2008 Sierra Crew Cab 5.3l Burns Oil

[headnorth]

I only have 30,000 miles but am burning oil. The dealer found a service bulletin that only stated a follow on bulletin is forthcoming with details on the problem and the fix. Meanwhile, we will monitor consumption in order to track oil expense and submit under warranty along with the tow I had to have when we thought it was the oil pump due to low pressure. On my receipt is noted the following.... PIP4574J. I don't know if that is the bulletin number but for those of you experiencing the same issue be sure to check with the dealer.

 

response....started just since the last oil change....no towing last round....had to add 4 quarts after about 5000 miles and was getting ready for an oil change even though the oil life read 30%

 

UPDATE #1....below is what i found on trackshare.com.....I don't know how to find out if there have been updated PI or PIP's? Does anybody know where you can track these PIP's for updates??

 

#PIP4574E: Excessive Oil Consumption And/Or Blue Exhaust Smoke - keywords BQMI - (Jun 19, 2009)

 

Subject: Excessive Oil Consumption and/or Blue Exhaust Smoke

 

Models: 2007 Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado, Suburban, Tahoe

2007 GMC Sierra, Yukon

with 5.3L Engine (RPO LC9 - VIN 3)

 

This PI was superseded to update Recommendation/Instructions. Please discard PIP4574D.

 

The following diagnosis might be helpful if the vehicle exhibits the symptom(s) described in this PI.

Condition/Concern:

 

Some customers may complain that their vehicle has been using approximately 1 quart of oil every 500-1,000 miles. In most cases, the customer will advise that this did not start until it accumulated approximately 20,000 miles or more and no engine performance concerns will be noticed. They may also complain of occasional blue exhaust smoke.

 

In many cases, technicians have performed SI diagnosis, compression tests, and cylinder leakage tests with no problem found. Several vehicles with this complaint have had valve covers, lifters, complete cylinder heads, and/or stuck oil control rings replaced only to have the vehicle return with the same concern again.

 

As a result, PIP4574 was created on 2/5/2009 to explain that the cause of this concern is under investigation.

 

Since that time, engineering has inspected multiple engines that have been replaced for this concern and have also inspected multiple trucks with this complaint but have not found one common cause for this concern. And, with the help of many dealerships, engineering was able to collect a lot of information about this concern using the oil consumption checklist that was in PIP4574C.

 

At this point, the cause of this concern is still under investigation but the recommendations below have been updated to reflect everything that has been learned so far.

 

We really appreciate your help and patience with this and we want to assure you that this PI will be updated as soon as more information is available.

Recommendation/Instructions:

 

If a customer has this complaint, perform the steps below, document your results in the oil consumption checklist below, and attach the checklist to the repair order in case it is necessary for future reference:

 

1. Visually inspect the entire engine and the underside of the vehicle for any evidence of oil leaks and repair them as necessary.

2. Inspect the fresh air hose/pipe that is attached to the RF (passenger side) valve cover and all related connections for restrictions, such as plastic casting flash or a pinched hose, and repair as necessary. A restriction in this area may cause excessive crankcase vacuum and oil consumption through the PCV vacuum tube.

3. Perform an oil consumption test as outlined in the latest version of oil consumption of 01-06-01-011. Allow the vehicle to sit on a level surface with the engine off for at least 10 minutes to allow the entire engine to drain back to the oil pan before checking the engine oil level and adding oil. Match the oil consumption test results to one of the outcomes below to determine further direction:

• If oil consumption is Less than 1 quart of oil every 2,000 miles and no low oil light has been experienced, no repairs should be performed as this should be considered acceptable oil consumption as outlined in the latest version of 01-06-01-011.

• If oil consumption is Less than 1 quart of oil every 2,000 miles but the customer has experienced a low oil light, refer to the latest version of PIP3959 for a potential low oil light sensor concern.

