I dont know wether its a leak or its burning. It never smokes when I drive it doesnt smoke when I start up it doesnt smoke(except for condensation)

As far for leaks I never see any on the ground. My last oil change was about 3k miles ago and I am Quart and a 1/4 under!!!

blahh!!!

I have a 98accord lx 4cyl

This is a typical problem of the 2.3L VTEC F23 four cylinder motor.

1st have the car inspected for any leaks.

Then monitor your oil usage very closely, and add as needed. Keep some in the trunk.

Next oil change, use a synthetic blend, and 10-30 instead of 5-30 oil if your climate permits it.

Valve guide seals are likely your biggest culprit, it's literally invisible in how oil gets burnt from this since it is so "innocent" in how it burns.

I had a car that never dripped, and you can't see any smoke from the tail pipe, but a co-worker who drove behind me one day said he can't see anything but he can smelled the burnt oil.

I am due for an inspection this month when I bring it in I am gonna ask the guy to check for any leaks. I am about to drive 80 miles and its a bit scarey when I just checked the dip stick!

valve stem seals are unlikely unless the car's been poorly maintained.

valve stem seals will always leave you with a big clue, smoke clouds on a startup after the car sits for more than a few hours (catalyst has gone cold) as the oil drips down into the cylinders. I've not ever seen one of these display this trait.

Most F23 engines that start using oil rather suddenly have frozen oil control rings. It's kind of a Honda/Japanese engine trademark. This is due to the very low tension rings that they use for lower friction. It only takes a little extra heat or one bout of running really low on oil to kill the rings. Remember if the car has been running at 220-225 degrees, that's much hotter than normal, and the gauge will never show this due to the "dampened" gauge action.

They will use oil at a very fast rate when used on the highway or at higher engine revs.

I've now had almost a half dozen that are doing this at where I work. One '02 is gone now, traded. It was using a quart about every 100 miles. No smoke, no leaks and no noticeable smell (from the driver's seat though) The tailpipe was sticky, sooty, black. This particular car was overheated at one point by the owner on a highway trip (tstat stuck shut).

Most that use oil that I see have 180k or higher. Most are about a quart to a little more every 1000 miles.

I'm happy to not be 'severely' effected by this yet.

I'm using about 1/2 a quart every 3000 miles. 80 city/ 20 hwy

My tail pipe is very black in comparison with my 96 Accord though. Hm.

what should i tell my mechanic? Should I tell him that i think im burning oil/leaking oil and to check out? or should I get more specific with him?

Is there any easy fix to this? It never really started doing this till I actually started traveling highway (160 miles round trip)

it's using it cause of vtec.... the 2.3L are known for this... mine does it too....

go with a heavier weight oil, either 10w30 or even 10w40, and report back. with the 40, i have seen a noticeable drop in oil burning..... :wave:

it's using it cause of vtec.... the 2.3L are known for this... mine does it too....

go with a heavier weight oil, either 10w30 or even 10w40, and report back. with the 40, i have seen a noticeable drop in oil burning..... :wave:

It's not using the oil because of vtec, it's the stuck oil control rings on the pistons. Using the car on the highway (higher constant rpm) splashes more oil on the cylinder walls, causing more to get into the cylinders and burned.

Using a heavier oil is basically making it harder for the oil to get into the cylinder, but it also starves the compression rings for oil, causing them to microweld to the walls. The bearings are also seeing a reduced oil supply as the oil clearances in one of these engines were never designed to run 40wt oil.

considering that you work on these cars, or have a much greater understanding of honda's, i stand corrrected.... :)

valve stem seals are unlikely unless the car's been poorly maintained.

valve stem seals will always leave you with a big clue, smoke clouds on a startup after the car sits for more than a few hours (catalyst has gone cold) as the oil drips down into the cylinders. I've not ever seen one of these display this trait.

Most F23 engines that start using oil rather suddenly have frozen oil control rings. It's kind of a Honda/Japanese engine trademark. This is due to the very low tension rings that they use for lower friction. It only takes a little extra heat or one bout of running really low on oil to kill the rings. Remember if the car has been running at 220-225 degrees, that's much hotter than normal, and the gauge will never show this due to the "dampened" gauge action.

They will use oil at a very fast rate when used on the highway or at higher engine revs.

I've now had almost a half dozen that are doing this at where I work. One '02 is gone now, traded. It was using a quart about every 100 miles. No smoke, no leaks and no noticeable smell (from the driver's seat though) The tailpipe was sticky, sooty, black. This particular car was overheated at one point by the owner on a highway trip (tstat stuck shut).

Most that use oil that I see have 180k or higher. Most are about a quart to a little more every 1000 miles.

I have this exact issue on my 130k 02 Accord, 4 cyl vtec. Burning about 1 qt every 100 mi. Rapid oil burn was sudden, and shocking! No noticeable smoke from tailpipe, no drips, but burning the oil like crazy. Now when I look closely, I can see minor smoke, but nothing like one might imagine. Ultimately a random misfire code caused me to check compression and find that cyl 4 was 80 lbs w/ oil test in cyl raising to 180 lbs. Engine will be swapped for new salvaged engine w/ 55k next week. Will be running much higher quality oil and will be being militant w/ scheduled oil changes and maintenance.