Seafoam - A solution to oil consumption?

[d1bram]

Not even 2 days, I put it in Sat morning and then changed the oil Sunday afternoon, with about 50miles inbetween.

According to the instructions, you need to do at least 30miles for it to do anything.

Thinking about it now though, I wish I'd have ran it longer as the bumf on their website does say that dissolving residue etc is a gradual process.

So today I have stuck some in again, and will run it for 3k or so until my next oil change.

Yes, it goes straight in the oil filler, you put in 1.5fl oz per quart of oil.... damn americans lol.

For reference, that translates to 6fl oz (most measuring jugs have fl oz on them) for the MR2.

Results?  Well it's too early to tell, but after 150ish miles it doesn't seem to have used any.  I say seem, as measuring the oil it is still right up near the top of the dipstick (I would expect some level drop immediately after a change, but only slight), but personnally I find the 2's dipstick difficult to be acurate with; I will know for sure how the situation stands after 4-500miles, whereupon I would previously have been a litre down.

The car also seems not to smoke like it did.

Remember though, I have also changed to 0w40 fully synth, so this might contribute to any improvement; ideally I should have only the one variable, but I decided to throw everything at it once as rolling around on the floor doing oil changes in winter isn't my idea of fun!

So in summary, no definitive answer yet, but I remain hopefull.

[Anonymous]

You can make the dipstick easier to read.   l viewtopic.php?f=11&t=28331&hilit=+dipstick l

[d1bram]

sorry for the lack of updates, been a bit busy lately.

Anyway, unfortunately it is not looking too favourable, BUT I am also unable to give a definitive opinion yet.

Basically, I checked the oil on friday night (after approx 350miles) and it took 700ml to fill it.  HOWEVER I seem to still have just under a litre left (say 900ml).  So it look like I had only put 3400ml in after the change rather than the full 3700ml, either way, it's used some, but possibly only about 4-500ml which is an improvement for my car.

Unfortunately, I dropped a major bollock here.... I forgot to replace the oil filler cap!!!

Wife did about 16miles in it saturday and sunday, sunday aft I decided to check the level again in the daylight...

You can imagine my engine bay was a bit of a mess!  Fortunately the oil filler cap was still sitting where I left it, and there was still plenty of oil in the sump.

So disaster avoided but I can't really gauge oil usuage at the moment because of this!

I will fill to the top of the dipstick at the weekend, then reset the trip and start monitoring again.

And thanks Bryan, something to consider.

Cheers, James

[Mad Matt]

You're not the only one. I did that once on another car a few years back.

[K T M Rider]

possibly only about 4-500ml which is an improvement for my car.

would be a significant improvement for mine also so still watching with great interest, although a new 'main' car to play with means I'll probably not be using my 2 now still spring.

Unfortunately, I dropped a major bollock here.... I forgot to replace the oil filler cap!!!

Yeah been there and done that on my Honda CBX250RS circa 1989. At least with a bike you tend to notice it alot quicker (and preferably before it's on your tyres or brakes   s:scared: :scared: s:scared:  )

Wife did about 16miles in it saturday and sunday, sunday aft I decided to check the level again in the daylight...

Phew...........very lucky to spot it so soon, doesn't bear thinking about if she'd been on her way to Scotland.........

[d1bram]

Yeah was a real heart sinker of a moment when I lifted the boot...

A mate did it on a GSXR750 recently and was very lucky to stay rubber side down!

I'm really not expecting miracles here and am prepared for disappointment, BUT I might as well percevere now as I'm sure that IF this stuff is doing any good then the longer it is in there the better the results will be.

[d1bram]

Well, its not looking good, 150miles in and the dipstick is reading about 2/3.

I think it's time I realise I bought a total lemon and look at other solutions.

I'm not going to sell and claim it's all good (like what has happened to me  s:x :x s:x  ), so my options seem to be sell for a loss or new engine.

Wish I'd bought a MX5 now!   s:evil: :evil: s:evil:   As this x plate car looks like it is going to have cost me £4.5k before too long.

