# So Much Oil??



## REDGTO89 (Jul 19, 2008)

Ok I own a 2004 gto, and I am constantly putting oil into it and its not burning oil or leaking. does any one have any suggestions. 

and i use mobil one 5-30
confused


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## Rukee (Feb 8, 2007)

How much oil between oil changes are you adding??


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## REDGTO89 (Jul 19, 2008)

maybe 2 qrts


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## GTO JUDGE (May 14, 2005)

REDGTO89 said:


> maybe 2 qrts


2 qts at how many miles between changes? I remember reading adding a quart or 2 between changes is "normal" depending on your driving habits. At 5K oil changes you would fall in the normal range, according to what I have read.


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## exwrx (Apr 5, 2007)

Some have told me, that depending on the driving style, as much as a 1/4-1/2 quart between fillups is expected from LS engines. Seems a bit outrageous, but then again, tolerances for this motor aren't exactly on par with those of a Ferrari or other fine piece of overpriced machinery. I wouldn't be surprised if an oil-catch can would be in need of constant emptying. Anyone interested in trying one out and letting us know?

Other Vette owners, and track buddies, are confirming that 2-3 quarts between changes is not uncommon. I've gone through as much as 4 quarts between oil changes. The oil consumption varies on my car. Sometimes I wonder where it all goes, and other times, I go weeks without adding any.

Then again, I drive the living piss out of my goat, so wear and tear, as well as fluid consumption will be higher than expected, especially when I'm attending a lot of track days. 

My Friends Z was consuming over 3 quarts between oil changes, and was told that such an amount wasn't uncommon either.... both by Dealers and Private Mechanics. Figure that's a 3.5 vs. 6 liter.... and the oil consumption on the GTO doesn't seem that unreasonable. 

My GF's Honda Civic, with a 1.3 liter engine (I think, as she has the base model) needs about a .5 to 1 quart between changes. The GTO is 4.6 times larger in displacement. Splitting the middle, a .75 quarts replacement on the honda would equate to 3.5 quarts on the GTO. I don't know if my reasoning is correct, but in this light, maybe 3-4 quarts isn't unreasonable.

Some other Gearheads should shed light on this.

One point to consider though, some of the Vette guys go through 2 quarts of oil on a track day, meaning 4-5, 20-25min sessions. Figure about an hour and a half of driving.


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## REDGTO89 (Jul 19, 2008)

i go to about 3000 then change my oil and i ad about 2 qrts within those 3000.
i dont beat on her, i do push the accelerator down pretty good about 10 times with in the 3000


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## GTO JUDGE (May 14, 2005)

Constantly Down Shifting also adds stress to the engine which will add to oil consumption. Also, how the engine was broken in at new will play a part. Although the recommended 55mph for the first 500 miles seems redundant, if the car was used hard out of the gate the rings etc may not have set properly which can cause excessive oil consumption. 

Guys buying these cars used for the most part don't know how the car was treated just off the lot new. Some guys took these cars right to the track and abused a new engine before the break in period was met. They dump the car and some guy comes along and buys it not knowing this and are strapped with the results of the previous owners lack of care to a new engine.

Not saying this happened to your car or everyone's car that is having excessive oil consumption but there is a reason engines are to be broken properly.


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## Gotagoat (Jan 6, 2006)

Given no mechanical problems, the manner in which the engine is run definitely has a lot to do with oil consumption. I broke mine in gently and I'm easy on it. Normal shifts are between 2200 and 2600 with an occasional run into the fours and maybe one or two to 5500 in the six months between oil changes. Even when its run up, I accelerate relatively slowly. I'll grant you that it's not the typical way a GTO is (or should be) driven but the engine hasn't used a drop of oil in 18K. Knock on wood.


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## GTO JUDGE (May 14, 2005)

31K miles, oil changed at 5k intervals, no added oil between changes. (so far)


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## REDGTO89 (Jul 19, 2008)

i brought it to dealer today and they changed the oil and said come back every 300 miles didn't have to pay labor which was nice so i se what happens!


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## exwrx (Apr 5, 2007)

just a off topic FYI that relates to oil consumption....

At the track, we have a saying that Porsche's do their own oil changes. lol. I wonder if in a few years, they'll be saying the same thing about LS engines...lol.


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## Route 66 (May 30, 2005)

Ok, I'll say it......maybe the prob is the synthetic. Mine used a lot till I swiched back to dino oil.....now I use 0.


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## UdnUdnGTO (Jan 30, 2006)

Oh my, this may generate some discussion. I have used Amsoil 0-w30 since 2,000 miles new. I change the oil at 18,000 to 20,000 miles and change filter every 8,000 to 10,000. I use the Amsoil Ea oil and Ea air filters. The GTO has 79,000 real miles on it and does not use more than a quart between filter changes. Every engine is different that is for sure.


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## Night (Sep 23, 2008)

When I did my first oil change, I was half a quart low. I used Mobil 1 5W30, and when I changed that, it was the same thing. Half a quart low. I used Royal Purple 5W30 and when time came to change that, the motor was still full. Seems that since I used RP, my crankcase remained full. I now have Mobil 1 again and I have decided to do the 5k routine when changing my oil. I'm gonna wait to see if there will be a difference going 5k rather than the old 3k interval.


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## Route 66 (May 30, 2005)

Well I certainly do not want to start the oil cold war. 
I realize every one will have different results and different opinions. But being an old fella, Ive seen things come and go. I have seen a lot of vehicles use quite a bit of oil when using synthetic.....after a change to dino, the useage stopped. Our Police dept did a synthetic oil test with Lucas oil products. Many of the cars used an excessive amount of oil between check ups (around 3500-4500 miles).....and several engine failures. They decided synthetic was not cost effective. The vehicles that were tested with synthetic were returned to regular dino oil and the useage slowed or stopped.
I am not saying synthetics are bad. They serve a purpose in many applications. Just my $.02 and observations.


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## gurkgurkgurk (Oct 2, 2008)

did you switch to synthetic, or to synthetic and back to dino, the problem with switching to synthetic is that its slightly thinner so its more likely to fall into places that conventional oil wouldnt. maybe even pass by the piston rings and all that jazz, so it does burn oil for the first couple oil changes when u make the switch. BUT if your switching back and forth between dino and synthetic, youll be burning loads of synthetic oil


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