WRX Burining Oil

Have only 17K miles and my 2004 WRX is burning about 1+ quarts every 3K miles. Dealer says this is normal for most WRXs due to engine type. Anyone else had this experience and is this normal that you know of?

 

Does blue smoke come out of the exhaust??

 

No smoke from the exhaust, etc it is just at the low mark around every 3,000 miles. The guys at the dealership are good guys but I have never had this happen after owning many different types of vehicles.

 

turbo'd cars eat oil. its as simple as that. turbo's live on oil and at the rate that they spin, there will be some consumption of oil. just another reason to religiously change your oil.

 

Thanks for the feedback; How much does your Wrx usually burn, how often, etc?

 

i've actually experienced similar oil consumption...no smoke though...thought i was crazy or just not checking it properly....i find myself having to add another quart around the 2500 mark...usually have it changed soon after 3000 miles....

 

I'm going to call SOA tomorrow for their opinion just to have reassurance I won't be accused of owner neglect if the engine gets fracked-up. I have never had a Turbo though so I can't say I know any better. The Wrx is also sucking down some coolant. I will follow-up with a post tomorrow if I hear anything back.

 

Yea i wouldnt really worry about it, you should change your oil every 3k anyway.

 

mine burns it..like yerrow said..turbos live on it..its pretty normal..now if you see any leakage or irregular smoke coming outta the pipes then be worried

 

sog will probably tell you the same thing they told me and the rest of these guys... it's just the design of the turbo'd boxer engine. if you're not leaking here's what i've learned from siegel about where it's going: turbo uses some of that oil you put in your engine it spins several TIMES faster than your engine speed. given the speeds a turbo spins at, some oil is bound to burn. also the detergents that are in dino oil swell your seals, the lack thereof (i.e. synthetic oils)will allow them to sometimes shrink, thus letting a small amnt past the seals.

whatever you do, mind your oil level, if there isn't enough for the turbo you'll end up with the impeller-paper weight that's sitting on seigel's desk (ask him to show it to ya).

none-the-less go down there and talk to them about it just in case.

 

it's not a bad thing to burn a little oil, better then burning up vital engine pieces

 

Yeah, I think most people don't appreciate just how damn fast a turbo spins. 100-150k RPM.

 

I checked and add oil every 500 miles or more often than that. Like everyone says, having correct oil level is very critical for turbo engine. I change my engine oil every 3K. I use about 1qt during this interval.

just make sure to check oil level more often.

 

Thanks Again for the reassurance. I ran by SOG and they made sure there were no leaks. All appears well