• If the dealership verifies that oil consumption is More than 1 quart every 2,000 miles, perform the steps below as necessary:

4. Remove the LH (driver's side) valve cover and inspect the PCV baffle drain holes shown below to see if they are plugged with hardened oil deposits. If they are plugged, replace the valve cover, ensure that the customer is changing their oil according to the maintenance schedule in their owner's manual, and re-evaluate the concern. Generally, this would not be a concern until several thousand miles have accumulated.

 

Object Number: 2195879 Size: SH

Click here for detailed picture of above image.

5. With the LH (driver's side) valve cover removed, inspect the PCV baffle to ensure that it is properly sealed to the valve cover by flipping it over and adding a little oil to the corner of the valve cover as shown below. The oil should stay in place as shown on the 2 outer valve covers below. If the oil drains into the PCV baffle as pointed out on the middle valve cover below, replace the valve cover. Generally, if this is the cause of the concern, it would have been present early in the life of the vehicle or shortly after valve cover replacement.

 

Object Number: 2245145 Size: SH

Click here for detailed picture of above image.

 

Important: If Step 4 or 5 led to valve cover replacement, perform Step 5 again on the replacement valve cover before installing it.

6. With the LH (driver's side) valve cover removed, carefully check for an over-aggressive lifter by monitoring oil flow at the top of each push rod with the engine at idle. Very little flow should be observed at an idle. It will be obvious if an over-aggressive lifter is present because its flow will be greatly excessive when compared with the others and a great deal of cleanup will be required. If okay, perform the inspection a couple more times but momentarily raise the RPM off idle for a couple of seconds and let it return to idle before inspecting the oil flow at idle. If an over-aggressive lifter is present, replace all of the lifters on the driver's side bank and re-evaluate the concern.

 

Notice: If you verify that oil consumption is More than 1 quart every 2,000 miles and all of the suggestions above have been performed without isolating the cause of this or decreasing the oil consumption rate to an acceptable rate (less than 1 quart every 2,000 miles), do not attempt additional repairs at this time. The cause of this concern is under investigation and this PI will be updated with additional details as soon as they become available.

[pm26]

How much oil are you talking about? I would not worry about 1 quart/3000 or 4000 miles. It may seem excessive, but many manufacturers will telll you that it is acceptable. Anything more than that, i would be worried.

[Diesail]

Are you towing? Or just driving unloaded? At 140k my 2001 Yukon 5.3 burns about a quart every 6000k but goes though a lot more when towing and ALWAYS has while towing.

[jblakeney]

A growing concern!!!

 

I know every engine burns a small amount. Note, I do not see the whole 1 quart ever 3k. It is not 1940 or 50 or 60 or 70........ It is 2010, my 11 year old truck does NOT BURN oil. It has 178k on the ticker.

 

Sure it burns a small amount but it never leaves the top 1/4 of the stick on 3k... Most of the time it is 1 x below the top edge of the markings.... Either way it is REALLLLLLLY close to 6 quart removal after I have ran my truck 3 to 4k on a oil change (I cut every oil filter open and drain and inspect so I don't leave any hardly in the filter).

 

Seems to me the engineers may have possible caused the problem with oil consumption... DOD, AFM, maybe those out outrageous Engine Oil Life Monitor's, or just plain out right bad design of something internal. Who knows what it is..... If it burns 1 quart on 3k at 30k what is it going to burn at 130k?

 

Jbo

 

Edit: Oil Consumption is NOT NORMAL GM!!! If I had wanted to burn oil it would be a Ford modular engine instead of my LS1....

[jro909]

105k on my 5.3 lm7 with zero oil conusmption (knock on wood) any piston driven motor is going to eat a little oil, between the metal itself absorbing it or some of it evaporating from the massive amount of heat...to even wear on the internal parts allowing oil into the chambers, i'm yay or nay to afm as gm is offering a solution to it, the only way to test anything is through trial and error. good oil, a good filter and driving like a semi-smart person will go a long way....i also agree with the last post that oil consumption shouldent be a norm in this day and age but its no use blowing smoke over something so small

[music]

A growing concern!!!

