High oil consumption on 96 Integra...?

Good day all -

Trying to isolate where this is coming from. The car is a 5-speed LS
with just over 125K miles, which I have owned since 1998 (30K miles).

Over the past 2 years or so, the oil consumption has been getting
progressively worse. I just made a weekend trip of 600 miles - fresh
after changing the oil this week - and burned roughly *1/2 quart* of
oil. This is quite a lot. I seem to consume about 1 - 2 quarts of
oil between changes, which I do religiously every 3K miles (which is
about every 6 weeks for me).

I do most of my own basic maintenance, I have been doing my own oil
changes for the past year or so after one-too-many bad experiences
with Walmart, Canadian Tire and the like. And $40 for a Mr Lube job
is a bit steep.

Anyway, I use Valvoline 5w30 and a Fram filter. I wash my K&N filter
twice a year (my only engine "mod") and swap the plugs once a year or
so. I take much pride in my car and consider myself as someone who
takes very good care of his car and does not *abuse* it - although
revving it from time to time is not completely out of the question.
;-) Anyway, back on track...

- I park underground in the same spot all the time, and there is not a
single drip of oil on the ground.
- My exhaust (which is original, BTW!) does not blow any smoke of any
colour, not even on cold start.
- Oil does not seem to be leaking into any other fluids such as the
radiator coolant, nor does it appear to be leaking from any gaskets.


So where could all this oil be going? Opinions?...

Thx!

Kevin

 

---------------------------------------
Kevin,
A defective PCV valve can cause lots of vapour to be 'siphoned off' into
the intake, where it burns fairly clean, leaving no trace. If it gets
too bad it can start to affect your Catalytic Converter. Personally, I'd
use 10w30 in summer, anyhow.

'Curly'

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Hmmm... both interesting theories. Thanks for the suggestions.

As for the PCV Valve, I actually had that replaced about a year or two
ago. I have not checked it recently, but that does sound reasonable.
Perhaps it may have gone defective...? I'll check that out.

Regarding the air filter, I do still have the original box filter at
home, so maybe I will try swapping that back on with a new filter.
Definitely can't hurt! Although it will take a little getting used to
the "OEM" sound of the engine after getting used to the growl that is
heard when stomping the gas with an open filter. ;-)

Thanks again guys.

- Kevin

 

I don't see 1qt./1K miles as all that unusual at 125K miles - Honda will
tell you it's "normal" even when new. Our '92 at same mileage is similar.
For me though, it seems that most of the loss is in in shortish local trips
- a long trip shows hardly any drop at all. Changing the PCV had no effect
for me but I'm pretty sure the old one was shot anyway - difficult to tell
when the hoses get hard.

Do you have any sign of piston slap? Mine has very mild when it's below
freezing and with the terrain where we live, I can easily ease off to
minimize it till warm, when it disappears. It's probably a sign that the
rings are getting a bit tired though.

In your situation, I'd lose the K&N filter - too many dubious stories - and
change the oil immediately after. In Summer I'd also use 10W/30 but
probably doesn't make that much difference. I find the plugs in modern low
emissions engines difficult to read - they always seem to be blackish
rather than greyish - but no sign of oil there? I don't want to start
another "debate" but I don't trust the Fram oil filters either.

How is the camshaft end plug? Those always seem to leak a bit with age and
don't last long from replacement till they're leaking again - and it's not
enough to get to the floor and show a drip. I also have some *mild*
seepage around the oil pan gasket... nothing I'm going to change it for but
again it seems to dry up before it hits the floor... or it gets burned off
by the exhaust.

Rgds, George Macdonald

"Just because they're paranoid doesn't mean you're not psychotic" - Who, me??

 

Is "piston slap" another word for "knocking"? In any case, the engine
does not seem to sound much different (cold or warm) that it ever has.
But then again, such a change would be so gradual that it's difficult
to tell.

Yes - that is what I was thinking, or putting the OEM intake back on
with a new paper filter. Unfortunately, I had left these parts at my
parents place when I moved out a little over 2 years ago. Just found
out that my dear mother disposed of these old car parts since I had
not touched them in years (without checking with me)... GRRR! In any
case, I am now in a position that if I want to go OEM I will need to
find one - and I hate to pay money to "mod" back to OEM. Not to
mention that I don't even know if it will help the problem. I assume
that all Integras (94-01) with this engine use the same intake? Will
call the dealer to confirm... So, now I am looking for someone
selling off an OEM intake, or else I will check with some
scrapyards...

Any idea where I can get an OEM intake for a 96 Integra for cheap?

I'm due to change the plugs soon. Although I have never seen any oil
on the plugs before.

Heh heh.... yeah, that can sometimes result in a heated debate, which
I am not going to get into. ;-) But I've never had a problem with
Fram before.

Hmmm... never checked that. Then again, I guess I'd have to look up
in the manual to see what I'm looking for (a bit beyond my
knowledge at the moment).

Sounds like a reasonable possibility.

In the short term, I am going to replace the PCV Valve as another
poster suggested, as this is cheap & easy. I pulled it out and
rattled it, and the bearing does indeed sound loose which would imply
it is likely functioning fine, but for $5-$10... why not? Checking my
records, I last had it changed in November 2001 - almost 40K miles
ago... so it wouldn't hurt to do it again.

A mechanic friend of mine is supposed to do some work for me at the
end of the month, so I'll have him look for symptoms. I'm just trying
to do a little homework and the easy things in advance...

Thanks for the response, George!


- Kevin

 

I would post a request on r.a.m.h.