Engine has been consuming oil rapidly

KIPKITRIDGE

MEMBER
2010 MINI CLUBMAN
4 CYL
TURBO
2WD
MANUAL
143,970 MILES

I work delivery, so I regularly drive over 100 miles a day. My mechanics could not find any leaks in the last year, but within the last two weeks, I have noticed that I am leaving a large spot on the ground when overnight parking. My turbo is in need of replacement or repair, which made me think this was the source of the leak/burn of oil, however, she still consumes the same approximate amount when driven without the turbo activated. For awhile now, I have noticed that she has a raspy sound when running. It has not changed in pitch but it is constant. Just today, she started emitting a large amount of thick, brown smoke. It smelled of burning but when the turbo was turned off and the car driven for approximately five minutes, this smoke dissipated. I am trying to do repairs myself as money is always an issue and I am starting to lose faith in my mechanics. They are not certified Mini mechanics, but have always been trustworthy. However, I would rather know how to do repairs myself as I have done in the past with my previous vehicles.

3 Replies

STEVE W.

MECHANIC
13,463 POSTS

Welcome to 2CarPros. I would suspect it is the turbocharger. The turbo is never really "off" it just isn't making a lot of boost, but the turbine and compressor wheels are still turning. The turbocharger is being fed a constant supply of oil to prevent wear on the bearings. Inside the turbocharger are seals that keep the oil from going into either the intake or the exhaust system. If those seals fail you will get oil burning, doesn't matter if you are hard on the throttle or not, the oil pressure alone will spray oil into the system. If this is a petrol car then the oil burning is also damaging the catalytic converter.

The oil on the ground should be leaving a trace underneath the car as to where it is coming from. It could be from the turbo leaking or something like a main seal or valve cover. Hard to know without seeing it. A trick would be to wipe it down and dust the engine with talc or foot powder. Start it and look for the spot(s) that suddenly get oil soaked. Then clean the engine off.

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Wednesday, June 5th, 2019 AT 5:13 PM

KIPKITRIDGE

MEMBER
2 POSTS

First, thank you for your information. I suspected that might be the case. I was able to take a look under the car, but with only minimal knowledge and lack of a schematic, i’m not sure what component has the leak. The drip seems to be emanating from the middle front of the engine. Does the turbocharger live somewhere in that vicinity?

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Thursday, June 6th, 2019 AT 5:09 PM

STEVE W.

MECHANIC
13,463 POSTS

The turbo is mounted under the heat shield in the front of the engine, just about in the center. The pictures are what the turbo looks like in the open and installed. The bright shield is over the turbo. The catalytic converter bolts to the bottom of the turbo.

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