Burning oil bad in 2014 Sierra

SteveHalf · March 10, 2017

Ok. I'm sure we're all burning oil. But I think mine is a little excessive. 2014, 5.3, Z71 Sierra Quad cab. It started at 35k when my low oil indicator came on. I had 7000 on the oil change and 20% left on the oil change screen. I added two quarts that night and went to the dealership the next day. They saidon't to come back every 1000 miles for a check until the next oil change. Well I'm sure I'm not the only one that can't get there at 1000 everytime. So at 1200, the said no burn; at 2700 even I saw the level was down by about 25% but the dealer said it was still good. At 5000, I was below 50% down on the stick and the indicator said the oil still had 40% life. Guess what the dealer said; all good and normal but I still had the oilfield changed.

Spent the day driving around the area for work and it was warmer out today so I turned the AC down to cool it off, no AC! The outside air was cooler than what was coming out. Got home and thought maybe the oil was low-- checked it at 3500 miles and it's barely registering anything on the dip stick. I'm not an automotive engineer but even I know that this is more than 1qt per 2000 miles. My change oil stick still says not for anther 2000 miles and I'm almost dry on oil. What's wrong with this picture. Not to mention it's vibrating unbelievable at 70mph since my last rotation which was at the oil change.

I have 45k on the truck and I don't know what to expect for the next 50k... Any one else have this problem already?

Dnt · March 10, 2017

Have not heard anyone having the oil burning issue on a +2014 DI engines. My 2009 5.3 was a precocious oil burner, it burned a quart every 500 miles and at 70k plus was fouling out spark plugs. The 2009 5.3 held 6 quarts of oil while these +2014 DI engines hold over 8 quarts makes you wonder if GM added oil capacity to the new engine design to better hide an oil consumption issue? I will have to say that at 15,000 miles this 2016 6.2 has had no oil burning issues as far as I can tell on the dipstick and believe me I do check it since my issue with the 2009. I am always up for a good conspiracy theory. With a +8 quart capacity will it show up on the oil stick and be easily noticeable???

2strokesmoke · March 10, 2017

Ok. I'm sure we're all burning oil. But I think mine is a little excessive. 2014, 5.3, Z71 Sierra Quad cab. It started at 35k when my low oil indicator came on. I had 7000 on the oil change and 20% left on the oil change screen. I added two quarts that night and went to the dealership the next day. They saidon't to come back every 1000 miles for a check until the next oil change. Well I'm sure I'm not the only one that can't get there at 1000 everytime. So at 1200, the said no burn; at 2700 even I saw the level was down by about 25% but the dealer said it was still good. At 5000, I was below 50% down on the stick and the indicator said the oil still had 40% life. Guess what the dealer said; all good and normal but I still had the oilfield changed.

Spent the day driving around the area for work and it was warmer out today so I turned the AC down to cool it off, no AC! The outside air was cooler than what was coming out. Got home and thought maybe the oil was low-- checked it at 3500 miles and it's barely registering anything on the dip stick. I'm not an automotive engineer but even I know that this is more than 1qt per 2000 miles. My change oil stick still says not for anther 2000 miles and I'm almost dry on oil. What's wrong with this picture. Not to mention it's vibrating unbelievable at 70mph since my last rotation which was at the oil change.

I have 45k on the truck and I don't know what to expect for the next 50k... Any one else have this problem already?

Time to call GM directly, get them involved! Keep records of everything that happens, and keep all service records as well. They know there is an issue, and most good dealers will look out for you as well. You may need to visit a second dealer for a second oil consumption test!

Good luck

BigBadSierra · March 10, 2017

I had more than you did on my 2014 and it didn't burn a drop of oil. I took out almost as much as I put in every oil change. The 2016 is staying at the exact same mark as well.

The question is are you burning it or losing it. I would look for a leak first.

Dealers love to dodge oil burning engines I've seen every manufacture play that game..

You need to get more insistent there is an issue.

We had a Ford with an issue like this they where horrible to us about it. Just kept on them they eventually tore the engine down re-bored the engine and put in over sized rings.

That slowed the oil burning down. In the end it turned out to be a bad batch of engines from their Mexico plant they then replaced the engine as the bad batch was cross hatching was to deep in them.

