SClean4

Just randomly checked my oil level because it's approaching my next oil change and it looks like about 60% full. When I last changed my oil myself for the first time it was full. I didn't change the oil filter because I didn't really know where it was at the time. My next, upcoming oil change I will, though.

My question is: Why do you think my oil would be about 60% full? Is it okay to run the engine like this? Would going from synthetic to conventional or vice versa cause anything like this because I wasn't sure if synthetic or conventional oil was in it already or what had been used in it prior? I just wanted to be safe and used conventional (Mobil 1).

Ryeno

iTrader: (3)

When you mean 60 percent full you do mean 10 percent above the halfway mark between l and f? Your car is going to run perfectly fine anywhere between the l and f marks. You just dont want the oil to out of that good zone.

Your lucky i wish my car was losing oil at that rate. As it stands i have to add a full quart between every oil change. Eventually your oil loss will get to my level. Also you might want to change to a thicker oil blend especially if your high millage. Wal mart sells mobil 1 10w-40 for like 26 bucks. One of those big bottles is perfect for our engines.

SClean4

Okay, just didn't know if that was normal to lose some oil. Yeah, I got a big 5-quart oil container from Wal-Mart when I changed my oil myself for the first time. So you think thicker oil would be best for a high mileage engine, huh. I just picked the default, recommended oil (5W30). Would going synthetic or a synthetic/conventional blend (at first) be good as well? Just not real sure what kind of oil was mainly used in the engine before... If it was synthetic I'd just want to keep it like that or vice versa.

turbodremz

iTrader: (18)

Sounds normal to me..just keep an eye on how much oil is lost between changes, if you start to see an increase, then start looking..

as for the oil, you may not want to pay as much as myself, but I switched my car over to Royal Purple the second day I owned it and it runs excellent..cant tell its running except for the tach and the exhaust.

Ryeno

iTrader: (3)

Is losing oil normal? Whats normal? It happens but its not good. Either its burning it or its losing it, the former being the worse. If i were you, i would look and see where it is leakiing from. If its something like the value cover or slump pan, then it would be a cheap fix.

As for a thicker oil blend. Well its going to be thicker so it might slow down the leak. Also i hear thicker oils are supposed to protect high mileage engines better, take that with a grain of salt.

And finally for conventional oil v synthetic. Last time i check(few months ago) their are only 3 true fully synthetic oils, amsoil(the best), royal purple and redline. Unless you need that extra protection(e.g. turbo charged) then going fully synthetic is pointless. Moble1 is more then good enough for the average 5k oil change, it might even be good enough for the 7500 oil change which is what our cars are rated for.

turbodremz

iTrader: (18)

no losing oil isnt a good thing, but depending on mileage/the way the car is driven(abuse), then in most cases yes, losing oil is a "normal" thing to see.

unless there are spots under your car, or you notice smoke from your exhaust while driving(or start-up), I dont see a real big problem..dont get me wrong, it is something to look into, but what he is describing, sounds like a normal amount of loss..

My old 240 would go through a quart every 2 months...no dripping, no smoke, good seals and no clue where it was going..car ran perfect.

SClean4

Thanks for the info, guys. There appears to be no leaks, at least on the ground, etc. Not sure about hard to see parts of the engine but not that I can tell. I did notice that there were a couple drops of liquid on a hose below/from the engine coolant. Not sure if that is really important but just noticed it. My engine has almost 147k. When I checked the oil right before I changed the oil a few months ago it was full or slightly over full, I believe. So just found it interesting that it was at this level this time. Not sure if the engine is just used to a certain kind of oil and reacts to a change in the kind or grade of oil. I was just concerned that the engine not having a full amount of oil wasn't lubricating all of the internal parts or something.

Update:
Just decided to take a quick pic of the only area that seemed to have oil around it. Tell me if this is normal, etc.:

Ryeno

iTrader: (3)

You might want to change out that grommet around the pcv. And possibly change of the pcv if its bad.

luxrysupra

I am no expert but i do know a thing or two a bout oil. If you have a high mileage engine that has had mineral oil(conventional) in it then you definatly do NOT want to go full synthetic. the reason being that synthetic oil is alot thinner and is desined to clean out your engine. When you use conventional oil for a long time such as 100k+ miles your engine wears down its bearings and fills the void with wax deposits. When you switch oils its cleaned out and could cause a low end knock in your engine and ultimately failure. so dont switch unless you first rebuild it with new bearings. And NEVER use conventional with an oil cooled turbo.

HellFish

iTrader: (5)

oil cooled turbo?

Durrr

This isn't necessarily true anymore. Back in the day with Group I and Group II synthetics, true, however, the newer Group III, IV and V are not necessarily "thinner" though they generally have more detergent additives. If you want a really good source on what oils to run, www.bobistheoilguy.com is a great resource. Just check out the forums there. Good bunch of guys.