to be a leak. could there be an oil seal leak somewhere burning oil?

thanks for the input

You could be burning engine oil. Check for smoke from your exhaust. Valves worn ....

[Blind Kid Seeks]

is it smokey on start up? On full throttle? After you've stopped at the lights and then take off again?

how many K's has your engine done?

[h3ctic]

she's done abt 120 000km so not too many. wen the engine is cold she smokes a bit. but thats normal enough. wen its warm, i dont notice any smoke coming out the back. to mayb i should check that again. if it was, then it wouldnt be much cos id see it through my rear view. i don't really work the engine hard mind you. not much of a rev head.

[Blind Kid Seeks]

magic oil fairies....... those bastards

[lateralus]

easiest diagnostic - is there an oil puddle under your engine? what viscosity oil are you using?

if you've got blue smoke blowing from your exhaust, then it could be several things:

worn piston rings

leaking o-rings or seals

leaking gaskets

if youre using a thinner viscosity oil, then that would explain the high consumption. in that case, try using a thicker oil and see how you go. even if you don't drive you car hard, that doesn't mean you can't get engine failures.

fwiw, you should also fill the oil up to the 'full' mark on the dipstick.

[h3ctic]

im using 20w-50 atm.

could the colder temps of these days be a factor?

i should fill it up to full? i always thought that a below it was the mark to hit.

[mbruce]

No, it should be up to the full mark, that’s why it’s the full mark.

The cold shouldn’t have any bearing on oil consumption.

It must be leaking out somewhere.

[Rolla Boy]

Widebody camry's are known for chronic oil leaks...

You'll have to jack the front of the car up and have a look from underneath...

If there is no oil leaking, then do a compression test, dry and then wet to test the rings and also leave the car overnight for a valve stem seal test in the morning...

[h3ctic]

aight, ill jack her up and see how it looks and we'll go from there.

btw, since the weather is quite cold these days, should i look to changing to a different oil rather than 20w-50?

[RoM2nV]

There is a product called 'stop smoke' available from marlz/supercheap etc. Looks liek some kind of oil thickener but it claims to stop excess exhaust smoke and oil burning. Only a couple of bucks so it could be a quick fix.

[DJKOR]

Lucas engine oil treatments are pretty good as well. They aren't a 'fix-all' solution, but can sometimes help out.

[lateralus]

aight, ill jack her up and see how it looks and we'll go from there.

btw, since the weather is quite cold these days, should i look to changing to a different oil rather than 20w-50?

considering you've got oil leaks, lower viscosity oils won't help much at all. you'll lose more oil quicker!

even so, unless you know for certain your engine is in tip-top shape, try to stay away from lower viscosity oils if you have higher km's. the wear on components generally doesn't go well with thin lubricants (i think 15w-40 is a perfect compromise).

[Rolla Boy]

There is a product called 'stop smoke' available from marlz/supercheap etc. Looks liek some kind of oil thickener but it claims to stop excess exhaust smoke and oil burning. Only a couple of bucks so it could be a quick fix.

Stop Smoke will only help to stop the smoke...

Wynns Supreme Engine Oil Stop-Leak is the product if you wanna take the cheaper option...

Better off finding the leak and getting it fixed...