I bought an F-350 '96 351W a couple of weeks ago and find myself having to add a quart of oil every 2 fill ups. The truck does not leak any oil though. Is my truck burning this oil? There is no smoke coming out the back, and it seems to run fine. Is this OK or is there anything I should check/do?

Itch

 

A quart every 2 gas fill ups is not a good sign.

Have you done a tune up on this truck? Was there one done to it?

What is the condition of the motor? How many miles?

Check the air box. See if there is oil in there. Might be getting blow by. Also check all seals and gaskets to make sure there are no leaks. You may have oil rings on the pistons that are snapped. This will cause it to lose oil. Take out spark plugs and check to see if there is any residue, and what condition they are in. Replace PCV valve.

Grab a Haynes manual to help in aid for tune ups.

What condition did the person you got the truck off of say it was in? He may have dumped the truck because of this condition.

You may also want to run som STP next oil change to help take up any slack in the motor.

 

If you dont want to take the motor out and do a rebuild if it needs it, there are many "mechanic in a can" products they sell. It doest not fix the issue, but helps to slow down the process. If this is your daily driver, you may be out of a truck for some time if you do the work yourself. You can bring to a local mechanic, but you may want to just do it yourself if you can.

 

I'm not much of a mechanic...specially when it comes to trucks. I'm planning on doing oil change, plugs, wiring, rotor, cap and dropping in a K&N air filter this weekend. The truck has 120K on it, and looks in great shape, the gaskets look good. Seen a few Ford Dealer invoices for regular service and oil changes, so I think it was cared for OK by the previous (original) owner. I think the plugs might offer some insight. I hope it's not piston rings...sounds a little over my head to try and fix!! I got a Haynes manual on the weekend, so am set there. I issue I omitted....I have a cracked driver side exhaust manifold....could that be the problem?

always learning...
Itch

 

check the oil on the dipstick. Is it really black? I know you have added oil but did it look really black when you checked it? 120k is not a lot, but your talking a big v8, and it all depends how the org owner drove it. It could look great, but have a junk motor. It may need an overhaul from the sounds of it. bring it to a mechanic just for a diag. Itll prob only be 60 - 80 bucks. Tell him you dont want them to do the work, just ask what is wrong, then get a quote. Dont blow all the money on tune up stuff just yet, it may not do any good. Depending on his answer and price, since you will an real hard time unless you have a buddy or relative who can help, I would see what you are looking at. I have a 94 ford f150 4x4 that I spend 3500 on in 02, and now with a new paint job, motor, and everything possible that can break, I probably have over 7000 in work that ive done on my own. Dont make my mistake, have it checked out to see if its worth it.

 

Ya the oil was pretty black, considering it had been changed within 4K. My Acura TL never gets that black. This is my first pickup though, so not quite sure what to expect from a truck.

Think the cracked manifold might have something to do with it?

 

No I dont. But really black oil is a bad sign. It could be sludge built up in the motor. How is the anti-freeze? Does the radiotor leak, or have coolant dissapear? If it does, you may have a cracked head, block, or head gasket. I have the exact problem as you with my 300 inline 6. The oil was really black, and my coolant was "disappearing". The block had a hairline crack in it. The motor was completely sludged up, and 5 out of 6 cylinders had broken oil rings. I wouldnt recommend running and engine flush though. May make problems even worse. I would really bring it to a mechanic if you dont know much about trucks.

 

Now you got me nervous!! My rad's good, no leaks, and the coolant level is constant. If the head/block was cracked or the head gasket was shot, would I not see oil leaking, seeping or dripping from somewhere?....might be time to bring her in....

Thanks for the advice 94fordlover!!

 

If it was the head gasket, you would see some form of smoke coming from the exhast. But only really noticable if you step on it. I would have someone get in the truck and start it from a cold start and rev it to see if there is any color smoke. Really white usually means head gasket, and blue means burning oil.

 

When you bring it in, leave an update. I am kind of curious now.

 

Check-change the pcv valve first . Then change the oil. A name brand 10/30 or 10/40 .Does it run hot? If so install the proper thermostat and check the operation for a few weeks. Pat

 

Agreed. It's not uncommon for a PCV to stick and suck oil in through the intake.

 

We thought we were burning oil and looked in the coolent to discover that our oil cooler was leaking and contamineated our coolant. We replaced the oil cooler and had our radiator flushed. Look there first before assuming anywhere else. I'm told this is a common problem.

 

Thanks for the feedback everyone. On a 351W is the PCV on the valve cover (back)?

 

Right rear.Pat