Hi,
Can anyone tell me how much oil a 200,000 mile engine should use?
I have a 01 vectra 1.8 petrol and it uses about a litre of oil every 1000 miles and I can't find any leaks.
I normally do about 1000 miles in a week and am always topping it up.
Is there anything I can do to improve this?
Thanks
Mark
|
I'd say that's nothing to worry about in that engine at that mileage. For what it's worth, MB reckon that consumption up to 1L per 1000km is acceptable.
However, someone with an intimate knowledge of the engine may be able to pinpoint something that needs replacing or adjusting. Has it been rebuilt at all? The mileage suggests it has had a very healthy life, but even so it's asking a lot of any engine to get past 200k without some sort of major attention.
|
Thanks Roger
The engine hasn't been rebuilt and it still runs smoothly. I was just concerned that it may be a little worn.
I know a guy that does engine work. What is it that actually causes oil usage? Are there any seals or anything like that or is it the actual cylinders that wear?
Is it worth cleaning the valves and changing the stem seals?
The cars like an old pair of shoes, don't really want to change it.
|
|
|
I agree with Roger - at 200k this engine could now be considered "well used", and although it will probably run on reliably for a good while yet, you have to expect things to start showing signs of wear.
If it's burning oil (which it must be if it's not leaking), this is usually via the valve stem seals (does it smoke at all on cold starts?) or ring/bore wear. The latter usually shows up on a compression test which can be done quickly and cheaply at most garages. Valve stem seals used to be a known weakness on high mileage Vauxhall engines, but whether this still applies I don't know.
Parts are cheap (a couple of quid per seal usually), with the bulk of the cost being labour. I've heard of this being done with the head in situ on some engines, although the accepted method is to take the head off to change these seals. This obviously can incur sizeable labour charges.
I guess your next action depends on whether you can do the work yourself, and how much time and money you want to invest in the car.
cheers
DP
|
|
On the plus side at least there's always fresh clean oil in there! ;o)
|
I applaud your "old pair of shoes" attitude. Changing the valve-stem seals shouldn't be that big a deal, if that's what is recommended -- cheap parts and, what, five hours of labour by an independent solo mechanic at £40+ an hour? I've had two head gaskets changed, plus seals; on M103 MBs (straight six) the whole job is reckoned to be seven man-hours.
However, given what you've said, I'd stick with "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" for now and keep a close eye on it.
|
|
Worn bores-worn valve guides/seals but leave it alone ,just keep putting oil in-if you change something it will wear out quicker!!
|
|
You'll find the handbook suggests that the engine can consume up to 1litre of oil per 1000 miles.
|
I think you should keep a keen eye on the oil level.
If the car doesn't have an oil light this can be a problem.
I would also suggest to keep the engine to lower revs. My scooter has this problem, and all the oil burnt leaving none in it. A daily top up/ check is probably a good idea and it might get worse.
|
what oil do you use and what sort of journeys do you do?
Is it worth switching to a slightly thicker or non-synthetic oil ?
|
a change of oil brand/grade may help things
corrado vr6's tend to use alot and ive seen a few posts on other forums where the ownder changed brand and cut the oil consumption
|
Thanks for the info guys.
I think I will try a differnt brand of oil for a bit, i've been using vauxhalls own (don't know why).
I think the valve stem seals must be ok as I have had no smoke.
Maybe it is normal whatever that is.
Come to think of it, there is a very slight whistle/ring sometimes, usually when i've been on a long run (which is common) and the car is warm.
Compression test sounds like a good idea. Does anyone know approx how much this costs?
|
I can recommend Magnatec for Older Engines: it's a 10-40 and makes a considerable difference to oil consumption in son's Fiesta. But check on Castrol's site.
madf
|
i've been using vauxhalls own (don't know why).
Simple. It's a good quality oil.
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=32368
I take it you're using the 10W/40 semi synth?
|
|
With that mileage and cosumption you could move up to 20w/50.
|
|
|
|
I have the same car, same engine, same year, but only 114,000 on the clock. It uses about a litre every 3,000 - 4,000 miles (I don't really count). I bought mine at 2 years old and 64,000 miles. It was ex Vauxhall and had been on 20k oil changes and doesn't seem to have suffered - presumably yours was too? How frequently do you change the oil now?
|
Yes, mine was 3 years old 86000 miles from vauxhall.
I change the oil and filter every 10,000 miles.
I've just looked through the handbook and it says that for every 1000km it should use approx 0.6 litres.
I'm gonna be a total geek and reset the mileage counter to see exactly what i'm getting after 1000 miles.
I'll stick with the vauxhall oil for now then.
Vauxhall sell engine flush, is it worth using that every time you do an oil change or shall I not bother?
Thanks for all the info.
|
I guess you're more concerned about the mechanical implications of oil consumption rather than its cost. That being so, I wonder whether you might see a difference if you were to reduce the change interval. Although you're doing plenty of miles (and that's good), the 10k interval could be pushing it a bit. I follow HJ's advice:
www.honestjohn.co.uk/faq/faq.htm?id=13
where he says "If you are a higher-mileage driver doing 15,000 miles a year or more, consider stretching your oil changes to 6,000 miles. If you do 25,000 miles or more and use fully-synthetic oil, consider stretching to 7,500 miles but no further."
And from here:
www.honestjohn.co.uk/faq/faq.htm?id=34
the owner of the 2 million mile Volvo says:
"· Use one brand of oil. 'Using one brand of oil assures uniform quality.' ?
I shall never forget that the MB W126 that I test-drove with 370k on the clock had an engine as sweet as a nut and a service history of 6k changes of the same brand and spec of oil.
I wouldn't do a flush. Fresh oil is your best friend, and stick to what you've been using.
|
|
But this car is getting an oil changes every 3,500 miles as, IIRC, the capacity is 3.5 litres. Although of course only the filter changed every 10,000 miles and the opportunity for any crud in the sump to be drained off.
|
|
|
|
