1 Quart Every 500 Miles

The_Dude · May 10, 2012

I consider that pretty heavy oil consumption, but the engine runs well, and only smokes a bit when taking off from a stop. There aren't any valve train, or bearing noises. The car is a '91 LX 5.0 convertibe, 100% stock with 175k miles. I know it could run for a long time like this, but the smoke is embarrassing. I'd like to have the engine rebuilt, but it seems like there are a lot of options these days. I want the car to look stock under the hood, but I'd like to also add a bit of horsepower.
What would you recommend? I'm thinking of a 331 stroker, but I'm not sure about heads and intake.

TOOLOW91 · May 10, 2012

i know you said smoke a little bit but heres a dumb question- did u check the oil level sensor? my 93 pushed the rubber grommet out from the inner part of the sensor that goes around the wire and used to blow through a qt every 500 or so

BlownFiveLiter · May 10, 2012

With a quart every 500 miles, you probably have a broken ring land on one of your pistons. That's a lot of oil consumption. Have you experienced any detonation prior to this oil consumption issue?

The_Dude · May 11, 2012

No puddles in the driveway, so I don't think it's leaking. No detonation either. It really does run well. I actually have a fresh (never fired) '84 351w sitting in the corner of the garage. I had a '69 project it was destined for, but have since sold it. It's stock, but for an Edelbrock Performer manifold. I know there are a lot of parts involved in the swap, and am wondering if it would save any money to swap that in instead.

TOOLOW91 · May 11, 2012

yeah it didnt really leak on mine unless you were driving.... like i said its worth a check. good luck with it

Gearbanger 101 · May 11, 2012

The_Dude said:
I want the car to look stock under the hood, but I'd like to also add a bit of horsepower.

What would you recommend? I'm thinking of a 331 stroker, but I'm not sure about heads and intake.

What we'd recommend depends on your budget, skillset and intended use for the vehicle?

The_Dude · May 11, 2012

Daily driver. I'd have someone else build the engine. I can do the r&r. I probably wouldn't want to spend more than $3k on the build.

Gearbanger 101 · May 11, 2012

The_Dude said:
Daily driver. I'd have someone else build the engine. I can do the r&r. I probably wouldn't want to spend more than $3k on the build.

$3,000 won't get you very far if you're having someone else build the engine. Especially if you've got a stroker in mind. Fordstrokers.com sells their Liberty DIY kit's for just under $2,000. Scrounge the wrecking yard for an Explorer top end and have the heads cleaned up a little and find someone who'll cut you a good deal on getting it together and you might make your $3,000 mark. Should be good for a little over 300-315whp and upwards of 350lbs/ft of torque. A pretty stout daily driver if you ask me.

The_Dude · May 11, 2012

What are the best Explorer years to look for?

The_Dude · May 11, 2012

Is this Eagle kit any good?
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/ESP-B16021LA020/Application/?prefilter=1

Gearbanger 101 · May 11, 2012

The_Dude said:
What are the best Explorer years to look for?

Going with the '96 and early-'97 Explorer top end will allow you to keep your EGR function. Later models will work though if you don't care if it funcions or not.

The_Dude said:
Is this Eagle kit any good?
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/ESP-B16021LA020/Application/?prefilter=1

Yes, the Eagles are quality. You camshaft is going to be the most crucial component. I'd suggest a nice dual pattern grind to compliment the heads like one of those from Anderson Ford Motorsports, CompCams, Trick Flow, etc.

2000xp8 · May 12, 2012

When the car runs fine, just burns oil, the usual culprit is the bearings.

TOOLOW91 · May 12, 2012

The_Dude said:
Is this Eagle kit any good?
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/ESP-B16021LA020/Application/?prefilter=1

The kits are good but i would spend a little extra for a kit with forged pistons... hypers are asking for trouble if you decide to add any boost later on

BlownFiveLiter · May 12, 2012

2000xp8 said:
When the car runs fine, just burns oil, the usual culprit is the bearings.

What bearings come into contact with the combustion chamber? If you had said rings, or valve seals, I would agree.

The_Dude · May 12, 2012

I think low oil pressure usually a symptom of bad bearings.

Gearbanger 101 · May 12, 2012

2000xp8 said:
When the car runs fine, just burns oil, the usual culprit is the bearings.

...or rings, or valves, or valve seals. Plenty of possibilities. A bad bearing would probably be the last on my list of suspicion if the car doesn't knock and the oil pressure remained consistent.

toolow91 said:
The kits are good but i would spend a little extra for a kit with forged pistons... hypers are asking for trouble if you decide to add any boost later on

Depends on the silicone content and quality of the piston. Lots of guys running moderate boost levels with Hyper pistons. Take a look at the modular crowd. Their pistons are far more fragile than ours and they're holding up well into the 400rwhp range with boost. I wouldn't be afraid to run them at all at those power levels. They'll be a lot quieter than the forged and use less oil over their lifetime too.

BLM · Nov 7, 2012

Hi,

I have a Mustang 1991 5.0L LX convertible (7up)
Anybody can help me with this ?
Everithing has started when the valve cover gasket has been changed because of little leakage happend....but Last summer, when I started the engine, the car started to smoke white, then to heat (but OK) and the oil consumption was far too high to continue to drive: about 1/4 gallon per 200 miles !!!
The diagnostic was to replace the 16 valve stem seal, which was done last week Nov 1rst by a local technician, without removing the cylinder head (just in 2 hours).
But today, when I start the engine, there is still white smoke for few second and then OK.
But I saw again the same level of oil consumption... although I put synthetic Long life 5W30 oil.
What can cause this trouble?
- piston (ring) break, valve break..... and what is the consequences for the catalytic converter with so much oil to burn and digest?

When I open the oil cap I feel a very high depression, if I continue to unscrew it then the engine stops..? Why

Thanks for your help

1 Quart Every 500 Miles

The_Dude

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TOOLOW91

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