Thank you for the info. The oil change was done by the dealer; at no time has oil been added before or since this initial oil change at 5,000 miles. The engine is a 3.6L V6. Do you know whether this engine is prone to oil loss problems?
Sometimes it takes 10,000 miles for rings to seat in a new engine. When you were breaking in the car, did you vary the speeds for the first 1000 miles?
I know that GM did have problems in the distant past with new engines. When Buick brought out the 322 cubic inch V-8 in 1953, owners complained about oil consumption. It turned out that this engine had a rather long break-in period. GM made a running change in the piston rings for this engine to answer future complaints. However, once these engines with the original rings did get broken in, they seemed to run forever with no problems.
As I remember, the Chevrolet V-8 introduced in 1955 had some oil consumption problems as did the newly introduced V-8 in the Pontiac of that year. In these engines back in the 1950s, we were talking about serious oil consumption–1 quart every 300-400 miles. If you are using a half pint of oil every 4000 miles, I don’t think you have a problem. Please understand that I am looking at your situation from a geezer’s perspective.
I pretty much agree with all the info provided so far. I don’t think you have a problem and I think it will use less oil in the near future as the engine breaks in.
I assume you are using your oil change light or sensor built into your vehicle, you should. And it would be normal to be down by 1/8 to 1/4 of a quart at oil change time.
If your oil change reminder is coming on at around 4500 miles, then I’d guess that you do a lot of city driving, and I’d guess that you are pretty easy on the car. Not that any of that is bad, but a couple of hard accelerations, about half throttle and not to exceed the speed limit, will help seat the rings. It should only take a couple of them to do the job. Be sure to pick a safe area to do them.
1/4 quart at 4500 miles is a quart every 18,000 miles. Moat manufacturers consider a quart every 1000 miles to be acceptable. Your amoun of oil usage is downright healthy.
Understand that all engines burn some small amount of oil. The oil ring’s function is not to wipe all the oil off of the cylinder walls, but rather to wipe the cylinder walls down such that only a slight film of oil remains, caught up in the imperfections of the cylinder wall, to lubricate the compression ring as it’s forced down the cylinder wall by the combustion. That slight film of oil over which the compression ring slides is burned in the combustion process and sent out the exhaust.
New or rebuilt engines’ cylinders are even “honed”, which is a process of leaving visable acrstches of a controlled size in a controlled pattern for the purpose of retaining this film. Proper engine breakin and proper cylinder lubrication depend on proper honing.
I suppose another question is what brand and weight of oil is the dealer using? Some oils seem to agree better with certain engines than others. You might try a full-synthetic like Mobil-1 and see if it reduces oil consumption. On my 1994 Chrysler with a V6, I used to go through a quart or more between 3,000 mile oil changes. When I switched to Mobil-1 shortly after I got it, oil use dropped down to 1/2 quart or less per 5,000 mile oil changes, and has held steady, even with about 260K miles on the car.
Many manufacturers consider oil consumption of one quart, or less, per 1000 miles to be “normal.”
I find it hard to believe a quart every 1000 miles to be considered normal
Hello,
I am the technical manager at Fram filters. I am also a mechanic with a repair shop. Using one quarter of one quart at 4500 miles is very normal oil consumption. You should make sure that your oil change place is using the correct oil. It has become very critical with many new cars to use the correct oil and many quick lubes are still dumping 10w30 bulk oil into cars when they shouldnt. You can be assured that they are not using the correct oil and a quality oil filter if you are paying 24.95 or less for an oil change.These are GM’s specs for your car.
ENGINE OIL TYPE
Look for three things:
Your vehicle’s engine requires oil meeting GM Standard GM6094M.
Oils meeting these requirements should also have the starburst symbol on the container. This symbol indicates that the oil has been certified by the American Petroleum Institute (API). You should look for this information on the oil container
All temperatures above -20?F (-29?C) SAE 5W-30 is best for your vehicle. These numbers on an oil container show its viscosity, or thickness. Do not use other viscosity oils such as SAE 10W-40, SAE 20W-50, or any other viscosity grade not recommended.
NOTICE: Use only engine oil identified as meeting GM Standard GM6094M and showing the American Petroleum Institute Certified For Gasoline Engines starburst symbol. Failure to use the recommended oil can result in engine damage not covered by your warranty.
GM Goodwrench oil meets all the requirements for your vehicle.
If you are in an area of extreme cold, where the temperature falls below -20?F (-29?C), it is recommended that you use either an SAE 5W-30 synthetic oil or an SAE 0W-30 oil. Both will provide easier cold starting and better protection for your engine at extremely low temperatures.
ENGINE OIL ADDITIVES / ENGINE OIL FLUSHES
Do not add anything to your oil. The recommended oils with the starburst symbol that meet GM Standard GM6094M are all you will need for good performance and engine protection.
Engine oil system flushes are not recommended and could cause engine damage not covered by the vehicle warranty.
Thanks for the info. All work including oil changes has been done by the Buick dealer- I only hope they know what they are doing.