My reflections after 150,00 miles on the 2003 base VIBE 1.8 engine

burrpenick · Post by **burrpenick** » Sat Feb 25, 2012 1:34 pm

Overall, I have been very happy. MPG has been good..........around 35 on the road, 27 or so in town. Starter gave me trouble early around 60k but that was only bad contacts, finally replaced the entire starter at 130k. Also had a front seal go bad. Thats pretty much it for problems with the motor. EXCEPT FOR THE OIL CONSUMPTION THAT STARTED AROUND 120K. Some would say its not excessive, but I dont like to add between changes. I have taken care of this engine and it has never been abused or anywhere near redline. I've been forced to add oil- usually about a quart for 1500-2000 miles. Its worse when driven at highway speeds on the interstate. I've tried the PCV and now use 10-30 or even 15-40 weight, but still need to add. I understand the valve seals could be weak, so I guesss that a valve adjustment would help be any help. Any other ideas/comments on this oil issue?PS: My other BIG complaint is the interior NOISE ISSUE. I put some PEP BOYS FUTURA tires on at 125k and they ROAR!!!!!! The sound inside the car is the worst.........again, any suggestions besides replacing the tires cause I wont till they need it. George in Tallahassee FL

Attached files

chadhgraves · Post by **chadhgraves** » Sat Feb 25, 2012 1:55 pm

You don't see those color Vibes too often.

tgferg67 · Post by **tgferg67** » Sat Feb 25, 2012 6:08 pm

There was a tsb related to oil consumption that increased oil capacity to 4.4 quarts - this lowered piston ring temperatures. Also make sure you cooling system is clean an run a ratio of at least 50% water. Water is better at absorbing heat than glycol - this will help draw heat away from the cylinders.Be happy you don't have a Saturn - my 97 SC1 went from burning a quart every 800 miles to a quart every 200 miles and I had to re-ring the engine to keep the car out of the junkyard.

burrpenick · Post by **burrpenick** » Sun Feb 26, 2012 2:06 pm

Anyone else uppted the oil to 4.4 quarts to help slow down the oil consumption?

tgferg67 · Post by **tgferg67** » Sun Feb 26, 2012 3:22 pm

http://www.toyotapart.com/1ZZ-...8.pdf

Old Tele man · Post by **Old Tele man** » Mon Feb 27, 2012 6:46 am

...yeah, SHREK green isn't as popular as it used to be.

455SD · Post by **455SD** » Mon Feb 27, 2012 7:54 am

Great color.....I like the Envy Green One other thing that you might try, would be to run some SeaFoam, or Marvel Mystery Oil through it. You may have some rings - especially the oil control rings, that have become varnished, and are sticking in a not fully tensioned position. Fairly inexpensive to do.Good luck!

Charles (in GA) · Post by **Charles (in GA)** » Mon Feb 27, 2012 2:09 pm

micbarric was the first to post the info on the TSB about the oil quantity increase, from 3.8 qt to 4.2 qt. I brought this up again in my thread.....http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=45577with detailed pics and info. No reason was given for the oil level increase in the TSB. I ran the new higher oil level for 5K miles and when I replaced the filter, I put the old dipstick back in and set the oil level at 3.8qt. I wanted to see what would happen to gas mileage with the higher oil level. First couple or three tankfuls now make it appear that the mileage went up about a half a mile per gallon over the higher oil level. I've got to run it more to know for sure, probably a total of 10K or so and then back to the higher oil level again.I'm used to some oil consumption. In fact, if some isn't consumed, I assume the rings are not getting properly lubed, nor the piston walls. Wished this thing held more oil however, I just don't like the limited capacity, especially when the car gets old and really begins to consume a quart every 1500 or so.Higher weight oils will have a significant (bad) effect on cylinder lubrication and gas consumption, a 40 wt could do more damage than good.Charles

tgferg67 · Post by **tgferg67** » Mon Feb 27, 2012 3:23 pm

Quote, originally posted by Charles (in GA) »micbarric was the first to post the info on the TSB about the oil quantity increase, from 3.8 qt to 4.2 qt. I brought this up again in my thread.....http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=45577No reason was given for the oil level increase in the TSB. CharlesHere is an internal Toyota document related to the oil consumption.https://docs.google.com/file/d...pli=1The oil consumption will start suddenly and increase at an exponential rate.Cause Of Phenomenon:The root cause is the sticking of the oil control rings due to degradation of the engine oil. There are a number of contributory factors:1. Failure to follow the Manufacturers Service Schedule causes oil degradation.2. Oil entering the combustion chamber being burnt and carried by â€˜blow byâ€™ gas down side of piston as carbon particles.3. The lower portion of the piston (especially around the oil control ring) runs hotter (160ÂºC) than target (120ÂºC).4. The oil flow in the oil control ring area is quickly restricted by any carbon particles reducing lubrication, cooling and â€˜flushing actionâ€™. This in turn causes degradation of oil in the ring groove, further accelerating the sticking process.These factors cause the oil in the oil control ring groove to degrade faster leading to sticking of the oil control rings....An increased oil quantity is part of the countermeasure.

