My engine burns a lot of oil...

Hi folks.
Sorry, but this will be a long post.

Basic symptom: the oil comes out on the exhaustpipes. I suppose the valve seals gone south... but don't hesitate to correct me if I'm wrong. Anyway, I have a lot of questions since the car is hitting 200.000km and there should be some maintenance to do when the mechanics take off the valve cover for repair so here are my concerns:

1) since I'm gonna have the timing belt changed I was just wondering which idler pulley needs to be exchanged (I've found a timingbelt diagram in the How-to locker). Is it Idler or Idler No. 2 or maybe both?

2) is it possible that the lambda sonde will be affected by that massive amount of oil going/flowing thru the exhaust system? should I have that changed as well maybe?

3) when the spark plugs will be changed, also a good time to change the spark coils or forget it because they won't get worn out so easily?

4) I have a loud ticking noise which is pretty much in synchro with the RPM coming from the passenger side of the engine. Not with cold engine, only when it's warm. I just hope it's not the flexplate...
?

5) chances are I'm gonna need the full seal-set for the engine. Can someone give me the subaru part # of this seal set I cannot seem to find it on subarupart.com. Very appreciate it!

I guess that's all for now. Thanks for any help and please don't say to sell the car - it's a white SVX so this is not an option

[James Scott]

l'm not a mechanic, but I've heard the coil packs are sturdy (and about $100 each!), so I wouldn't replace unless specifically diagnosed defective.

Good Luck!

[svx_commuter]

I don't if it's the valve seals. It is most likely the rings. You should PM Mohrds (Doug) he had a similar problem.

If it is the valve stems seals, they are inside the double springs. The only way to get them off is to take the heads off so the springs can be compressed. The cam shafts have to come out to do this. The cam shafts can only come out when the engine is out of the car.

[gl1674]

The cam shafts have to come out to do this. The cam shafts can only come out when the engine is out of the car

Not quite correct. Camshafts and heads can come out with the engine in the car. The most difficult part to remove is actually valve cover.

[NikFu S.]

i heard coils go a lot more than $100 a piece, and they dont need to be replaced unless they break, which is rare.

on this car with this engine i would recommend making room to do such a thing as service cams. how you do it is your call.

[svx_commuter]

I am always up for a challenge. I think changing the heads with the engine in the car is just that, a challenge. Let us know how you do cleaning the block and not getting any old gasket material into the coolant and oil passages. I think there will be less time involved with the engine out.

[NikFu S.]

considering what it was like to merely change the plugs, cams do not even register in my mind as accessible with the engine still in the bay. i cant imagine doing such a thing.

[gl1674]

The cam shafts can only come out when the engine is out of the car

I am only correcting a factual inaccuracy. It is quite easy to remove camshafts once the timing belt and rocker cover are removed.

Thanks for all the info guys but I am still unsure that it's the valve seals. Is it for sure or the oil cloud on the rear bumper just above the exhaust pipes can be something else too?

[gl1674]

RSK,

Oil in the exhaust and on rear bumper is either valve seals or piston rings. Unfortunately for you it is not a typical problem for an SVX - you will not be able to find much experience on this forum.

Are you sure it is oil? Do you have to top up engine oil between
the oil changes? How much and how often?

The black stuff from exhaust can be unburnt carbon due to rich mixture (should not be too greasy though)

Re lambda sonde it is called Oxygen Sensor here. You have two sensors in the car. They do not like to be dirty on outside - they
have to breeze fresh air in order to function properly. A failed sensor will illuminate check engine light after 10-15 minutes of
running. I suggest checking engine trouble codes before replacing these sensors.

[svx_commuter]

Originally posted by gl1674

I am only correcting a factual inaccuracy. It is quite easy to remove camshafts once the timing belt and rocker cover are removed.

Have you done this on an SVX engine?

Originally posted by gl1674
RSK,

Oil in the exhaust and on rear bumper is either valve seals or piston rings. Unfortunately for you it is not a typical problem for an SVX - you will not be able to find much experience on this forum.

Are you sure it is oil? Do you have to top up engine oil between
the oil changes? How much and how often?

Thanks for the input. The reason why I assume it's oil on the bumper (beside the fact that it's greasy ) is because I have to top up oil. the amount depends on how hard I am on the pedal. 2 liter in 1000 km - I guess that's a lot. of course I've driven only like 4000 km ever since I'm aware of this (I've brought a car with the problem) and this will be fixed in the next couple of weeks for sure just to prevent further damage. Is it any other way to find out it's not the piston rings other than measuring compression?

The reason I'm asking this is because I have to buy a lot of stuff before the job gets done (oil pump, water pump, etc) but if it's the pistons, it just not worth all the trouble: I'm gonna dump the car and get another one. Got it for ridiculous money anyway and I definitely wanted to give it a shot.

lambda sonde it is called Oxygen Sensor here. You have two sensors in the car. They do not like to be dirty on outside - they
have to breeze fresh air in order to function properly.

Again, thanks. I've checked already on the exhaust system blueprint... would be a possible solution to clean the O2 sensor or does it have to be exchanged should the power light test prove the sensor is gone?

Cheers, RSK

[gl1674]

Have you done this on an SVX engine?

Yes I have. My engine has a small coolant leakage - I tried to fix it by replacing head gaskets. New gaskets did not have any noticeable effect unfortunately.

[gl1674]

2 liter in 1000 km - I guess that's a lot

That's a fair bit indeed.
Don't know how to help you further, but you should diagnose/solve this first before you spend any more money on this engine. Don't put a new timing belt or water pump or anything on it - it might be more economical to buy a used engine from a wrecker and put new pump/belt etc on it.

There are some signs that might telltale whether its pistons or valve seals, but I don't know how reliable are they on SVX or flat boxer engines for that matter.

Usually if you get a cloud of smoke when you rev engine after it has idled for a few minutes - its the valve seals.
If you get smoke under heavy acceleration in gear - its piston rings, but I don't know how well this applies to Subaru engines.

Originally posted by gl1674
If you get smoke under heavy acceleration in gear - its piston rings

oh crap. that's not good news. I rather have this symptom unfortunatelly.