We did end up with a new engine in car that had 60,000 miles at that point. "Issue started in warranty so they had to cover it."

But as i said look hard for a leak too.

KARNUT · March 10, 2017

I had Z28 and Ford truck both lived long and happy lives at qt every 2500 miles that were called normal. In the 70s we checked oil at every fill up wasn't uncommon to ad a qt.

SteveHalf · March 10, 2017

Just left the dealership with a rental car...

I check for oil leaks all the time.

They said that it only burned 1qt, which I find hard to believe when it goes from the top of the line to below the bottom on the dipstick. I'm trying to find something related to oil level quantity based on dipstick location, anyone know of a source?

So at 3 years and 3 months and 45k miles, today they said one front wheel bearing has a lot of play and the AC compressor was empty and dead. Oh and that I had only burned 1qt. According to them the engines are aloud to burn 1qt per 2000 miles.

They also uploaded new software for the radio display, it went blank again this morning before I brought it in, and it's a known bug that GM released a fix for. HOWEVER because it's not technically broken the GM extended warranty wouldn't cover it so they think they're going to charge me $90 for that.

I told my sales guy to give me a trade in value. Not that I I'll be buying another Sierra, but to give me a frame of reference. So since I can't buy MOPAR (just can't do it), I'm stuck looking at a F150 or Tundra. My wife had a Toyota before, never burned a drop and never had a single problem with the thing.

johnnymordoc · November 27, 2017

I just had my check Engine oil light go on yesterday..... dealer was closed so drove by a Speedee oil change to see if the could check my oil level.

The dip stick was below the normal range... did not even register.

I have just under 45K miles on the truck.... never had any issues.

My oil life was at 45%.... and I am down 2 + quarts?

I did not want to take a chance and had them do a change and contacted my Service Rep at my GM dealer.

I have not heard back from them, yet.

I have had a Toyota Tacoma's v6 with almost 100K on it and did not see that type of oil burn.

When they changed the oil they did not see any leaks.......

I will double check the drive way..... but I am pretty sure nothing there.

Very strange.... not sure if it is a fluke. Keeping an extra eye on it now.

Any other info?

JJ

Spurshot · November 28, 2017

High oil consumption is the dark corner of warranty problems. Manufacturers hold dealers to strict documentation requirements. Owners hate dealers for the hassle, dealers hate the situation of being wedged between the customer dissatisfaction and the manufacturers process for warranty determination. The process forces numerous customer-dealer visits and frustrates everyone that has ever been through it, including dealers.

elcamino · November 28, 2017

All engines require oil to lubricate and protect the load bearing and internal moving parts from wear including cylinder walls, pistons and piston rings. When a piston moves down its cylinder, a thin film of oil is left on the cylinder wall. During the power stroke, part of this oil layer is consumed in the combustion process. As a result, varying rates of oil consumption are accepted as normal in all engines.

The rate of oil usage is directly related to the quality of oil be it mineral or synthetic. API spec's allow up to 15% oil loss by evaporation (boil off) and dexos allows up to 13% loss by evaporation, technical term for this is volatility. 100% synthetic oils tend to have lower volatility rates, <10% with some approaching 5%> depending on viscosity (10W-30 for instance).

Quote

Overview: Noack volatility determines the evaporative loss of engine oils. This test is important because the operating temperatures of an engine will typically drive off the lighter ends of a lubricant while in service. This effectively results in making the lubricant more viscous (thicker) which can lead to reduced fuel economy due to an increase in parasitic load. A lower number generally means less oil consumption due to evaporation when the oil gets hot. Volatilities in the red zone are above the required limit for current API gasoline specifications.

