Oil leaks

DANIELLE JONES2

MEMBER
2010 CHRYSLER PT CRUISER
4 CYL
AUTOMATIC
128,000 MILES

My car is going through oil at an unusual rate. I originally thought it was the PCV valve due to my oil light coming on while making sudden stops or sharp turns. I replaced the PCV valve and did a complete oil change recently. The car is still going through oil rapidly and no obvious signs of a leak. How can I find out whats going on with my car?

1 Reply

JACOBANDNICKOLAS

MECHANIC
109,755 POSTS

Hi and thanks for using 2CarPros.com.

If there are no leaks, the engine has to be using it. First, is there any blue exhaust smoke when the engine is running? Also, how many miles does it take to use a quart of oil? Chrysler indicates a quart of oil in 1,500 miles is normal.

Next, the oil light should not come on when stopping unless the system is low. As far as the PCV, remove the new valve and inspect it to see if there is excessive oil in it. Last, check the engine coolant to make sure the oil is not mixing with it.

Here are a couple links that discuss different issues that can cause excessive oil consumption. The first link discusses head gasket issues which cause coolant to mix with oil (in the engine) and oil to mix with the coolant (in the cooling system).

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/coolantantifreeze-in-the-engine-oil

If you find they are mixing, let me know. If everything I mentioned checks good, we will need to perform a compression test. Excessive crankcase pressure due to worn piston rings can cause oil vapors to be sucked through the PCV and burned in the engine. Often times the catalytic converter will hide the smoke and you won't even realize it is burning oil.

Let me know if any of this helps or if you have questions.

Take care,
Joe