Accord Oil Consumption

[Adam]

I changed the oil and started an AutoRx treatment. Since then, I've driven about 500 miles and am down about a quart. Pretty terrible, although it has probably been driven harder in the last 500 miles than it ever has (aside from the general neglect).

I added the last ~1/2 quart from the 5-gal jug I bought to bring the level back up. I still needed to install the new PCV valve from the parts funnel, so I decided to do that as an old valve will not help.

Conveniently, the is really easy to do. Honda put it right in the cylinder head on the passenger side, above the alternator.

Its the thing the hose goes into. A 17mm deep socket removes it from the head. Honda likes using crush washers, so torque the replacement to 33 lb-ft.

The valve was not completely clogged, but the insides weren't nearly as rattly as the new one. I'll continue to monitor the oil consumption. Maybe I should have went right to the heavy-duty AutoRx treatment...
https://www.auto-rx.com/sludge-oil-burning/

Various Honda engines from this era are known to have consumption and sludging problems. It definitely doesn't have anything to do with the recommended oil change interval being between 7500-10000 miles on conventional 5w20 oil. That's just a coincidence.

[kevm14]

Well hopefully it is a gummed up oil ring on the pistons and that can be freed up with Auto RX.

Considering my Caprice mostly leaks a quart every 1200 miles, 500 miles to a quart of oil burned is pretty horrific.

That engine would have been long trashed if someone didn't actually check the oil.

[Adam]

Yeah, I'm not sure how it made it to 180k if its been doing this for a while. There is no engine noise outside of the typical Honda valvetrain noise (Jenn's car has been making that noise for > 200k). I'll ask the guy next time I see him what the story is.

Maybe I'll drive it nicer during the AutoRx cleaning...nope.

[Adam]

Down another quart today. That's ~1.5 qts in ~900 miles. Pretty terrible. I bought another 5 qt. jug. Also the oil looks fairly dirty for the low mileage (and the fact I am using a Mobile 1 filter for the AutoRX treatment).

We can draw some conclusions:
- This thing must have consumed oil before I got it
- AutoRx is probably doing something?
- This is going to be a little pricey for the immediate future...

So what next?
- I can continue the 3000 mile AutoRx treatment as initially planned. At the present rate of consumption, it will use another ~3 qts during this time.
- I can change it soon and start the heavy sludging treatment (2 bottles AutoRx).
- I can do option #1 then do option #2. Then there would be the question of whether or not to run the 3000 mile "rinse" phase.

Any thoughts?

[Adam]

As of yesterday afternoon, I've put about 1400 miles on it. I've added 2.5 qts of oil plus the dipstick showed a quart low again. So that comes out to ~400 miles/qt. This car officially wins the "most oil consumed/leaked" award.

Since I've gone through ~3/4 of the original capacity, there probably wasn't that much AutoRX left in the oil. So I decided to change it. Plus it was already fairly dirty at this interval. AZ was running a special on Bosch-branded oil filters, so I picked up a couple of those plus some more GTX.

Since this counts as the "rinse" phase of the AutoRX treatment, I will evaluate my next steps as I get on towards the ~1500 mile mark. I think it will get as dirty as fast as it did, so I may just do accelerated oil changes for the next several intervals. From there, I may then start a "heavy sludging/consumption" treatment with my last two bottles of AutoRx.

I know some people hate the "change by color" method of oil changes, but remember that method only applies to changing it early. Once the mileage interval is reached for the oil/engine combination, it should be changed regardless of how dirty it looks.

[kevm14]

I suppose it is possible that this engine is worse than the average Accord of this generation due to the manual trans and the previous owner's probably unwillingness to wind it out. The main issue would then be ring pack sludge. I don't really know where the rest of the sludge would come from (like in the oil pan). It seems like it would be linked but I can't quite piece it together. PCV issues? Blow-by ruining the oil somehow?

[kevm14]

The Ranger appears to have consumed about 1 qt in 800 miles. I used HM last change due to some surprise consumption. Hmm. Accidentally added almost 1.5 qts...have to monitor more closely. Is this a Ranger thread?

[Adam]

The PCV valve was fairly clogged, which wasn't helping. Blow-by can degrade the oil faster due to increased levels of fuel in the oil. I'm doing my best to ensure there is enough redline used for the remainder of its life.

[Adam]

The Ranger appears to have consumed about 1 qt in 800 miles. I used HM last change due to some surprise consumption. Hmm. Accidentally added almost 1.5 qts...have to monitor more closely. Is this a Ranger thread?

Thread hijacked?

[kevm14]

Good thing redline is so satisfying. Oh wait.