I have no idea what it might mean, but a very high percentage of the cars listed in the article are German. Is there some German engineering standard at work here that could explain the oil consumption?
I noticed that as the years progressed the percentage of vehicles per make/model requiring topping-off between oil changes dropped… but I saw no mention about having weighted the number for age and/or mileage. As cars age, increased usage could be considered normal.
I have serious issues with the theory that car owners should not have to add oil between oil changes, especially by manufacturers recommending 10,000 mile oil change schedules and 0 weight oils. If the argument were that usage beyond one quart every 3,000 miles should be excessive on a brand new engine, I might agree. But I cannot agree with the premise of the article as it currently is. I also think that CR prescribing to its readers that they should not have to check and/or add oil between changes severely lessens the credibility of the magazine as a reference.
If I were to see the entire magazine issue and read the entire argument I might feel differently, but based on what I saw in the link I’m highly disappointed in CR.
As to the lawyers and the lawsuits? Well, all I can say is that the reason God’s word is absolute is because there are no lawyers in heaven.
I agree that the bigger problem is the 0 weight and the 10K change interval. The same engine might be just fine with the 5W-30 of the old days and 3K mile oil changes. One quart low and nobody will know. But I guess the problem is the average driver would not bother to check the oil level and now we are putting 0 weight oil in the engine and telling them to come back next year.
“Oil changes:
Do it regularly—monthly for a vehicle in good condition; more often if you notice an oil leak or find you need to add oil routinely. The car should be parked on level ground so you can get an accurate dipstick reading. Don’t overfill. And if you do have a leak, find and fix it soon.”
The above is the first suggestion on a list of “Tips on how to maintain your new car” … by Consumer Reports.
Something seems amiss here. Or perhaps I should say inconsistent.
I too call BS on the notion that adding oil between changes indicates a problem.
Something seems amiss here. Or perhaps I should say inconsistent.
You want another piece of amiss or inconsistent “journalism” from Consumer Reports, here’s an article stating that it’s not needed to replace your brake fluid and that it should be topped off regularly to avoid air getting into the lines causing a spongy pedal.
https://www.yahoo.com/autos/s/often-replace-brake-fluid-120000965.html
Whoever wrote that little nugget has no business fixing a sandwich much less a car.
I’m only being the ‘Devil’s Advocate’ here as I am not a mechanic - but I’ve read the advice here hundreds of times that we should follow the owner’s manual for maintenance - ‘since the engineers that designed your car know a lot more about it than you do.’
Why would we replace the brake fluid (when there are no problems) if the manual doesn’t tell us to do it?
I agree with mountainbike and @asemaster
CR should be ashamed of themselves for selling the notion that any oil usage between oil changes is unacceptable
they’ve been around long to enough to know it’s BS
Whatever happened to the idea of “protecting your investment” . . . aka reading the owner’s manual and actually doing what it says. It states clear as day that owners are supposed to check the fluid level, tire pressure, etc.
I like CR and read it regularly, but I don’t always agree with their advice and opinions
As far as the brake fluid goes . . . the idea that it never needs to be changed is 100% BS
Just because the car stops doesn’t mean the brake fluid is okay
Most any gearhead knows that DOT3 is hygroscopic
If you use that logic, you could claim that a radiator full of coolant is okay, never mind the fact that it’s 15 years old an contaminated with engine oil, because you haven’t bothered to fix that head gasket yet
I’ll take it a step further . . .
It infuriates me that TV stations, newspapers, etc. consistently label brake fluid flushes as scam and/or unneeded services when they decide to conduct one of their stings
What’s next . . . maybe some car magazine will say it’s unacceptable for a tire to lose ANY air pressure between scheduled services
Maybe some magazine will say that only race cars need a brake fluid flush, otherwise it’s a scam . . .
I think y’all are overstating CR’s position. They’re not recommending not checking. They are concerned about brand new cars needing a quart every 700-1000 miles. I know I would be.
The way I read it . . .
CR says it’s absolutely unacceptable for modern cars to use any oil between scheduled services
Like I said, that’s the way I personally read it
But I don’t think I’m the only one who read it that way
I was going to link that CR bit about brake fluid but asemaster beat me to it.
I don’t have a problem with considering some oil useage between changes as normal. What I do take issue with is that a quart per 600 to 1000 miles is fine and ducky. If this is supposed to be about clean air then why is spewing countless millions of quarts of oil per day considered fine.
Re CR; the test on the 2013 Camry is just as ridiculous. CR says the body, body fit, and all of the hardware is above average on the 4 cylinder Camry and poor on the 6 cylinder option cars.
Who knew the 6 banger versions were slopped together by a bunch of drunk assembly line workers with reject hardware…
@JoeGuy the car manufacturers do not always know more than the mechanics who work on the cars. There are countless examples of automotive idiocy not only related to basic maintenance but with the design of many things.
