[drivinswine]

bought car in Oct with 4k on it, fresh change, dipstick showed full, down 1qt at 6500 so changed w/Redline 5-30, 9k its down another qt. any knowledge/advice would be appreciated

[ERacer]

In a perfect world this would not be normal but most car manufactures would consider 1qt in 2500 miles to be acceptable. If you drive your car hard it could just be blow by. If your consumption increases with your mileage, that would be cause for some concern. Just keep an eye on it and see what happens.

[drivinswine]

just a little spirited driving but havent pushed it hard yet, thanks for the info

[snead_c]

Mine uses approximately .75 qt in 3000 miles...6100 miles on it.
Since you seem to be using some you might consider more frequent checks and top offs...1000 mi. ?
To make the process more bearable you also might consider it "feeding the beast."

[Billy_Talent]

I checked the oil this past weekend and was 0.5qt low after 1900 miles.

[Singletrack]

Originally Posted by drivinswine

bought car in Oct with 4k on it, fresh change, dipstick showed full, down 1qt at 6500 so changed w/Redline 5-30, 9k its down another qt. any knowledge/advice would be appreciated

Some never burned any oil even during break-in, others burned a quart or more. Some have continued to burn oil and others have stabilized. Also keep in mind how crappy that dipstick actually is. Stupid question: But are you checking at the same engine temp etc. every time?

Also - what are you calling a qt? It appears to me that the whole dipstick is about a quart or so.

-st

[Billy_Talent]

Mine was at the L on the dipstick. I put 1/2 qt in and it was at F. Cold engine on both tests.

[drivinswine]

I check it every 3 days 1st thing in the am, talked to Subaru of Santa Cruz when I made appt and they said 1qt every 1200 miles is considered ok, seems kinda high to me though, dipstick is a pain but I use the L/F side, thanks for the posts

[p.a.sti]

Hey I am a master bmw tech. our m3 m5 z8 and others eat oil. My STI does the same. High preformance engines use oil. If you change your oil every 3K the 1/2 qt. will not matter.It has a lot to do with cyl tolerences being loose for less friction. Also look at how small our piston skirt is. less space to include rings. That means more blowbye. This is a growing prob with maney new autos in every manufacturer. Some engines will consume more than others. It is all in the manufacturing pros. Keep an eye on it and hopefually you will be ok. Hope this helps

[drivinswine]

thanks, since I got the car a little used I was curious and slightly concerned, 3k is the change interval I use

[bahlool]

Hey guys, first of all checking the oil when the car is cold is not the right way, because oil get different thickness when its hot so you need to check it when the car is warm. Turn it on for 5 min let it cool for 5 min then check it. It has to be on a complete flat street and we dont have to many of these here in the US so if you are in a parking lot that is not flat you are not getting the right readings. Yes most cars burn oil some do more than others depands on driving, type of gas and weather. in the end if you are so scared do a compression check on the engine, it gaves you the right results. i do check my oil once every three days and change it every 2500 hundred miles though. :wink:

[lstepnio]

~1.5qts eaten up in 4,000 miles(3,000 to 7,000).

[p.a.sti]

One other thing you can do if you are very conserened is go to a thicker oil. Though I do not rec. this for many reasons but I can garente you it will reduce consumption. On our M5 and M3 bmw tried to get away with 5w 30,But then recalled it and changed it to a high preformance 10w 60. Works for thoes moters but they have no turbo. The turbos oil clearences are very important. I really do not think going to a thicker oil would hurt but I don't know for sure.