lubricating oil reducing

wickramaPATHIRANA · April 23, 2017

my car is toyota corrolla 121 year 2000.

now 265000km.

no oil leakage but oil level gradually reduce. what i can do it?

Rumesh88 · April 24, 2017

On 4/24/2017 at 7:53 AM, PerfMad said:

So if there is such issue, what are the things i should do to overcome the problem ? Sorry to take this thread into another way, i but i hope this might help the current thread as well

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Check/clean/replace the PCV. Check if there is a negative pressure in the crank case (one method explained here - http://forum.autolanka.com/topic/17113-engine-miss-petrol-smell-in-cold-start/#comment-282647 ) If the engine is say over 10 -15 years old like in OP's case (Engines 4E-FE, 5E-FE, 1NZ-FE, 1SZ-FE etc), you need to open the cam cover and clean baffles. It is easily said than done because the gunk sometimes is hard like cured cement and to add to that some baffles (Ex: 1SZ-FE as I remember) cannot be opened up for cleaning. So you need to spend lot of time soaking the cam cover in a diesel bath overnight and repeatedly cleaning it something you cannot usually persuade a mechanic to do.

mission · April 23, 2017

maybe it's time for engine overhaul

Davy · April 24, 2017

Welcome to the forum.

When you say "gradually reduce", by how much between two services?

Do you see blue smoke coming out of the exhaust at cold starts or at any point when the car is on the move?

Open the radiator cap while the engine is cold and check if you see oil residue on top of the coolant. If you do, it could be a sign of a leaky head gasket.

Prior to opening up your engine, I recommend going for a compression test. Based on what's revealed during the test, you can determine if a full engine overhaul is necessary or if you can get away with replacing piston rings or engine valves and so on.

Twin Turbo · April 24, 2017

Just put some thicker oil and drive into the sun set,..

Rumesh88 · April 24, 2017

What is the viscosity of the engine oil you are using? Is it 10w30, 15W40 or 20W50? Observe any oil residues on the air cleaner?

PerfMad · April 24, 2017

On 4/24/2017 at 4:48 AM, Rumesh88 said:

What is the viscosity of the engine oil you are using? Is it 10w30, 15W40 or 20W50? Observe any oil residues on the air cleaner?

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@Rumesh88 what does it mean if you see oil residue on the air filter ? (assuming engine isn't burning any oil nor any oil leaks)

Rumesh88 · April 24, 2017

On 4/24/2017 at 6:46 AM, PerfMad said:

@Rumesh88 what does it mean if you see oil residue on the air filter ? (assuming engine isn't burning any oil nor any oil leaks)

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It is a sign of oil vapor getting past oil baffles (in the cam cover for most engines) and ending up in the air intake through the breather hose. It could be due to a bad PCV and/or clogged up oil baffles.

PerfMad · April 24, 2017

On 4/24/2017 at 7:43 AM, Rumesh88 said:

It is a sign of oil vapor getting past oil baffles (in the cam cover for most engines) and ending up in the air intake through the breather hose. It could be due to a bad PCV and/or clogged up oil baffles.

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So if there is such issue, what are the things i should do to overcome the problem ? Sorry to take this thread into another way, i but i hope this might help the current thread as well

Edited April 24, 2017 by PerfMad

PerfMad · April 24, 2017

On 4/24/2017 at 8:27 AM, Rumesh88 said:

Check/clean/replace the PCV. Check if there is a negative pressure in the crank case (one method explained here - http://forum.autolanka.com/topic/17113-engine-miss-petrol-smell-in-cold-start/#comment-282647 ) If the engine is say over 10 -15 years old like in OP's case (Engines 4E-FE, 5E-FE, 1NZ-FE, 1SZ-FE etc), you need to open the cam cover and clean baffles. It is easily said than done because the gunk sometimes is hard like cured cement and to add to that some baffles (Ex: 1SZ-FE as I remember) cannot be opened up for cleaning. So you need to spend lot of time soaking the cam cover in a diesel bath overnight and repeatedly cleaning it something you cannot usually persuade a mechanic to do.

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Thanks for the explanation and suggestions @Rumesh88

MalindaG · May 31, 2017

@Rumesh88

Hi... I have a Toyota Vios

YOM 2003

Mileage 130k

There is a slight engine oil drop but no visual leakage... As you mentioned in one of the previous comments I checked the air filter and I noticed that there are some oil residue in the air filter... To check whether oil baffles are cogged, will that sili sili bag test help or is there another way...??

Rumesh88 · May 31, 2017

On 5/31/2017 at 5:14 AM, MalindaG said:

@Rumesh88

Hi... I have a Toyota Vios

YOM 2003

Mileage 130k

There is a slight engine oil drop but no visual leakage... As you mentioned in one of the previous comments I checked the air filter and I noticed that there are some oil residue in the air filter... To check whether oil baffles are cogged, will that sili sili bag test help or is there another way...??

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What is the viscosity grade of the oil you are using? Do you have to add oil between services? Any tune ups done recently? First check the condition of the PCV and get it cleaned, if not done already, before suspecting the oil baffles and make sure you have a negative pressure in the crank case by doing the bag test (but it will not give you a clue on oil baffles). Then you have two connections from the cam cover to the air inlet path. One connected between air filter and throttle (this is the breather hose) while another one connected through PCV and the throttle body after the throttle. Inspect inside of the breather hose for excess oil deposits. If that's the case, you have sufficient ground to suspect oil baffles. In any case given the age of the engine it is worth cleaning the cam cover oil baffles, PCV, OCV screen etc. which are usually overlooked in a standard tune up.

MalindaG · May 31, 2017

I bought this vehicle 6 months ago... and within couple of weeks after I bought it I did a tune up and the service as I felt a little vibration... it's a manual transmission car, but even after the tune up it does around 9km/l in city limits with A/C...

as the previous owner used toyota 15w-40, in my first service I used the same... but last week I switched back to 10w-30 as I thought thickness of the oil caused the low mileage...

Is there a connection between low fuel consumption and oil level drop...??

Rumesh88 · June 1, 2017

On 5/31/2017 at 3:54 PM, MalindaG said:

Is there a connection between low fuel consumption and oil level drop...??

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No. Unless the engine is burning oil to the extent of giving out white smoke and fouling plugs.

Use of a slightly thinner oil like 10W-30 compared with 15W-40 can result in slight reduction of oil level. You cannot objectively judge the engine fuel efficiency with running figures in Colombo city limits. For this you may have to get an emission test done. However it is worth attending to the things mentioned in my previous post.