Burning Oil

[maminaz]

Have a 2001 Expedition with 47K. Started burning oil, BAD, about 3K ago. Approx 1 qt every 1K now. A little blue/gray smoke on occasion when starting. Have extended warranty, but it does not cover wear/tear. Suggestions? THanks. I LOVE my Expeditiuon!

Marge

 

[maminaz]

Ok, feeling abandoned here. Someone emailed about maybe seals but no details. Any ideas? Thanks!

Marge

 

[jimboh247]

Sounds like valve seals. Does it smoke on acceleration? Take it to someone other than a dealer for a second opinion. Anybody else got any ideas?

 

[maminaz]

Have not noticed smoke during acceleration (but not to say it isn't happening), as I am looking forward usually....

I want to keep my SUV (love my car), but am terrified about expense to fix if we cannot work it with the extended warranty. Any and all ideas appreciated. Thank you much!!

Marge

 

[Guest]

My first guess would be you are losing oil somewhere which would mean a leak, and a leak of that magnatude would be easily seen if you look under the truck. For you to be burning that much you would most definately be seeing smoke from the exhaust, a lot of smoke. Can we get an update on your situation?

 

[maminaz]

Have still been adding about 1 qt oil every 1K. There is no visible leakage on floor. Some smoke when starting but not noticing anything while driving. No noises and oil pressure good. Am limiting driving. Don't want to take to a dealer because of the recordkeeping and am trying to figure out how we can use the extended warranty. Don't know a good mechanic in the PHX East Valley area.

 

[danketchpel]

There are only 4 ways to loose oil.

1. Leak to the outside - shows up somewhere outside the engine, on the undercarriage, on the ground, etc. I had this problem. My rear main crank seal was leaking and it showed up on the oil pan bolt heads. You do have to crawl under it and check for yourself, or get it up on a rack. You may need to do some cleaning and then recheck it to be sure where it's coming from.

2. Leak inside to the water jacket - shows up in the radiator water, usually a head gasket issue

3. Burn it due to bad rings - shows up on accelleration away from a stop.

4. Burn it due to bad valve guides/seals - shows up after coasting down a long hill with the overdrive locked out (engine braking) and when you hit the gas at the bottom of the hill you get smoke

You should be able to detirmine the problem based on these tests. How much it costs depends on which one it turns out to be. It shouldn't be that hard to find, 1qt per 1k miles is a lot. If you're burning it the tailpipe will have a dark oily residue instead of being dry.

 

[maminaz]

Thank you! We will give these all a test and report back!
Marge

 

[greg92054]

I have a 2001 Expedition with 49K miles that is burning around 2 quarts every 3K miles. I took it to the dealer and they checked the sparkplugs, exhaust path, and compression for signs of burning oil, all looked good. It does not leak a drop of oil. The dealership called Ford’s hot line and was told by Ford that for this engine it is ok for it to burn a quart of oil every 900 miles. The dealer ship checked the Ford service manual and there it was printed in the specification. I am requesting a copy of the spec out of the shop manual so when my catalytic converter fails I can point to the reason.

So it would seem that if you are burning a quart every 1K then it is still within Ford specs! Just thought I would pass that along.

 

[maminaz]

Greg, Thanks for the tip. We will check that out. Insane isn't it?