How much oil consumption is acceptable?

[bikemaniac]

Hi,

Can anyone try to describe:

1. How much engine oil consumption is normal in volume pr mile?
2. What is the maximum oil consumption before the engine needs an overhaul?
3. How much oil dripping is acceptable on the workshop floor after a drive? Would be interested in both diff, gearbox and engine itself.

Lucas

[P.S.]

/1. None. Oil consumption should not be noticeable in the interval between oil changes.

2. That is tough to answer. When my Tudor needed an overhaul, it wasn't using any oil, but the oil got dirty quick, and there was a lot of blowby coming from the oil filler tube. The final straw was the head gasket allowing coolant to leak into the cylinders and into the oil pan.

3. Again, that will vary. My rebuilt engine doesn't leak oil, but I do get an occasional drip of tranny fluid from the clutch housing where that hole with the cotter pin is in the bottom. Maybe 1-2 drops after a long drive. That is easily eliminated with the tranny shift rail seals available from the various suppliers. I chose not to use them because my tudor is a sorta blue-ribbon level car.

Your differential should not leak at all.

[J Franklin]

When you see a blue cloud following your every turn, it is at least time to do a re-ring job.

[40 Deluxe]

You're good to go until the oil runs out faster than you can pour it in! Back when an A was just an old car, poor folks would beg used drain oil from gas stations and keep pouring it in.

[Manager]

It's your car, when you can't accept it rebuild it. Unless it breaks before you do.

[Ted Duke]

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Back in the day, I always heard that it was cheaper to buy bulk oil in gallon cans than to do an overhaul on a Chevy!

[Mitch//pa]

buy a brand new car and ask the service dept what the allowable oil consumption quart per miles is... youll find out its approx 800 miles per quart is considered normal give or take

[Rex_A_Lott]

If you can even measure it in "volume per mile", that's a lot. Like was mentioned, a lot of people keep track of how low it is when they are ready to change it....but that distance varies with the owner too.
Most of them will leak a bit if they have much wear on them, but even though its a mess on the driveway or floor, it usually doesnt add up to much.
When its a smoker, or you have to pull in the gas station and say " Fill er up with oil and check the gas", its about time.
Good Luck

[Brendan]

I had a 63 Ranchero, the oil light would come on and the oil pressure gauge would drop to about 10 lbs. I would pull over and dump 3 qts in it. that was after about 100 miles,

[ModelAMike1930]

Years ago I had an old 6 cylinder that burned so much oil I would stop at a gas station and told then to fill up the oil and check the gas.

[Tom Wesenberg]

Back in high school I had a 1949 Plymouth for a few months and would buy a quart of bulk oil for 10 cents to add each time I bought 3 gallons of gas. The first Studebaker I bought used 1 quart of oil each 100 miles. I'll be overhauling the engine when I get around to it. I can live with a quart per 1000 miles, but I'd ring an engine that used more than that.

[BlueSunoco]

I've run 3.0 liter V-6 Fords for years, changed oil every 5,000 miles and none of them were EVER down more than half a quart. In 5,000 miles.

Father -in-law traded for a Chevy pickup in 1986, after driving Fords for many many years. Thought he'd try something else. After he had the truck about a year, he made a round trip from northern Illinois to eastern Tennessee and used 7 qts of oil total, and this was a brand new truck. It never changed. Always sucked oil never leaked had to be burning it off. Chevy dealer told him 'oh, that's normal'. BS. He said 'If that's normal I don't want this GD thing' and went back to Ford and never looked back!!


A quart every 800 or 1,000 miles seems pretty excessive to me

[Tinbasher]

Rule of Thumb I was taught was 1 qt of oil between a oil change.

John Poole

[Mitch//pa]

[QUOTE=BlueSunoco;1105234]I've run 3.0 liter V-6 Fords for years, changed oil every 5,000 miles and none of them were EVER down more than half a quart. In 5,000 miles.

Father -in-law traded for a Chevy pickup in 1986, after driving Fords for many many years. Thought he'd try something else. After he had the truck about a year, he made a round trip from northern Illinois to eastern Tennessee and used 7 qts of oil total, and this was a brand new truck. It never changed. Always sucked oil never leaked had to be burning it off. Chevy dealer told him 'oh, that's normal'. BS. He said 'If that's normal I don't want this GD thing' and went back to Ford and never looked back!!


A quart every 800 or 1,000 miles seems pretty excessive to me[/QUOTE]

it is but thats is the manufactures out to not have to do warranty work...

we have customers burning oil on newer cars all the time. had a 2012 equinox in yesterday burns 1 qt to 1000 miles dealer told him its normal..

[40 Deluxe]

Some manufacturers (GM is one, I believe) have a formula for allowable oil consumption based on fuel mileage! The more gas you burn, the more oil you can burn before they will do any warranty work. If I remember, allowable oil usage gets down to the 500 miles per quart range.

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

Originally Posted by 40 Deluxe

You're good to go until the oil runs out faster than you can pour it in! Back when an A was just an old car, poor folks would beg used drain oil from gas stations and keep pouring it in.

When Chief ran a fillin' station in the '40's, he had a drum, where he offered FREE used oil to PO' customers. He mounted the faucet 1/2 way up in the barrel, to allow ROOM for the CRUD to settle in the barrel!
Bill W.

[Greg Jones]

Comparing oil consumption of model a's to modern cars is a little bit of an apples to oranges thing. Modern cars use a light multigrade oil such as 5-20w which will in fact get "consumed" faster than the oils we typically use in our 85 year old cars.

