99 5.4L 138,000 miles.

1000 miles to go until my next oil change (every 3k )

This morning im hearing a light knocking noise, which ive heard before when im low on oil so i decided to check it, assuming it was maybe a quart low which it normally is around this time. Umm, no...nothing, zero zilch. I dipped that stick a half a dozen times, let it cool off, did it again, nothing, not even a spec on the very tip. My oils gone. Now i know its somewhat normal for these motors to burn a quart or maybe a touch more between intervals but im guessing im more like 3-4 quarts low which is not good, at all. It dont leak a drop of oil, my driveway is spotless. I got nothing in the coolant..no visual leaks anywhere. Truck runs great. Where the hell did all of it go, should i be concerned or what. Ive never seen it burn that much oil before my next change.

 

That's a lot of oil to use in 2K miles. If it's not leaking, then it's burning it...I'd go ahead and do your next oil change, then closely monitor your oil level. Check it every time you get fuel or so or once a week to see where it's going. Losing that much oil over 2000 miles, you should be able to see where it's going if it's leaking or burning.

 

Just a shot in the dark here, but make sure the dipstick tube is not disconnected/rotted away from the pan....I could be way off but I thought I remembered reading that somewhere...I've got time to kill, I'll search around....

Here's one...

and another...

 

No need to search around. I had posted that a while back. Someone else may have also, but this in fact does happen. It happened on my 93 @ about 120K miles. The entire dip stick tube came right out of the pan. Rusted out. This is certainly a possibility you should double check...

I ended up selling the truck (and disclosed it to the new buyer), but I think he was able to fix it. I know he still has the truck because he lives in town and still drives it. If this is in fact what happened, let me know and the next time I see him (almost weekly) I can ask him if he ever addressed it and what he did to resolve it.

 

Ummm.... Did you happen to add any to see exactly how low it was?

In your original post you said you were guessing you were that low. You can be 1 quart low and not hit the stick. Depending on the ACTUAL level on the stick when changed. I have seen this with mine, and, adding a quart put it back to normal.

Granite, the knocking is not a good sign.

Good luck man!

 

check the air induction tube for oil inside if there is it is most likely a blow by which it will be burning the oil, its caused from air getting past the piston rings.

 

alright well i stopped in and got it topped off today. Took 2.5 quarts to bring it up to level. Checked the dipstick tube and looks good all the way down. No oil in the intake tube. Knocking went away after adding oil, it was a very light knock to begin with but enough to notice. Ill look around some more tonight for leaks. Ill definitely be checking it more often. Would it help to do a compression check, would that show anything or maybe pinpoint where its burning it? pull the plugs to see if theyre soaked or not? I dunno. whatever it is it cant be good im sure. Thanks for the help

 

oh man i just encountered this problem yesterday with a girls toyota celica gt only she ran it for days n it was LOUD...same thing though no oil no leaks no mixin with other fluids wrote about expereience in general discussion early xmas gift