Rings Gone At 99,000?

[grand lexus]

I wrote a few months back about exhaust smoke at start up. That seems to have gone away after dumping an oil treatment. However, I am still loosing oil. Took a 270 mile trip (interstate) and lost almost a quart. However, driving round town (ie, lower rpms) I am not loosing it as fast. No drips showing anywhere

I added a quart the other day and noticed some leak from the valve cover. I have not noticed an smoking from under the hood or smelled buring oil.

Everything started at around 99,000 miles. The car now has 104K.

One mechanic says the rings are worn. He said he found "blow-by". Before going for a second opinion, I thought I would check here to see if there is anything else it could be.

[mburnickas]

I wrote a few months back about exhaust smoke at start up. That seems to have gone away after dumping an oil treatment. However, I am still loosing oil. Took a 270 mile trip (interstate) and lost almost a quart. However, driving round town (ie, lower rpms) I am not loosing it as fast. No drips showing anywhere

I added a quart the other day and noticed some leak from the valve cover. I have not noticed an smoking from under the hood or smelled buring oil.

Everything started at around 99,000 miles. The car now has 104K.

One mechanic says the rings are worn. He said he found "blow-by". Before going for a second opinion, I thought I would check here to see if there is anything else it could be.

maybe stuck ring(s)?

[Toysrme]

I'm not sure how he worded it, but you can't "find" blow-by. Do a compression / leak down test if you're worried about rings.

It's time for valve cover gaskets.

[monarch]

However, I am still loosing oil. One mechanic says the rings are worn. He said he found "blow-by". Before going for a second opinion, I thought I would check here to see if there is anything else it could be.

You havn't done the things we suggested back in April:

1. You havn't had a valve cover removed to verify whether or not the engine is sludged. Sludge is a leading cause of high oil consumption. If your engine is sludged, then a Toyota dealer will know about how to desludge it (assuming the sludge has not caused serious engine damage)

2. You havn't had cylinder compression and cylinder leak down tests performed to verify whether or not the piston rings and engine valves are sealing well. If your engine is not sludged, but still burns alot of oil then the cylinder leak down test might reveal high percentage (over 20%) leakage on some cylinders. The cylinder leak down test can pinpoint whether or not the leakage is due to worn or damaged rings or burned valves.

We still don't know any details about the ownership and preventive maintenance history of your car. Like how often did the former owner change the engine oil and oil filter and the air filter? When was the first tune up done and what parts were replaced?

[grand lexus]

I did tell them what you told me. I did NOT however tell them what to do. They thought the sludge story was nonsense. They said the blow-by told them I had "weak rings".

I should also repeat that the consumption of oil seems to be greater during highway driving (higher rpms).

[Toysrme]

Change the valve cover gaskets. Do a compression check.

At the moment, I highly doubt you have weak rings.

[grand lexus]

Decided to take matters in to my own hands :) I took the plastic shrouding off that covers the front of the engine (the part that surrounds the oil cap). Looks like the leak is due to a destroyed plastic O-ring of sorts that used to be there. I found the remaining pieces nearly in place. Looks like the leak I saw was simply the oil that I was adding spilling directly on to the valve cover. We are only talking about spilling a teaspoon's worth. So, mystery one solved.