Golf gti oil consumption woes :(
Discussion
I’ve owned my mk6 golf gti for over a year. Initially it was using 1L of oil every 1000 miles or so but has gradually got worse. Back in the summer it became 1L every 600. I knew I should have got rid but decided to see if there was anything I could do about it, so had a garage carry out a compression test; Cyl 1 - 150, Cyl 2 - 140, Cyl 3 - 155, Cyl 4 - 155. Was told that all cylinders were within tolerance.
I carried out an oil change with millers nanodrive 5w40 and used an engine flush BG109 EPR which has good reviews. Somehow this has made it worse, now using 1L of oil every 300 miles! Had a different garage carry out another compression test and all cylinders were reading at 200 psi. They had a look down the bores with a camera and apparently there was oil in them.
Shame really as I have wanted to keep the car as it’s a high spec but think it’ll be going to WBAC now. An engine rebuild really isn’t worth it unfortunately.
I carried out an oil change with millers nanodrive 5w40 and used an engine flush BG109 EPR which has good reviews. Somehow this has made it worse, now using 1L of oil every 300 miles! Had a different garage carry out another compression test and all cylinders were reading at 200 psi. They had a look down the bores with a camera and apparently there was oil in them.
Shame really as I have wanted to keep the car as it’s a high spec but think it’ll be going to WBAC now. An engine rebuild really isn’t worth it unfortunately.
Belle427 said:
1 L per 1000 miles was the norm for these I believe according to VW.
Not much help really i know but it's tough to know what to do.
Buy a cheaper oil in bulk maybe and live with it or try a thicker weight such as a 50 but this may be a little risky.
Is 5w50 much ‘thicker’ then? Not much help really i know but it's tough to know what to do.
Buy a cheaper oil in bulk maybe and live with it or try a thicker weight such as a 50 but this may be a little risky.
If it’s using that much oil I’d expect to see it coming out of the exhaust as blue/grey smoke when driving.
What you’re doing with the car when the smoke is the worst will possibly give some idea as to where it’s going.
Rolling downhill in low gear, engine braking, or sitting with the engine idling for a while will usually give a puff of smoke (or worse) when you accelerate.
You could have someone follow you, or drive your car whilst you follow it and watch.
Smoke under heavy load could be turbo oil seals, especially if there’s any whining noises to go along with it.
Lumpy/unsteady idle and sometimes a raised idle along with some whistling/squealing could be the PCV having failed. That’s a fairly common things with a reasonable number of VAG cars, with quite a few revisions of valve for some of the engines.
What you’re doing with the car when the smoke is the worst will possibly give some idea as to where it’s going.
Rolling downhill in low gear, engine braking, or sitting with the engine idling for a while will usually give a puff of smoke (or worse) when you accelerate.
You could have someone follow you, or drive your car whilst you follow it and watch.
Smoke under heavy load could be turbo oil seals, especially if there’s any whining noises to go along with it.
Lumpy/unsteady idle and sometimes a raised idle along with some whistling/squealing could be the PCV having failed. That’s a fairly common things with a reasonable number of VAG cars, with quite a few revisions of valve for some of the engines.
Thank you for the suggestions.
This time of year obviously a lot of smoke coming out of exhausts in general due to condensation and the low outside temps. So hard to tell really. I will try the engine braking downhill.
The car idles, runs, accelerates fine and smoothly, no EML lights on. The PCV I changed for a new OEM revision 10,000 miles ago.
I have the horrible feeling that the BG109 flush somehow made things worse. Not read a bad review about it online and the BG company is reputable. Just my luck! Maybe it dislodged some dirt somewhere and caused it to clog up an oil gallery which means more oil being burnt in the cylinders? Or am I talking utter sh*te?
This time of year obviously a lot of smoke coming out of exhausts in general due to condensation and the low outside temps. So hard to tell really. I will try the engine braking downhill.
The car idles, runs, accelerates fine and smoothly, no EML lights on. The PCV I changed for a new OEM revision 10,000 miles ago.
I have the horrible feeling that the BG109 flush somehow made things worse. Not read a bad review about it online and the BG company is reputable. Just my luck! Maybe it dislodged some dirt somewhere and caused it to clog up an oil gallery which means more oil being burnt in the cylinders? Or am I talking utter sh*te?
More than likely it's removed some carbon build up that was helping something seal.
That's just a wild guess.
It's a very common problem if you do an Internet search.
Some oils also I've read do burn a lot more than others for some strange reason.
My old Mk5 liked a drink but ran like a watch.
That's just a wild guess.
It's a very common problem if you do an Internet search.
Some oils also I've read do burn a lot more than others for some strange reason.
My old Mk5 liked a drink but ran like a watch.
HustleRussell said:
Have you asked a mechanic to diagnose the oil consumption problem? It could have nothing to do with the rings / bores.
Quite.To lose 1L every 300miles the oil must be going somewhere....
have you looked under the car with the drip tray off to see the state of the sump/surrounding area and gearbox? Alternatively with a worn turbo seal you could find that oil is getting into the intercooler/intake system. This can be checked by removing the turbo outlet pipe or the intercooler in piping. Another source of oil in the intake is when the crank case breather system plays up. You mentioned having the PCV replaced, im not 100% familiar with the mk6 TSI setup but on the mk5 TFSI there is the breather at the front of the engine on the cylinder head that has 3 ports and sends vapours into the intake system after the intercooler and another on the back of the head which sends oil vapours back into the turbo intake system before the intercooler , when this fails oil tends to pour down the back of the block.
Look for other causes too i.e malfunctioning crank case ventilation issue , a compression test wont tell you if the oil control rings have gummed up with carbon a very common issue nowadays with extended service intervals and thin/minimal rings packs that work fine when engine is new or @ the development test cell stage
I've had a look under the car, no real leaks, standard wetting of a few pipes and hoses but nothing major. it was the first thing I did after seeing the dip stick was on minimum after 300 miles - thinking surely there has to be quite a major leak somewhere!
I'm pretty sure the only replaceable crankcase ventilation component in the mk6 tsi engine is the PCV valve. I think on the Mk5 the plastic rocker cover itself was sometimes an issue. On the Mk6 it's metal and holds the cams down and is sealed with some proprietary sealant as opposed to a gasket.
Turbo seems fine, car boosts as it should. Was whistling a few months back but a new diverter valve solved that. I will have a look at the intercooler pipes though.
I wonder if the millers oil could be playing a part here, maybe it's being burnt off a lot quicker because I used it with a strong flush.
I'm pretty sure the only replaceable crankcase ventilation component in the mk6 tsi engine is the PCV valve. I think on the Mk5 the plastic rocker cover itself was sometimes an issue. On the Mk6 it's metal and holds the cams down and is sealed with some proprietary sealant as opposed to a gasket.
Turbo seems fine, car boosts as it should. Was whistling a few months back but a new diverter valve solved that. I will have a look at the intercooler pipes though.
I wonder if the millers oil could be playing a part here, maybe it's being burnt off a lot quicker because I used it with a strong flush.
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