Newer pickups burning oil

nluchau · March 30, 2004

I have a 2002 Silverado z71 Automatic. I have gone alittle over 3000 miles on this oil change and noticed I have burned about a half quart of oil. Is this normal for a truck or not. The truck only has 19,000 miles on it.

Thanks for any replies

Nick

lrymal · March 30, 2004

That "is probably" normal, assuming you do a lot of stop and go driving. I change out my oil between 7 - 10k (synthetic oil) and the level on the dip stick drops about a quarter to half of an inch in that time cycle, and that has been typical of all the vehicles I have had.

nluchau · March 30, 2004

thanks for the quick response - Yes I do alot of stop and go driving in town. I was just on a 450 mile round trip too. I only use regular oil. Do I need or should I start using Synthetic?

thanks

lrymal · March 30, 2004

Regarding synthetic... you might want to do a search on this board and others since there are several message groups regarding synthetic. Typically, any synthetic will give you "superior" service, including longer oil life and better cleansing. All are good.

You have the Mobil 1 products, Amsoil, Royal Purple.

You'll find a "religious following" with the Amsoil. Royal Purple seems to be popular with the hot rodding crowd. I use Mobil 1. No particular reason except I have been using it since the late 70s and Corvettes (last time I read about it) come with Mobil 1 straight from the factory.

However, since the early 1990s, I have felt that a high-grade premium dino oil will offer just as good lubrication and protection. I wouldn't go over 3,000 - 5,000 miles with such an oil with stop-n-go driving, however. Your synthetics will give longer life cycles though... 7,000 - 10,000 with 7,000 being for primarily city, and 10,000 for mainly highway driving.

Be aware the above is only personal opinion but it has served me well through several decades with many vehicles with excess of 150,000 miles. Indeed, the motors outlast the bodies.

Be aware that typically, there is a roaring debate and flamefest between Mobil1 users and Amsoil users. And, there is a roaring debate between many users who change oil religiously at 3,000 miles vs. abiding by the CHANGE OIL light on the instrument cluster which pops on typically between 5,000 miles and 8,000 miles.

Below is General Motors' recommendation on oil change intervals. This is probably a lot more of a reply than what you care to hear. grinnn But, it should give you several angles to explore. Again, other than the recommendation from General Motors below, this is all personal opinion but it has served me well.

http://service.gm.com/gmtechlink/images/is...03e.html#story1

nluchau · March 30, 2004

Thanks - I appreciate the Reply. Does anyone elses newer chevy burn oil like I mentioned? Maybe I am making a big fuss about it but I just want to make sure this is normal

gnutruk · March 30, 2004

Yep, mine too goes down a half quart between oil changes, or maybe a little more. I change oil and filter every 3,000 - 4,000. Have a year 2002, 1/2 ton, 5.3, 4x4, Ex. Cab. I also do a lot of short driving (on the road, not the golf course !! ), and this kind of oil usage seems to be typical of these engines. Mine currently has about 22,000 miles on it. I use regular dino oil, 5W-30, and the PF 59 filter.

I could not agree more with what lrymal said; not only what he said but the balanced tone of his outlook. There are, as he so correctly points out, flamefests all over the place on these sythenthic oil issues. It has gotten so bad sometimes that I think the moderators on the various truck and car forums would all like to declare the entire issue "Off Limits," and just start deleting the posts having to do with those topics.

I'm not being anti-synthetic here, but just expressing agreement with lrymal's views that the "religious following" and cult-like attitude that the advocates for each brand and theory expound creates more problems than it solves for people who are trying to make up their own minds. Indeed, when my current stock of dino runs out (a case-and-a-half to go) I may very well switch over to synth myself. But if I don't get around to doing that, it won't be the end of the world, nor the end of the useful life on my truck's engine.

I would like to add here, in appreciation, that I think this particular forum has almost uniformly been very down-to-earth on this matter, and has almost completely avoided the acrimony on these questions that have popped up elsewhere on the web. This is, naturally, due in very large part to the balance and clarity that our moderators bring to their job, as well as the frequent contributions of folks like lrymal, JayMan, and the many others who post here who bring in years of experience. From that we all benefit.

gnutruk

vortec350 · March 30, 2004

Ive got 179,500miles on my truck with the original enigne and it burns none.I use Amsoil 10-30 and change it at 4,000-4,500miles.My truck has not ever burned any.

JBZ71 · March 30, 2004

Got just over 13 thousand and have had synthetic oil in since 1500 miles,never burned a drop...I am now at 6 thousand oil change intervals,using royal purple 5w30 synthetic oil and two ac delco filters(filters changed every 3 k)...Just what I do and what I am comfortable with.....Just my .02 ,take it for what it's worth...Best of luck.....

Shaners · March 31, 2004

My truck has 15,500 miles on it. The last change was 2k miles ago...

Of that 2K miles, 600 miles were pulling a 4-5K lb. enclosed trailer on the highway. The rest of the milage was mainly short trips.

I just checked it and it is at the top "dot" on the stick. It is carmel colored but not filthy dirty.

I run Pennzoil dino oil, and Delco filters and all work is peformed at the dealership. I change the oil when the light tells me to.

1/2 quart of oil usage over an oil change period is very acceptable. The oil is a lubricant that is left as a very fine film on hot surfaces (cylinder walls). Most likely this oil will burn off. It seems pretty obvious to me that there should be some oil usage over several thousand miles and most likely millions of revolutions.

If you are experiancing more usage than that, or if you are seeing blue smoke at start-up or under high RPM's then there is probably a problem starting to develop.

Big Blocks (all manufacturers) use alot of oil. It is not uncommon for them to have to add a little in between changes. So I wouldn't be too concerned with your small block engine.

99Silver6.0 · March 31, 2004

Part of the oil burning issue is the PCV setup on the 5.3. Some of the oil gets sucked through the PCV valve and sent through the intake and is burned that way. Take off your throttle body and look inside the intake. Ill bet its coated with oil. The LS1 is the same way in the f-body. Some guys put on catch cans to try and cut down on oil consumption. GM does make an orificed PCV valve that can be used instead of the original spring PCV valve. I changed over to it and it dramatically cut down on my oil consumption. I used 3M throttle body cleaner to clean the inside of my intake and TB.

On another note, the oil that has coated the back side of the throttle body will sometimes make the gas pedal sticky.

GM Part #

12572717 - PCV Valve (fixed orifice type)

Quadrasteer · March 31, 2004

I know on my '02 6.0 they came out with a fixed orafice PCV for vehicles with high oil consumption. Don't know if it was a TSB or not. My truck uses very little oil so I did not need it. Just wish it wouldn't sound like it's low on oil most of the time!

99silveradoz71 · March 31, 2004

I could not agree more with what lrymal said; not only what he said but the balanced tone of his outlook. There are, as he so correctly points out, flamefests all over the place on these sythenthic oil issues.

I too run mobil 1 and have since new really. I also use the pf59 filters and have had no oil consumption or other problems thankfully.