my 930 oil consumption

jsveb · jsveb's Garage

I have driven about 2400 miles since oil change.
I have added oil twice now. This makes it a total of 1 qt added since I changed the oil.

The car leaks a little, but this probably doesn't account for much.

The oil I use is Valvoline VR-1 20W-50

Is 1qt/2400 miles normal/acceptable?

thanks

pkracer21j · 04-10-2011, 06:19 PM

So its burned off a quart? I think that is acceptable, I know my car will burn off roughly a quart after she gets filled up at oil change, but then she won't burn any more. If I leave the oil level just above the min mark on the dip stick it doesn't burn or use any oil, when I fill her up more (long trips, track days, etc,) she always burns off the oil till its back just above the min.

voitureltd · 04-11-2011, 12:21 PM

I quart between oil changes @ 2K miles sounds good to me. I change oil around 2K( valvoline VR1 20w50) and usually on any of the 930 cars I have owned over the years do not have to add any to keep it above low/ under high when hot.

jsveb · jsveb's Garage

Thank you guys.

I guess it's OK then.

I bought VR-1 when it was on sale recently

I hope to get time for an oil change next weekend.

full quack · 04-12-2011, 11:37 AM

A quart per 1500 miles is Ok, so thats 2 quarts usage per oil change, nothing to get excited about. That's even consistent with the owners manual.

Mines been consistent at this usage level for 3 years now, and I use mine as a daily driver. I bought my sled with 30K on the clock, now shows 77K.

Mine does not drip or smoke.

I run Kendall 20w-50w GT, 11 quarts pre oil change with a new filter.

Mark

philip j · 04-12-2011, 12:20 PM

I usually change my oil once a year @ around 5,000 miles. Can you guys give me some in-site to why you would change the oil more frequently? Maybe the warmer climate you live in? Philip

spuggy · 04-12-2011, 01:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by philip j

I usually change my oil once a year @ around 5,000 miles. Can you guys give me some in-site to why you would change the oil more frequently? Maybe the warmer climate you live in? Philip

If you don't drive hard, then oil change intervals like an N/A car are probably fine, especially if it always gets up to working temperature. Note that the time the oil is hot for is a factor, because water only evaporates out of the oil (unless it gets pretty hot) - the nominal working temperature of 180 degrees won't "boil it out", as that takes 212F. With a FMOC my car only reaches 210 under prolonged boost, if it's moving - and only gets over that if I'm stuck in traffic on a warmish day. In the winter, even boosting won't get the temps over 190 or so if it's particularly cold out (but the throttle response is great with that dense air)...

There's some evidence from oil analysis that changing oil too frequently increases wear (see the mondo oil thread).

If, on the other hand, you drive the car hard, some of your oil is being pumped through the bearings on a turbo where the casting on the hot-side is glowing cherry red (that's what lights off the flame balls). So you should be using an oil that can take those temperatures - and change it frequently.

I like heavy duty diesel oils for precisely those reasons - good additive package, and designed for that use.

If you don't drive the car hard, remember the factory instructions to take the car full-throttle to red-line in at least one gear every time you drive it (think this is so the wastegate doesn't stick/rust).

spuggy · 04-12-2011, 01:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by full quack

A quart per 1500 miles is Ok, so thats 2 quarts usage per oil change, nothing to get excited about. That's even consistent with the owners manual.

Mines been consistent at this usage level for 3 years now, and I use mine as a daily driver. I bought my sled with 30K on the clock, now shows 77K.

Mine does not drip or smoke.

Spec booklet gives 1,0-2,0 l/1000km. A litre is 90% of a quart, and 1000km is 621 miles. So anything less than a quart per ~350 miles appears to be acceptable, LOL`...

Mine doesn't leak a drop and doesn't appear to burn any either - but it does use oil. Much more so on short (15 mile) journeys as a DD, where a good fraction of the drive it is warming up. Hardly used any the last time I took it for a long run, didn't seem to use any at the track.

I even had the leakdown checked at the last valve adjust - but all the figures were good. My oil level gauge agrees with my dipstick, so I just top up to halfway when it gets low and don't even bother keeping track.

Miguel Antonett · 04-12-2011, 02:59 PM

Perfectly normal.

Why to change it so often? To save money.

jsveb · jsveb's Garage

Thank you all for your inputs.

It seems that everything is normal. My 930 is a DD. I have not seen any signs of moisture on the oil cap.

On another note: I have saved the sparkplugs from the two changes (changed plugs twice..., I know, that is a lot for 2400 miles, but I put autolites in after my flooding/no-start issues (some might remember). They were cheap and worked fine. After a while (when I did my injector flow testing) I changed to Bosch (expensive) and I am not sure I'd say they are worth the extra money. The plugs looked really nice when I changed them. I am keeping the next couple of sets. Just to be able to see if a discrepancy occurs.

As a closing comment: I have bought new injectors. Once I get the time I'll install those. So far I am debating whether to send them in for testing prior to installation. I have heard even new ones do not necessarily flow the same.

Once again, thank you for your feedback.

spuggy · 04-12-2011, 05:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jsveb

After a while (when I did my injector flow testing) I changed to Bosch (expensive) and I am not sure I'd say they are worth the extra money. The plugs looked really nice when I changed them. I am keeping the next couple of sets. Just to be able to see if a discrepancy occurs.

Only critical things about the plugs is that they're not too hot (correct heat range), correct reach and good enough quality not to fall to pieces in the motor.

That said, the factory originally believed that they would make 250 930's for homologation - which they intended to sell to "friends of the factory" (and were worried about selling that many.)

They thought these cars would probably spend most of their lives WOT on a track. So they spec'd plugs that were cold enough for that use (and were probably being cautious), and that's what they had when they were emission tested.

It costs a lot for EPA testing, so 930's were never re-tested and they all used those plugs until much later - when they fitted a much hotter plug.

Arguably, the plugs are way cold for town driving - but the stock Platinum plugs don't seem to foul. Ever. The Bosch Silver seem to work just as well, and they're much cheaper ($3-$4 each, IIRC).