Hello to the group. I just registered after finding this very informative website.
I have a 2001 SE with 105000 miles on the clock. My father bought this car brand new and then gave it me a few years ago and now I have given it to my son. I received it at around 45000 miles. It has always been an oil burner. Nothing obviously leaking anywhere. Lately, it appears to be increasing. Mayber two quarts between oil changes now. I am not sure what I should be concerned about here, other than the fact that this problem exists. She runs fine. We need to keep this car for a couple more years as my son will be commuting to college for two years with it. So, I had planned on running up the odometer to over 150000 miles anyway.
Is this a common problem with this engine? Any suggestion as what could be wrong? Are there any additives I should add to the oil that may help? Should I switch to a synthetic oil?
Thanks you for any advice that I can use, Eric

What weight oil are you running? 5w30? Perhaps up that to 10w30, no need to go much higher then that. If your burning threw the oil switching to synthetic is just throwing your money away. Keep up with the changes and keep it topped off.

Hi Dan,
The book calls for 10w30. That is all I have ever used. Someone at work suggested to do a flush with Gunk 5 minute flush before my next oil change and then up the oil to 10w40.
Maybe this will help it some.
Thanks for the reply, Eric

The problem with using some flushing compounds is that they frequently dislodge material that can cause more problems. You can try a 10w40 and see if you have any positive changes or reduction of oil consumption. You can try a compression test on the cylinders and that can help pin point whether you have a ring issue or a valve seat issue. If you have worn valve seats, its better than worn rings.

Exactly, And as well these "mechanics in a can" tend to soften old gaskets and cause or worsen stress cracks , leading to or worsen oil leaks.(Don't listen to the text on the can, they say what they want) If your engine is losing oil from wear, additives aren't going to solve the problem. Your throwing your money away and possibly make things worse. If it not to serious, using a thicker oil may help for awhile. 20W/40 may help for a time. Synthetic is not a good choice in engines with leaks or wear problems, it seeps to easily. These engines using don't even start using oil until into the 200K range. But performance driving/iregular oil changes (and filter) can be an adverse factor. If it isnt fouling the plugs, you prolly have alot some good mileage left.

Burning oil due to piston rings or valve seals is extremely uncommon to the S2 3800'*. I would be interested to hear if you see a puff of oil smoke when you first start the car or if the exhaust looks like a bluish smoke when it is running. Those are the two signs of burning oil.

Leaking oil is another story. Valve cover gaskets in my experience can develop leaks after about 75,000 miles. You would usually smell this burning off the exhaust.

The rear engine cover gasket is common for seepage that usually doesn't amount to much loss. And the oil pan gasket can leak pretty significantly. This would usually be seen on the ground where you park the car.

Thanks again for the responses guys. I really appreciate it alot.
I will forget about the additives and try a heavier oil next change, My son drives the car now so I do not get to see it as much, but I"ll look for the smoky startup as soon as I can. The car has sentimental value to our family, as I said it has been through my father and me and now to my son.
As long as the only thing is buying extra oil for a couple of years, I"m OK with that. I was just worried about the oil usage causing other problems.
I can see that this board is a nice resource to tap into. The only problem is that I am not much of an expert, and I will be asking more questions than answering them.
Take care, Eric

#1 cause !!!!!!

How many miles between oil changes? If you're using 2 quarts between 5000 changes, that'* not a problem for me. My 98 with 160K miles uses roughly a quart in 2000 miles in short trips for my son to and from school.