 

I guess I don't see it. There have always been some engines, straight from the factory, that burned more oil. Although GM did have a series of 5.3 lifters that were "too aggressive" (per the TSB), it is a warrantied replacement. Other than those, few folks have noted oil consumption. My 99 5.3 didn't use any, and my 08 w/ AFM doesn't use a drop (that can be measured). I fully agree that 1 qt/3k miles isn't "acceptable", but it's no different than engines that don't have AFM. I've read numerous posts on a Tundra forum with the same complaint, and Toyota doesn't use DOD/AFM.

 

That said, the OP needs to work with the dealer to correct his issue.

[headnorth]

Alright, the day has come for them to repair the oil burning issue which has been running at a rate of one quart plus per 1,500 miles.....ridiculous. I'll try to attach a scanned image of the service bulletin. Has anyone else had the so called fix done and what has the result been? I am confident there has been damage and not confident in the long term outlook for this "fix".

Oil_Consumption_TSB.pdf

Oil_Consumption_TSB.pdf

Oil_Consumption_TSB.pdf

Oil_Consumption_TSB.pdf

[kawtoy_77]

How much oil are you talking about? I would not worry about 1 quart/3000 or 4000 miles. It may seem excessive, but many manufacturers will telll you that it is acceptable. Anything more than that, i would be worried.

How the hell is that acceptable? My '85 didn't even use oil, and I ran the P!$$ out of it!!!

 

Is this an AFM 5.3 we are talking about or the E85 motor?

[headnorth]

How much oil are you talking about? I would not worry about 1 quart/3000 or 4000 miles. It may seem excessive, but many manufacturers will telll you that it is acceptable. Anything more than that, i would be worried.

How the hell is that acceptable? My '85 didn't even use oil, and I ran the P!$$ out of it!!!

 

Is this an AFM 5.3 we are talking about or the E85 motor?

 

 

 

AFM 5.3....yes, this is bulls h i t.

[Yesca]

My 2008 Sierra Crew Cab with 5.3L is now starting to use aproximately 1/2 quart evry 2500 miles. No 'Low Oil' warnings. I now check it every time I get fuel. It's not bad, Yet, but I do think a $35K truck should not use oil at this level of mileage (~ 27,xxx miles).

[JaredM]

my check engine light came on. I checked the code at autozone. It was for oil pressure out of parameters. I checked the oil and was suprised to see no reading on the stick. I put a quart in and still nothing. I put a second quart and now it is barely at the bottom of the stick. My oil change meter shows 15% left. I have gone 5500 miles since the last change. I am bringing it to midas tomorrow to check it.

[RyanbabZ71]

You may want to review this thread, there are 7 pages of posts.

 

http://www.gm-trucks.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=127812

[RyanbabZ71]

my check engine light came on. I checked the code at autozone. It was for oil pressure out of parameters. I checked the oil and was suprised to see no reading on the stick. I put a quart in and still nothing. I put a second quart and now it is barely at the bottom of the stick. My oil change meter shows 15% left. I have gone 5500 miles since the last change. I am bringing it to midas tomorrow to check it.

 

How often do you check your oil level? Do you ever? Or was this a sudden loss?

[ifshinxs]

In my case once I change the oil my truck will go 500 to 800 miles and not use a drop.(5w-30 Mobil 1) After that point it will lose 1/4 qt about every 500 miles or so...

 

I have two thoughts that may reduce or eliminate oil consumption. Turn off the AFM as I tend to use more oil when going down hills or mountains. Second thought is to go with a high mileage oil in 10w-30.

[Austin83]

I agree, I expect more from a $35,000 truck then disappearing oil. I can understand if you have 150,000+ miles to burn a quart or two between changes, but a quart every 1,000 miles is unacceptable to me...