[Innocent]

You're not the only one. I did that once on another car a few years back.

Yeah, been there done that. Now put the filler cap over the lower boot catch so it hits if I forget. Thats saved me a couple of times already.....

[OldMan]

I'm having similar oil-burning issues.  Someone told me to try Yamaha Ring Free.  It is available where Yamaha outboard boat motors are sold.  It goes in the gas tank, and supposedly frees the rings (as the name says).  I've got SeaFoam in the oil and Ring Free in the gas.  I have seen no improvement in oil consumption over the last 300 miles, but I'm going to continue the treatment for another 1200 miles just so I can say I gave the products a fair trial.

[normanh]

Yamaha - is that 2 stroke ?

I am not convinced that these additives do any good to be honest unless the rings are really caked and solid in the groves of the piston. Then you have to ask why, is it due to the fact that the bores are worn and the engine is burning excessive oil causing the rings to seize up? It really sounds like some sort of "trick Sh*t" like what was sold years ago when you popped it in through the plug hole to seal the bores.

norman

[d1bram]

Looking at a trade in, or sell on for a loss now.

TBH I bougth the car as a third car, I had a company car and the wife has her car.  I've since changed jobs and elected to take a car allowance rather than a car, so the MR2 is being pressed into everyday use, and really I fancy something a bit newer etc as my everyday car.

I paid £3500 for the car, have since fitted a new rad, had the AC gassed up and carried out some minor bits and bobs... wipers, oil change etc...

I'm thinking if I knock the cost of a replacement engine of (say £800) the price I paid as an opening price then surely it's a decent buy for a competent DIYer?

I've not got the skill, time, space etc to swap the engine.

Of course it runs fine if you're happy to just top up the oil weekly, it's just that I don't know when I'm going to need to go away for several days in it for work covering hundreds of miles.

[K T M Rider]

Looking at a trade in, or sell on for a loss now.

I paid £3500 for the car, have since fitted a new rad, had the AC gassed up and carried out some minor bits and bobs... wipers, oil change etc...

I'm thinking if I knock the cost of a replacement engine of (say £800) the price I paid as an opening price then surely it's a decent buy for a competent DIYer?

Was going to hang back on the brutal honesty, untill I realised that a p/x would have to be your best bet.

Brutal honesty: there are around 20 roadsters advertised at 2.5k or under on Autotrader and Ebay at the moment (and I bet that according to the sellers every single one doesn't burn a drop of oil honest guv - not that many prospective buyers are going to be asking).

Therefore your perfect - but just needs a new engine - example would surely have to be priced at around 1.5k to attract any interest and you would then probably have to suffer the further pain of being offered even less (all on the assumption that you wish to declare it's severe oil burning habit to a private buyer).

Whereas if you p/x I'm guessing that you would be happy to plead ignorance (on the basis that it's obviously ok for you the little man to get one over on the thieving scumbag car dealer for a change). Would have thought you could get a decent p/x against a MX5 or a facelift roadster, as the used car market tends to be slower moving at this time of year and probably more so on convertibles.

[d1bram]

Cheers bud, brutal honesty appreciated and agreed with.

Plan is trade in against a 4 year old Mk3 MX-5 I think, circa £8k.

Conscience appeased by the fact they will be making a usefull profit from the car I buy and most likely offload the MR2 at auction for what they can get!  In fact I have a mate who works for a large dealer network and I know this is how they work and would not be too bothered even if they did take a hit on the MR2.

Either way, your are correct in that I would 100% sell it fully disclosed to a private buyer.

I'm even willing to give the people who sold it to me the benefit of the doubt... perhaps the lass who had it pottering around doing a couple of thousand miles a year had not suffered oil loss, and it is me driving it how it was built to be driven triggering it.

Any idea what I should look for a trade in value?

[markiii]

and teh poor sap buying it at auction will realise they are buying a lemon how?

[d1bram]

Well my experience of auction is that you buy assuming the worst and pay accordingly.  At Auction I would guess it will go for circa £2k or less, at this price the 'poor sap' can budget for a recon engine and still have a reasonably priced car.

