why is my 3800 losing about a quart of oil every, oh, 3,500 miles (using synthetic, I usually change the oil about every 5,000). I used to, at every interval, dump an entire can of SeaFoam into the crankcase, let it run for about 5 minutes, then drain/refill. About five oil changes ago I started to notice the oil loss and was told by my mechanic to STOP that amount of SF in my crankcase because it "dries up the seals which in turn eats up more oil"?

So I stopped at that time, however, I'm still noticing the loss even now at about 1/4 of my oil life left before changing. Did I do more harm than was originally professed to me, or is this something standard in the 3800 motor?

thanks

If your not finding any oil on the ground, or pooled up. And you don't smell oil burning when driving. I would say your valve seals are leaking. Easy fix. New valve cover gaskets, vitron guide seals form ZZP, and a few hours of time. You will need a spring compressor, a compression tester kit, and a air compressor.

you know my 3800 na in my 03 does the same thing. burns about a quart in 3k miles and thats with synthetic. bought her used with approx 32k miles she has 44k now. i just add some oil between changes. its not bad enough to see where its coming from, no visible smoke, and no leaks that are bad enough to lose a quart in 3k.

There are 160K miles on our bonnie and the Last 12K of torture that I have put her through, and we only lose maybe 3/4 of a quart per change, at about a 5000-6000 mile interval.

I'm told that GM'* specifications are that a Series II burns about a half-quart every 5,000 miles. More than that, you have a problem (as you've noted). Keep adding oil, and replace the valve cover gaskets and grommets as soon as you can. Torque them down properly and all should be well.

As far as SeaFoam, use only a third-can. I can't say what more does, but it seems much less viscous than oil...

To much can dry out seals and gaskets.

i've noticed this with my bonnie as well over the past few months. i've noticed no pooling (a few drops here and there). Also no blue smoke or anything and I can't smell oil. I might end up trying to replace the valve seals. Would it be possible to write the direct link to the ZZP valve seals?

also, about how much would it cost to have this done at a shop? i'm a college student and i'm really limited on space and time =(

http://www.zzperformance.com/grand_p...=125&catid=104 How much a shop will charge is hard to say. It'* about 3 hours of work.

i lose about a quart every change but my back valve cover gasket is leaking a little bit i was told its a common problem on the 3800

I took a little closer look and mine appears to be as well. I'm not sure if that could add up to the quart or so amount I lose every change, especially since i'm not seeing any on the ground. Maybe I'll start with replacing those first. I plan on putting mine in the garage to do some work on it this weekend anyways.