ASTM D5800 - 08 Standard Test Method for Evaporation Loss of Lubricating Oils by the Noack Method

The evaporation loss is of particular importance in engine lubrication. Where high temperatures occur, portions of an oil can evaporate. Evaporation may contribute to oil consumption in an engine and can lead to a change in the properties of an oil. Oils failing to meet the volatility limits will struggle in many oxidation tests including the sequence IIIG engine test which is a critical and sometimes formulation defining test. This test is impacted by many factors including the Noack volatility. Anti-oxidants can improve oxidation control but cannot prevent evaporation of the base stock leading to rapid oil thickening.

http://www.pqiamerica.com/Testdescriptions/Noack.html

Edited November 28, 2017 by elcamino

O_J_Simpson · November 28, 2017

It sucks but GM addressed the problem for the 2016 model year with a warranty adjustment. Warranty was adjusted from 100k miles to 60k miles to boost consumer confidence in the product due to past warranty claims such as excessive oil consumption.

BringTheRain403 · January 18, 2018

I have a 2014 Sierra SLT CC with about 48k on the odometer. At about 33k I began burning about 5 quarts every 7500 miles of mixed use driving. So I was burning annoy a quart every 1500 miles. Did the oil consumption test and my truck is currently at the dealership having the motor rebuilt. New rings and pistons as well as new heads. Hoping this fixes it. Originally it was just rings and pistons but apparently when they inspected the heads they determined they needed to be replaced as well.

I don't really understand why GM doesn't just send them a long block they can swap out rather than spend 2 days rebuilding a motor plus a week plus waiting for parts...

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EFLine · January 18, 2018

This is identical to my issue and dealer said everything was fine. Dealer is over an hour away 1 way and i was tired of wasting time. I too have a 14 with the 5.3 and mine started at 40k miles. I now have 63,000 miles and mine burns about 1.5 - 2qrts every 3,000 miles. I add 2qrt every 3,000 and when 6,000 miles rolls around I have just gotton into the habit of doing oil changes every 6k.

Dumb question but what is the warranty on the engine, i stopped going to dealer for oil checks cause i swear they added oil to it one time and sent me on my way. is it 100k?

@BringTheRain403how long and what was your process to get them to rebuild it?

Edited January 18, 2018 by EFLine

BringTheRain403 · January 18, 2018

5 years or 60k whichever comes first I believe.

It's still ongoing. Took it in on Monday for the rebuild. Was supposed to be only pistons and rings but they determined it needed heads too. Waiting on the heads to arrive and they have no ETA on that. Luckily they didn't tear everything down before they determined I needed heads. They called me today and told me to come get my truck and they will schedule or again once the heads come in. They said once they have all the parts it should only take a couple days...

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truckguy82 · January 18, 2018

On 11/28/2017 at 6:25 AM, elcamino said:

All engines require oil to lubricate and protect the load bearing and internal moving parts from wear including cylinder walls, pistons and piston rings. When a piston moves down its cylinder, a thin film of oil is left on the cylinder wall. During the power stroke, part of this oil layer is consumed in the combustion process. As a result, varying rates of oil consumption are accepted as normal in all engines.

The rate of oil usage is directly related to the quality of oil be it mineral or synthetic. API spec's allow up to 15% oil loss by evaporation (boil off) and dexos allows up to 13% loss by evaporation, technical term for this is volatility. 100% synthetic oils tend to have lower volatility rates, <10% with some approaching 5%> depending on viscosity (10W-30 for instance).

Thats great and all, but not the reason he’s burning through multiple quarts in 4k miles.

OP, mine is burning oil too. I’m going to switch to 5w-30 when warmer weath hits. Give it a shot.

the lt1 engine is the same long block as the l86, yet the vette calls for 5w-30 and the truck calls for 0w-20. So you know it’s safe to switch.

Lance455 · January 19, 2018

13 hours ago, truckguy82 said:

Thats great and all, but not the reason he’s burning through multiple quarts in 4k miles.

OP, mine is burning oil too. I’m going to switch to 5w-30 when warmer weath hits. Give it a shot.

the lt1 engine is the same long block as the l86, yet the vette calls for 5w-30 and the truck calls for 0w-20. So you know it’s safe to switch.

I did the switch on my 14 and it didn't help the oil burning i was down 1.5 qts in about 2500 Mine started a little after 20k . Once it starts i think you're kinda screwed at least in my case i traded at 40k. Haven't had any issues on my 17 currently just over 20k. Been running 0w 30 and 5w 30 with no issues started running it the first oil change at 3k at the time. i'll know more over a little more time.