What oil for leaking valve stem seals?

[landtoy80]

Before I spend the $$ to try Smoleless Motor Oil, is there a type or weight of oil that will help reduce the start up smoke I have from a leaking valve stem seals?

I have tried RotellaT 5w40 with and without Lucas. M1 15w50 with Restore. Retella 15w40 with w/out Restore. Toyota 5w30 oil.

 

[Big_Kat]

I believe its going to be something your going to have to live with,, I had an old 318 Chrysler that had bad valve stem steals and nothing seemed to get rid of the start up cough...

 

[Drew99GT]

Try a high mileage oil; they have seal swelling agents that can help.

 

[G.Frost]

You could try a good dose of group V like Red Line or a 'high mileage' oil with such seal conditioning additives.
The Red Line cured my 88 Accord tell-tale puff of blue smoke now going on 7 years and 26k+ miles. (156K total miles, original valve seals)

 

[45ACP]

Originally Posted By: G.Frost
You could try a good dose of group V like Red Line or a 'high mileage' oil with such seal conditioning additives.
The Red Line cured my 88 Accord tell-tale puff of blue smoke now going on 7 years and 26k+ miles. (156K total miles, original valve seals)


That is good advice. Though basestocks are regarded as being "one isnt better than the other," the Group V does have a solid reputation to cling to metals and walls.

It may very well be your best shot at makng the start-up "puff" go away. Very good advice.

I was originally going to post that it could be a hard problem to rectify, but go up a grade perhaps and see what happens with Redline 0W-40.

 

[landtoy80]

Why a 0w40? Wouldn't the thinner oil leak more?

 

[45ACP]

Originally Posted By: landtoy80
Why a 0w40? Wouldn't the thinner oil leak more?


No, it wouldnt, because through the magic of oil chemistry those whacky 0W grades tend to be THICKER than the 5W and 10W equivalents ALL THE TIME. 0W refers to (almost) NO resistance at start-up to flow. That is all it means.

(CATERHAM, I summon thee.)

Check out Redline, its a prime example. Thats why its such a good oil!

 

[needsducktape]

All hail 0- weight oils.

-you are our overlords !

 

[crazyoildude]

what kind of car and what engine?

 

[landtoy80]

94 Toyota Land Cruiser straight 6 cylinder 364,000 mi.

 

[Dakota1820]

10w40 maxlife valvoline made it specifically for valve seals. It does work. Give it a shot

 

[zyxelenator]

or 5w-30 for winter

 

[Turk]

Maxlife 5-30 stopped a small leak on our Camry, but not the start-up blue smoke...

 

[demarpaint]

A HM oil might help. I've seen stem seals break like glass, ripped, and valve stems totally missing the seals. The best thing to do is replace them if a HM oil doesn't work. Using too thick an oil to stop a consumption issue from bad stem seals in an otherwise good engine might cause other problems over time. Especially during the winter months. JMO

 

[jstutz]

My vote is to try a quality HM oil. It really worked wonders for my old 4.3. It took a while to work but after being in the engine for about a year, i dont know that it ever puffs smoke on startup any more. I have only used M1 10w40HM and Pennzoil 10w40HM as far has the HM oil go. I guess it depends on how bad it is. Mine would just puff a little smoke on startup. So over a 5K OCI, it maybe used a qt of oil max. If it is crazy bad then maybe you need to look into just getting them replaced.

 

[G.Frost]

At 364K miles, HM/Grp V may not work enough magic and replacement the only option. I also wonder to what extent valve deposits contribute to the problem. My 88 Accord had other issues from SF/SG oils that Red Line helped to clean out. Combustion/gas deposits were a problem as well.

 

[Quest]

with over 364kmiles to odo, you definitely need to replace those worn/tired valve stem seals...

while HM oils may slow down the leak, nothing will stop the oil from creeping in/past the valve stem seals.

Q.

 

[mechtech2]

At the preposterously high 400,000 mile mark, it is not just seals, but valve/valve guide wear, and ring/bore/ piston wear.

You could try a high mileage oil, but a thick oil is your best shot to attenuate this [not fix it].

 

[landtoy80]

I bought G-Oil as I need to do an emission test. It says it lowers emissions.

I found Redline and HD Redline. Would HD be a better choice for me to try next?

 

[landtoy80]

Would a straight weight oil 30 leak past the seals less than a 5w30? Same with 40 vs 10w40, 50 vs 20w50?