A few years back when the neighbors daughter graduated from High School and started life by going to college, her parents wanted to purchase a car for her.
They at the time as many families were suffering a bit from job security and finances and had borrowed my 94 Saturn coupe when they needed an extra car a number of times.
The ended up buying a 99 Saturn sedan for the daughter and off to college she goes.
They in turn bought and then traded a Saturn or two and now have 1 late model and a Kia and a Dodge.
In the mean time the daughter complete college and is going on for a PHD. She has become a young adult with a goal and a career, a Saturn sedan well maintained, just repainted and lives at home for the moment as she adjusts her life to her education
and
wants a new car!
Part of it is growing up, part of it is the Saturn now has about 100,000 miles on it
and
Part of it is the danged thing is burning oil
where as mine? Still does not.
She had her car maintained by the dealer the entire time she owned it and still does.
The repaint was due to a minor accident and a gift from her parents.
Here is a nice used car, a bit long in tooth now, but mine is longer.
Bought with my recommendation because of my owning one and enjoying it and being a car nut to boot.
I had no idea until time past, that these things were prone to burning oil when maintained as the Dealer and the Factory recommended.
Mine? When purchased I looked at the recommended service in terms of oil used and said no way, not mine, not how I drive
and changed to what I felt was correct.
I still have it, I still like it and it does not burn any oil.
I use the same oil in it that I use in my new Chrysler which was changed to the first oil change after buying it from the dealer 3 years ago.
Secretly? I am sorry I recommended buying this Saturn to my neighbor some 7 or so years ago.
Dang. What a frustrating feeling it is.
Suspecting and believing that the reason for the oil burning now
was a decision made by the factory to use a light weight oil in a car that never should have been used due to engine reliability issues, so that fuel economy might increase by some small insignificant percentage using the lighter oil, but it looked better for advertising purposes.

 

Your discussion has merit, and obviously much thought went into your decision to shift away from the original factory recommended viscosity -- do you get many strange stares at the parts shop when you request a "single weight-high detergent oil ??

 

Ocean - What oil viscosity oil is right, I have always used 10/30 in winter 10/40 in summer. I have only GM Ford and Chrysler brand cars. Never owned or will own Jap products.

 

There is probably as many answers to that question, as there are people here on this Forum. In the three Saturns still in my stable ('93SW2, '02L200, '09AuraXE) - I'm running 10w40 non-synthetic oil in all of them. I'm located in the very southernmost portion of Mississippi, so my winters are neither long nor extremely harsh. It does get warm in the summer, but not like Arizona or Nevada.

Is my selection the best for everyone? -- Obviously "no", but it works for me. Of the 9 Saturns I've owned since early in '92, none of them have been oil burners.

 

No, actually I don't. And if I did I am not sure I would care very much. I haven't lost an engine since they stopped using lead at which point I lost two street racers due to detonation or pinging.
But I have not used a single weight oil since a multivicosity 40 weight came out and since I live in the south west where it is over 100 degrees a third of the year I use exclusively a multi viscosity 20 W 50 except for the engines I use synthetic oil in and that is Mobile 1 15 W 50.
My new Chrysler suggested or dealer demanded oil weight is 5 W 20, which was stopped at the first oil change and it seems to me that is the universerly used oil since dealers and manufacturers have stressed
light oil = good gas mileage
and we are not responcible after 30,000 mile warrenty runs out.
And as I remember, that is what the Saturn Dealer was insistant on using when the Saturn was first purchased in 1996.
And what was suggested by the manufacturers of the fleet cars the service division ran and I was in charge of at the time untill I got sick and tired of hearing techs say the things were running hot. So I forced them to do the same, run either 20w40 or 20w50 and they quit it.
So if you are using a 10W30 and the oil vs temperature charts do indeed suggest that as a proper weigh oil for your temperatue conditions, there is not reason to be concerned.
But more and more, the 5W20 oil is pushed for use on newer cars to the point where bulk oil companies or discount places are not even selling the heavier oils
and more and more cars are burning it when they get high mileage, way past dealer responcibility, or care.
As the salesman said to me when I drove the Saturn down to the Chevy dealer to buy parts for the Wanna Be Corvette motor I am building,
"You oughta trade that car!"
When asked why he replied
"They don't make them anymore!"
I'm still trying to figure out how to say
Bite me
politically correct.
Oh, and I solved the detonation problem for me anyway. I just build a 9:1 compression engine that will run on 91 octane, the highest octane premium pump gas sold here in Arizona, and can be tuned to run hard with out detonation or pinging.
At least for those engines I still use 30 or 40 year old cast iron cylinder heads anyway.