I paid £3500 meanwhile in good faith, remember I have had this car less than 3 months.  I'm not going to try and pass it on at that price and claim it's all good.

If I sell to the dealer at a trade price, they take on board the car any inherent issues it may have, it is then their descretion what to do with it.

Remember, all the while it is using oil at a rate which toyota consider 'acceptable', why should I operate on some kind of moral high ground beyond this?

[markiii]

operate at whatever moral ground you feel comfortable with

just don't kid yourself no-one is going to get shafted

[d1bram]

Less shafted than I if the car goes at trade price!

If I tell the dealer I trade the car into;  'the car uses oil at the rate toyota state in the manual', I have fully disclosed the information, he may even decide to pay me less as a result, but will the next guy down the food chain be privvy to the same info?

Or if I sold it private, for say £1500, what's to stop the next guy selling it on as being perfect and making a £1500 profit out of someone elses naivity?

Basically I've ended up with a car which I want to change for other reasons, but that I personally don't think is 100% so don't want to sell on private as such.  Traders take cars in P/X on a bought as seen basis and build the potential for problems into their pricing.  Some are perfect, some less so.  My car runs 100% but needs regular oil top ups, I'm sure that it's not the worst car passing through trade!

other option is I shell out £1200ish for a new engine fitted, I could then sell private for £3kish, but then it's the wrong time of year to sell and it could take months.  So I'm back to trading in, and I still get offered the same money as I would before shelling out the £1200.

I could fix it, sell it on and some other major problem develop.

What would you do with it?

[markiii]

if its unfixable you either replace teh engine and take teh hit

or leave teh problem for someone else to get screwed with.

neither is pleasant depends on your moral compass, I'm not even sure which I'd choose.

however if your still running teh 0w40 your previous posts imply, I;d start by using a 15w50 and see if things improve. As I've always maintained a 0 weight oil is way way to thin for these engines

[d1bram]

Surely the 0 refers to cold temperature viscosity and 40 the high temperature viscosity.

So in simple terms, compared to the recommended 5w30 more runny at low temperatures but less runny at high temperature.

I appreciate your suggestion of changing to 15w50, but don't really want to be faffing around with a further oil change, besides, I would like to change sooner rather than later to get it sorted before christmas.

'or leave the problem for someone else to get screwed with.' - I'm reasoning here that the next owner will either be a large dealership, who can swallow it up without blinking (and probably still make profit in the transaction) OR someone buying it el cheapo at auction; in which case I feel they can budget for an engine swap.

Right or wrong, who knows?  

I do appreciate your opinions though.

[sam1176uk]

There's no right or wrong answer in this, but it is very easy to criticise from the outside looking in.  At the end of the day you can't justify the expense/hassle of a new engine (which isn't guaranteed to fix the problem in one go, the replacement may well have similar issues) so it is up to you what you do now, and trading it into a garage seems the fairest way to do this IMO.

[markiii]

can you publish teh reg if you get rid at least that way we know which one to avoid

[d1bram]

Yes I'll do that.

Thanks Sam.

End of the day, the last owner had the car 4 years, I think I am being a little generous assuming the problem may have only developed during my 3 months of ownership!  And they were happy to sell it to me, for good money face to face, not something I'd do.

Returning to an earlier question, does anyone have an idea of trade in value on my car?  2000 Xreg, AC + hardtop + leather.

Parkers guide seems to require a subscription these days, got a value elsewhere of £3200 for trade in, but this seems extremely optimistic.

By the way, if I was still running my car as a weekend toy as originally intended, running it as is would not be an issue.

[markiii]

if it were me I'd sell teh hardtop and leather seperately, it won;tmake that much difference ot teh value

but seriously for £40 try some thicker oil first you may be pleasantly surprised

[Peter Wright]

but seriously for £40 try some thicker oil first you may be pleasantly surprised

Definitely agree you will be amazed at how much quieter and smoother everything feels

[d1bram]

Has that been known to reduce oil consumption?

Nothing ventured I suppose.  Will still want to shift the car though, and might not keep it long enough to see if it works.