The manufacturers who produce solid lifter engines for example are all in lock step by stating that valve lash is to be determined “audibly”. That’s as big a pile of horse excrement as can be found anywhere.
“% Of vehicles that needed at least a quart of oil between oil changes”
To count vehicles that consume a quart of oil in 10,000 mile results in some high numbers. I would like to see a more meaningful chart, perhaps vehicles that required a quart or more in 3,000 or 4,000 miles.
Given that this is a consumer survey, not a controlled study it mostly applies to vehicles that have a low oil level system. Most people without a low oil level warning system don’t know and don’t care if the engine is a quart low.
39 percent either never check their oil or only have it checked when taken in for service.
…and 40% won’t admit they don’t check their engines oil level, 6% didn’t understand the question.
When the typical customer asks me to come out to their car to check something most can’t open the hood.
Nevada’s comment about the other 40 and 6% is my chuckle of the day; though tragically true.
It never ceases to amaze me that someone will scatter their engine due to lack of oil and when questioned after the tow truck arrives will state that “I just checked the oil this morning…”.
They always fudge the facts…
Adding oil between oil chnages can be variable depending upon how car is driven. besides, if you don’t check you oil after the car has warmed up, you could be just checking the “water table”.
Is it possible? Could CR have hired an editorialist with a journalism degree who doesn’t know his digestive track termination from his articulated arm joint?
"… if you don’t check you oil after the car has warmed up, you could be just checking the ‘water table’ ".
I believe this must vary from vehicle to vehicle. On my cars, GM & Chrysler, over the years, I have positively determined (by trying different methods) over the years that I get the most accurate readings by checking oil stone cold. This is subject to change whenever I get a different vehicle.
As folks have reported here, some cars have convoluted dipstick tubes, etcetera, and cars that are difficult to read warm, cold, or whatever.
I know my cars and their oil status. I’m the only guy who checks it, selects it, changes it, and sends samples for analysis.
CSA
“Is it possible? Could CR have hired an editorialist with a journalism degree who doesn’t know his digestive track termination from his articulated arm joint?”
Instead of picking this report apart, I still look at the overall big picture. Customers (of certain cars by make, model, engine) are complaining of excessive oil consumption.
Myself, I would avoid buying a car from the list because I don’t like my cars consuming oil beyond a quart of make-up oil between 5,000 mile changes, even after they are several years old and have 100,000 miles, or even 200,000 miles.
Why chance starting out with an oil-burner?
For people who don’t mind buying and adding oil, I guess the report doesn’t much matter.
Bottom line: Caveat Emptor!
CSA
If I purchased a new car, I wouldn’t be happy if I had to add a quart of oil more often than e every 2500 miles. On the other hand, I have never worried about oil consumption on a used car unless it comumed more than a,quart every 1000_miles.
My experience has been that there are some cars that use some oil but it never seems to get worse. I bought a used 1971Maverick and my first wife’s brother-in-law also owned a 1971 Maverick. Both of our Mavericks had the 250 cubic inch 6 and both of our Mavericks used a quart of oil every 300 miles until the valve stem seals were replaced on both vehicles and both vehicles then went to a quart every 1250 miles. After the valve stem seals were replaced, we both drove our Mavericks_100,000 miles,beyond,what was,on the cars at the time the seals were replaced and the oil consumption remained at 1 quart per 1250 miles. My brother.bought a 1977 Cadillac in ,1982. It used a quart of oil every 900 miles when he bought the car and 150,000 miles later,it still used a quart of oil every 900 miles. I’ve concluded that some cars use a,little oil and the consumption rate doesn’t seem to increase. If I get a good price on a used car, I can live with having to add oil occasionally.
If it weren’t a fact of life that engines burn oil–some at different rates than others–why is it that every gas station, 7-11, grocery store, hardware store, discount outlet and membership club store sells motor oil by the quart? If cars never burned any oil the only place you’d ever see motor oil was in the bulk tanks at the service garage.
The link makes mention of the cost of the oil burned, that adding the appropriate synthetic oil can cost over $9/quart and that that can be a burden to the driver. You’re driving a $50K euroluxe and you’re quibbling about the cost of a quart of oil? Cry me a river.
That CR article is ridiculous and anyone who signed off on the mechanical validity of many points made in that article has no business writing anything automotive.
But a quart of $9 oil every 750-1000 miles? If that’s not troubling on a brand new car, what is? I’d be pissed, regardless of car price.
As I stated earlier, I can get 0W-20 full synthetic oil for $2.69 a quart at my local Rural King store. Now if I had a new car that consumed more than 1quart per 1000 miles, this is what it would get in its crankcase, not $9 a quart name brand oil. I wouldn’t buy a $60 bottle of fine wine if I had a guest coming to visit who drinks heavily. I would have several bottles of Thunderbird or Ripple on hand.