[hardtimes]

Originally Posted by bikemaniac

Hi,

Can anyone try to describe:

1. How much engine oil consumption is normal in volume pr mile?
2. What is the maximum oil consumption before the engine needs an overhaul?
3. How much oil dripping is acceptable on the workshop floor after a drive? Would be interested in both diff, gearbox and engine itself.

Lucas

Hey Lucas,
1. None ( well dependent on lots of things ; condition of engine and mileage driven). My '30 doesn't 'use' up any between changes as it is new engine with only 1500 mi., and how well engine break in was accomplished..example, my '04 used up a qt every 1000 mi when new, now 5000 mi and maybe one qt..go figure.
2. Depends on condition of engine, i.e.- more ..the more worn out an engine is vs none or very little for new engine.
3. None is acceptable and none can be accomplished when and if enough care and $ is spent to accomplish this goal.

[bikemaniac]

I have a bit of oil dripping from the lower part of the flywheel housing (where the cotter pin is situated). 2 questions:

1. If oil is dripping from that place, isn't there a risk that oil comes in contact with the clutch ... and then you cannot drive anymore?
2. How do you know that the babbit bearings need an overhaul? I suppose that the dripping oil passes by the babbit bearing.

Lucas

[1931 flamingo]

IF you follow the guidelines of changing oil every 500 miles, how much are you losing between changes??
Paul in CT

[bikemaniac]

I have not driven 500 mi since I got the car :-)

[bikemaniac]

I was out on my first long trip yesterday. 150 mi in total. The car ran very good. I even made it run 60 mph. It idles perfect. From reading the dipstick I would estimate the oil consumption goes from "F" to "L" in 500 mi. I dont know how much oil is in between these two marks. Is that consumption problematic?

When I stop the car and jump out of the car to watch it below I see oil dripping and making a small puddle (1 inch diameter before the oil spreads after a while). It guess it stops after some minutes and does not drip anymore then. I think it also drips while driving ... but I have of course no evidence. How do I know if my babbits are damaged or that I "just" need to replace the rear seal? Or is it all within normalities?

Lucas

[Rex_A_Lott]

People look at things differently, so all you are getting is my opinion. Its worth exactly what you paid for it.
You know that your car car uses a little oil. You need to keep an eye on the level. If you have a real babbit problem, its probably going to warn you with a little knock. Thats why they put shims in there. Occasionally you have to take them out, until you run out. Then its time for a rebuild.
You would be surprised how little oil it takes to make a 1 inch spot. Maybe 3 drops.
If you start seeing blue smoke, the rings are probably worn out. No smoke, no knock, no worries, IMHO. Be glad it doesnt run hot.
Congratulations on your long drive. You should have many more, enjoy them!

[WHN]

Originally Posted by 1931 flamingo

IF you follow the guidelines of changing oil every 500 miles, how much are you losing between changes??
Paul in CT

We have a strong rebuilt engine in our 29 that marks it spot each time I park it.

Uses about 1/4 quart of oil at oil change “500” miles.

I have heard that Ford back in the day would say one quart per 500 miles.

We use 20w-50 oil from Walmart. Enjoy.

[eagle]

You can always buy the drip catcher that mounts under the car. Cut a piece of diaper or ?? Pad to soak it up. As long as you aren't smoking out the neighborhood or fouling plugs let it be. Running straight 30
oil may help.

[fundytides]

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My first car was a 34 Ford V8. I think the saying "fill the oil and check the gas" was invented for this car. I carried a 99 cent gallon of Nugold 30 (sold by Canadian Tire) in the back and every time I drove the car I would top it up. Usually got a couple of weeks out of a gallon. Drove the car for a few months then sold it to a guy and told him to make sure he kept it full of oil. He followed my advice until about 6 months later, coming back from a 500 mile trip, the engine blew right in front of my house. He knocked on my door and asked if I would drive him home and said it was all his fault since he was tired on the way home and neglected to top up the oil. Doesn't answer your question but shows that our tolerance for old car's weaknesses maybe has changed.

[woofa.express]

Originally Posted by Tinbasher

Rule of Thumb I was taught was 1 qt of oil between a oil change.

John Poole

Now that really depends on how frequently you change you oil.

[Corley]

"Acceptable" is totally a personal thing. If you find it "acceptable" as is, that is all that matters. Not all will agree, but the old car hobby should be what you want to make it for yourself, not any set of rules that must be followed.

[Jim M]

Wow! I didn't know that was the guideline??? If you drive it a little every day and occasional Sunday jaunt you'd be changing it every month. Sounds like quite a bit??

[daren007]

Like we say in Aviation. As long as you run out of gas before you run out of oil you are ok.

[Bill G]

"acceptable" is a relative term. If you have a car that you drive very occasionally due to state licensing or insurance restrictions, then the cost of rebuilding the engine might seem excessive just to cure a little oil consumption. Especially on a car that (officially) calls for oil changes every 500 miles any way.

The prevalent thinking is that if your Model A doesn't leak, it must be empty.

[Hoovercw]

Before my rebuild I was using a quart every 75 miles. It would run like a top and go all day long as long as you kept it full of oil. Smoked but not as bad as you would think. I found most of the problem was oil going through the valve guides. It was the most worn out engine I had ever had apart that had not ended itself in catastrophic failure. It rarely if ever left a spot. Now its burning about 1/2 every 500 miles and but leaves spots when parked. Go figure.