 

I am just wanting to know if its to late to switch to 10-40w after 160K to stop burning oil or do I need to replace the valve seals on my 2001 SL2.

Hope its not to late to get a reply on this thread.

thanks

 

You can switch to the 10-40W oil at any time ....

 

You'll be very lucky if it "stops" oil burning. With any luck it'll slow it down. Search MM soak (marvel mystery oil) be prepared to change oil and filter along with factory replacement NGK plugs when your done.

 

Your car, after the mileage that has taken place, the 160,000 miles, now has extensive wear with the piston rings.
It was brought about by a steady diet of an oil recommended by the manufacturer that did indeed give some form of increased fuel mileage as measured by some standardized test that all of these cars go through to to enable an MPG rating to be placed on the window sales sticker.
That oil while giving increased fuel economy also supports significantly increased wear on the engine.
Wear that show up out side of the warranty interval and is usually significant by 100,000 miles before some realizes "OMG, this thing is sucking oil like a drunken sailor!"
That wear never would have taken place if he oil used in the first place was more suited to the driving conditions of the car. One of which is the temperature of the area it is driven in.
Of course the once the wear has taken place, the oil consumption will continually increase. It is generally not reversible. In general becuase light weight oil get consumed faster than a heavier weight oil.
Oil also serves as a second source of cooling for the engine. And the fact is a heavier weight oil more suited to the driving conditions, cools better than a lighter weight oil.
Fast forward to about 100,000 miles, the engine is worn and very probably the piston rings are hung up in the grooves due to a carbon build up in part caused by running hot.
The manufacturer plans on standing tall on their products up to the end of the warranty and then it is "NOT THEIR PROBLEM". And about the time the 2nd or 3rd owner starts to be concerned they are pretty much stuck with something that they in fact are partially responsible for. I want a car that gets better gas mileage. Saying that and buying one that seems to offer that with a teenyweeny care given to engine reliability.
Your valve seals ARE NOT A PROBLEM. it is Piston Ring Wear or problems associated with the PISTON RINGS that are.
Changing to a heavier oil at 160,000 miles is 159,000 miles too late.
It should have been done the day it was purchased.
However a heavier oil gets consumed at a slower rate and it might be visible. And it might not.
A top oil such as Marvel Mystery Oil might cause stuck rings to free up and work better and it might not. Or other engine additives which advertise them selves as some form of a top oil and added to the fuel on a regular basis and cost. And they might not. You could get lucky.
I see this as a problem that is greated than the advanced engine wear that took place in the 1930's and 40's as both cars and roads improved allowing people to drive faster and further. Engine wear was down the toilet.
Air filter technology was minimal, oil technology was the same. The demands of Piston Engine Aircraft forced designers to understand the limitations of the designs and generate jet engines which brought about metallurgy improvements and advertising shouted the benefits out and people understanding those things supported and bought products that had taken advantage of the designs.
Until some one in marketing discovered no one cared any longer and MPG was the watch word.
You got what you wanted. MPG and worn out cars.
No it is not too late to change to a heavier oil.
It can be done anytime you want and in general a 10W30 or a 10W40 is a pretty good selection and works well in almost any environment.
The extreme colds will want something lighter, the extreme hot are happier with 20W50.
I live in the extreme hot.
Nothing I own burns oil. But nothing I own has ever seen 5w20 oil in it no matter what is printed on the oil fill cap.
I can pretty much estimate that changing the valve seals is a waste of money and time, but is easier and more profitable for some one to do it rather than rebuild an engine which probably you don't want to pay for at this point in time.
Which is what it is going to take to replace the worn out parts.
Either that or buy a new used car which is probably cheaper.
And then on your new used car if you continue using a 5w20 oil? It is obvious the lesson is not learned and the situation will repeat itself.
AND watch the Adds on T.V. More and more I see an automobile add that says;
By this one! IT HAS MPG!
WOW.

 

Unc I understand your thinking but in my case, I've never had an oil burner of any car that I bought new and maintained. They have all run 5-30 motor oil. Only if the store was out of 5-30 did I get 10-30 or 10-40. That's from the far north to the deep south.