Ok, this one is odd to me. I'm losing about 2qts of oil every couple of months. There is no oil in the coolant, so, i'm assuming it's not the head gasket. My car is a '00 Sunfire GT. The car is about to hit 100,000 miles. Any suggestions on where to look? I need it to stay around for a while.
TIA,
Jim
PCV system not operating correctly, leaking, or the rings are shot.
- 2004 Cavalier - 124k, owned since new
guess i should've been more specific.....no spots under car, and it was my understanding that the 2.4's didnt have a PCV valve?
They don't have a PCV valve.... they use a baffle on the front of the block.
its going out the tail pipe lol
Okay well I didnt know they didnt have PCV vavles.
Secondly I would get the car jacked up and looked anyways. It could be leaking say onto the subframe, and you wouldnt see it dripping on the pavement.
Finally this can also be your piston rings on worn out.
Need to do a compression test. If you do and there is more than 10% difference between cylinder pressure youve got a problem.
- 2004 Cavalier - 124k, owned since new
Rob S wrote:
Finally this can also be your piston rings on worn out.
Need to do a compression test. If you do and there is more than 10% difference between cylinder pressure youve got a problem.
^^^ that'd be my guess @ 100k...
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Jim, I'm having the same problem. Every oil change, I am usually about a quart to 1.5 qts short on oil. I didn't have any spots on the drive, and just attributed it to a bit of burnoff. ( I leave newspaper underneath to make sure). So my question is...how easy is a compression test to do? Thanks!
ShiftyCav wrote:thats probably the dumbest thing i have ever heard. you should take that serpentine belt and wrap it around your neck.
Piston blow-by or bad valve seals can cause it to burn oil.
My '96 2.4L with 140K miles uses a quart of oil every 1,000 miles. I'll just keep driving it until it becomes really bad.
mtbon
Well you need a compression tester.
You MUST disconnect the Coil. You MUST disconnect fuel supply.
Then you remove all the spark plugs.
Put the gauge in the hole. Crank the engine an equal number of times for eahc cylidner. If your readings are say
180, 185, 190, 182 its good.
If they are say 113, 107, 114,121
its bad
- 2004 Cavalier - 124k, owned since new
and it if says 180,185,107,178.. then you're really in trouble..
Red 2005 Saturn Ion-3 Coupe
Another thing you can try is letting the car idle for about 5 minutes. HOT. Then have someone revv the car half throttle about 3 grand. If no smoke your stem seals are fine(also watch it when you start it from sitting there cold that's another indication of seals). Then revv the car full throttle then letting off completely over and over between 6500 and 5000 rpm for about 15-20 seconds. If there is smoke then it's oil rings. Your compression can be fine but your oil rings shot.
Secondly, if your burning that much oil your probably gonna have a black plug(s) somewhere. Check them if you decide to do a compression test.
If those don't smoke you'll need to check your blow-by system.
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'96 Cavalier Good ol' Pushrod 2.2
-24X,000 miles on factory build
-Some oil loss between changes, me thinks it be rings.
David Jones wrote: Your compression can be fine but your oil rings shot.
.
Bad rings will cause low compression. Bad intake, exhaust valves, or piston rings, or head gasket all cause low compression.
- 2004 Cavalier - 124k, owned since new
^Yeah. If oil can get in, air can get out.
The valve seals are a pretty good desing in the 2.4. I doubt they're leaking unless you blew them off somehow (highly unlikely).
Probably the rings are shot. It happens...