circuitsmith · Post by **circuitsmith** » Tue Feb 28, 2012 1:28 am

A quart every 1500 miles is really not a problem.Some owners of brand new Audis would be very happy with that level of consumption.Using more at high speed cruising is perfectly normal.I recommend you go back to 5w-30 oil for better lubrication at cold start up.It wouldn't hurt to overfill 1/2 a quart (4.9 qt.)

burrpenick · Post by **burrpenick** » Tue Feb 28, 2012 12:09 pm

Thanks to ALL who offered ideas. I definitely felt the same way about the 4 qt capacity: If it gets a quart low, its REALLY LOW! So, I will be adding a half quart more. I also plan to run some Sea Foam and try to clean the pistons if that is possible. George

burrpenick · Post by **burrpenick** » Sat Mar 03, 2012 11:27 am

Its warm enought here in FL that I have no worries about cold start up. Where do you get 4.9? I use 4 stock and planned on adding a half quart. Would you run SEAFOAM in the oil or the fuel to try some cleaning up? Thanks, George

Charles (in GA) · Post by **Charles (in GA)** » Sat Mar 03, 2012 12:18 pm

The "before" quantity is 3.8 qts. The "after" quantity is 4.2 qts.Charles

burrpenick · Post by **burrpenick** » Sat Mar 03, 2012 12:44 pm

OK, do you see any harm in running some Seafoam in the oil for a few miles? Was told I may have some sticking rings? May also put some in the fuel. Comments welcomed!

burrpenick · Post by **burrpenick** » Wed Mar 07, 2012 12:11 pm

OK, dont all chime in here at once! BUT, I took the liberty (since I bought the car for $$$$ in 2004) and added 7oz of Seafoam to the oil and ran it about 50 miles. I also added about 8 oz to the gas.I then changed the oil- adding my normal 4 qts plus 12 oz per the Toyota technical bullitin.I'll let everyone know if the oil consumption slows down. Again, it was never a big issue but did bother me.George in Tallahassee

vibedrivermatt · Post by **vibedrivermatt** » Wed Mar 07, 2012 3:54 pm

awww dang man. The way I've heard seafoam being used is to put in, let the car idle for ten/fifteen minuets and then change the oil immediately afterwards. I dont have a can of seafoam here with me here at the moment so I cant read the instructions for myself but Im just guessing its not good to run for fifty miles with seafoam in your engine. correct me if Im wrong about that as I dont know a lot about seafoam. never used it.

Cougar Vibe · Post by **Cougar Vibe** » Thu Mar 08, 2012 1:34 am

I'll double check my owner's manual, but I'm pretty sure the fill recommendation is 3.7qts (3.5l) for '05 and earlier 1ZZFE Vibes; if one runs the larger YZZF1 filter (which I've done almost every oil change), it's an even 4qts.Thus, if the aim of the new dipstick is to add a half quart to the sump capacity, it would now be 4.2 qts w/the F2-sized filter, 4.5 qts w/the F1-sized filter. I put the new dipstick in my Vibe last week and, w/4qts in the sump, it reads ~halfway between the new marks.C_V

burrpenick · Post by **burrpenick** » Thu Mar 08, 2012 3:18 am

Seafoam claims its OK to run it in the oil till the next change, but others thought up to 100 miles was probably about right. I was with you, and decided 50 miles was OK. I watched the oil before/during and it did not significantantly change to a darker shade. I'm guessing my engine was pretty clean inside as I have done all the maintanence over the yrs myself.....but, I also drove it to work for many yrs and it was not a long drive so the oil did not get completely up to temp. In any event, I ran it thru the oil and added some to the gas and added 12 oz of oil to my usual 4qts using the stock filter. Will be watching the dip stick for a while...........george in Tallahassee

My reflections after 150,00 miles on the 2003 base VIBE 1.8 engine

My reflections after 150,00 miles on the 2003 base VIBE 1.8 engine

Re: My reflections after 150,00 miles on the 2003 base VIBE 1.8 engine (burrpenick)

Re: My reflections after 150,00 miles on the 2003 base VIBE 1.8 engine (burrpenick)

Re: (burrpenick)

Re: My reflections after 150,00 miles on the 2003 base VIBE 1.8 engine (burrpenick)

Re: My reflections after 150,00 miles on the 2003 base VIBE 1.8 engine (tgferg67)

Re: My reflections after 150,00 miles on the 2003 base VIBE 1.8 engine (Charles (in GA))

Re: My reflections after 150,00 miles on the 2003 base VIBE 1.8 engine (burrpenick)

Re: (burrpenick)

Re: (burrpenick)

Re: (burrpenick)

Re: (Cougar Vibe)