Subaru FB oil burning update; new threshold

[Bandito440]

Originally Posted By: 3311
Are these engines consuming thicker oils?

I mixed 2 qt. 20w-50 along with 4 qt. 0w-20, which made a mix at the heavier end of 30-weight. It didn't make much of a difference. I added a can of MoS2 during the last OCI, which seemed to decrease the consumption a bit, although it could have been due to less highway driving during that interval.

 

[3311]

Good luck with it. It's a nice car.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

Originally Posted By: 3311
Are these engines consuming thicker oils?


Yes, the consumption may be slower though. It's a ring issue.

 

[Virtus_Probi]

Originally Posted By: JTK
Mine seems to be behaving on 5w20 better than 0w20. Mine falls w/in the 1qt/3500mi for sure, but I'm not interested in a consumption test and/or short block over it.


So you're having consumption problems with the 2.0l engine! I've been trying to watch this carefully on subaruforester.com and the complaints I've seen there have all been with the 2.5l.
Sorry to hear that you're having an issue...just did a true cold read at just short of 4000 miles since the last 5W30 change with my 2.0l turbo and it was dead nuts on with the post fill read (after driving it a bit and letting it sit overnight). Guess I got lucky with this 2.0l. What weight do you use?

 

[buster]

Is it possible that a more aggressive break-in could help reduce some of these problems? FWIW, all the cars that I have owned that i broke in hard never consumed a drop. The cars that burned oil from day 1 until I sold them were broken in gentle.

It sounds like it's a ring design issue, but I'm wondering if a more aggressive break-in could help reduce the amount of oil burnoff.

 

[Virtus_Probi]

Originally Posted By: buster
Is it possible that a more aggressive break-in could help reduce some of these problems? FWIW, all the cars that I have owned that i broke in hard never consumed a drop. The cars that burned oil from day 1 until I sold them were broken in gentle.

It sounds like it's a ring design issue, but I'm wondering if a more aggressive break-in could help reduce the amount of oil burnoff.


I've heard this suggested before and wonder if there's something to it.
I have to admit my car probably got broken in harder than it "should" have...asked the salesman just before driving off with my FXT what I had to do for break in, and he just laughed and said that was an obsolete concept. All the engines are run in the factory, just drive it!!! I read in the manual that was not what Subaru recommended partway through the first 1000 miles, so I wasn't careful with it all the way.

 

[buster]

A few years ago a GM engineer was a member on here and suggested breaking-in the engine hard. I wonder, are all engines today broken-in at the factory? I've never been able to get confirmation of that.

 

[SteveSRT8]

Originally Posted By: buster
A few years ago a GM engineer was a member on here and suggested breaking-in the engine hard. I wonder, are all engines today broken-in at the factory? I've never been able to get confirmation of that.


Just like a politician: depends what you mean by broken in.

Some actually run the engine on a fixture (dyno). Others spin it and measure pumping efficiency, etc without actually firing it. Some test the finished car on a real roller dyno and really work the entire drivetrain. Some actually track the car immediately and verify performance!

But many simply start it up at the end of the line and drive it a short distance to the parking lot to be loaded....

 

[bluesubie]

Originally Posted By: buster
Is it possible that a more aggressive break-in could help reduce some of these problems? FWIW, all the cars that I have owned that i broke in hard never consumed a drop. The cars that burned oil from day 1 until I sold them were broken in gentle.

It sounds like it's a ring design issue, but I'm wondering if a more aggressive break-in could help reduce the amount of oil burnoff.

I've been saying the same thing since 2011 and I'll never break-in a new car "by the book" again. Another point I wonder about having an impact is people's tendency to change the factory fill prior to the recommended interval.

 

[GoHack]

Are the issues mainly w/engines w/automatic transmissions, or do they include those w/manuals as well?

The reason I ask, w/a manual, people then to use the engine to slow down, by down shifting. I would think this helps in seating the rings better.

I just bought a new 2015 Crosstrek, w/a manual transmission. I've been careful breaking it in. At 1000 miles, I tend to be shifting the engine a lot more aggressively, running the engine in the 3000 RPM range. I downshift first, when slowing down.

 

[Bandito440]

My Forester is a 5MT.

Engine braking and high speed cruising make the oil burning worse, although Subaru claims to have resolved the issue with better rings for 2015.

 

[GoHack]

Are the cylinders nitrated on the Subaru engines?

The reason I'm asking, because I had a 2012 BMW R1200 motorcycle, w/the Boxster engine, and it took a long time to seat the rings on it, because of the cylinders being nitrated. On average it took between 6000 to 6500 miles on the engine to get the rings seated. Up to that point in time, I was adding oil on a regular basis on my bike. I was concerned about the issue, and found out about the nitrating issue. Sure enough at around 6000 miles, the oil consumption dropped next to nothing.

 

[Bandito440]

I'm not sure about the process, or whether Subaru uses it. In any case, I will break in vehicles harder from now on.