[Bjorn S]

Car is new to you.....so, by chance could engine have been re built recently? I used minimum a quart every 500 miles for 10,000 miles after mine was rebuilt....now, almost suddenly ...using almost nothing....took mine awhile to get seated I guess... I use Castrol GTX 20-50

 

[spiderserie4]

on the UK forum a guy posted his compression readings and thought he had a looming problem, I'll quote:
"Firstly can I say I'm a total novice mechanic.
I was concerned that my 1300 Super was hesitant below 2000 revs. I decided to run a compression test and the results were not good.
1: 107
2: 90
3: 110
4: 137
I have to admit that I didn't warm up the engine, did not touch the throttle during the test and the test was dry. is it worth re-testing..."

I told him his readings meant nothing and to retest 'HOT, WOT and all plugs out':

then he got (quote):

"I have a new set of compression results from a warm engine, throttle open . I'm pleased to say the numbers are completely different to cold engine throttle closed.
1) Dry: 195 Wet: 200
2) Dry: 195 Wet: 200
3) Dry: 190 Wet: 190
4) Dry: 195 Wet: 205 "

he was a pretty happy bunny and could now concentrate on the next problem

 

[ossodiseppia]

Many cars ago, I owned a 16 valve VW Jetta. I took it to an independent VW/Audi shop because I could not figure out why it was running poorly at idle.

The employee did a compression test and told me my car needed a valve job. Why? It has low compression. I challenged him and asked how he ran the test. He ran it cold with the throttle closed. I came and got my car and paid my bill. On the way home, I bought a compression testor. I ran it dry/wet with the throttle wide open. The car had excellent compression. I went back to the shop and demanded that the employee re-run the test. He did, this time with the throttle wide open as per my instruction. The results were excellent. He said, "you did something to your car." ***? I got my money back.

Later, I figured out the issue, it was the differential pressure regulator.

 

[VenturaAlfa]

I am going to go out on a limb here and say it appears that your oil consumption is due to something other than your rings or valves. If that much oil was blowing past your rings you should see black or blue oil smoke out the exhaust. Does the exhaust smell like oil burning? That is normally one of the simplest tests when your burning that much oil.

I had a small issue with oil consumption on mine and getting a proper tune up made a huge difference. Mine is a 77 spica injected car that was running way to rich and leaving black plugs after just a few hundred miles. I took it to the Alfa guru in my area (Santa Barbara, CA). He tuned it and got it through smog. Since then my oil consumption has dropped by about half down to half a quart or less every 3000 miles or so.

To me it's one simple step at a time. Get it tuned, look for leaks (those would be big leaks), take a sniff of your exhaust. Make sure your dipstick fits correctly each time you measure it (I know that sounds dumb but I have seen people who don't seat the dip stick properly each time they measure it resulting in an incorrect reading). Make sure you are checking the oil on flat ground each time (seen that too). Do a proper compression test. Stand behind the car with it in neutral and have somebody run it up to 4000 rpm and back down a few times do you see anything coming out of the exhaust? If your running so rich that your plugs are black you should see and smell something coming out of the exhaust.

Good luck

Somebody mentioned engine break in. That is certainly a possibility if yours has been recently rebuilt. Rings and valves take time to seat.

 

[Crowbar44]

So after thinking about the problem more, i came to the conclusion that the oil wasn't being consumed as the car does not smoke at all. In addition, I'd lose the most oil after high RPM highway runs. Oil had to be leaking out!

So I finally put florescent dye in the oil, and did a high RPM highway run. Low and behold, the low oil sender had a ton of dye below it:

Just ordered a new sender... Hopefully that will do the trick!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[spiderserie4]

great photo to illustrate just how useful that dye can be!


edit: oh, and remember the sender has a small copper seal washer.......new senders hardly ever come with them, so either get a new one or clean up and re-anneal the old one.

 

[Crowbar44]

What the picture dosen,'t show is how wet the area was. I usually drive the car about 8 miles around town. I suspect with the lower revs and lower oil pressure, the leak is much less severe, but at high revs and high oil pressure it really flows and it only leaks when the car is running, which would explain the lack of a big oil puddle in the garage.

My only concern is that when i tried to tighten the sender, it kept rotating... Hopfully the threads on the block aren't stripped!

Plan on using some Permatex thread sealer on the new sender


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Crowbar44]

So when i checked the parts manual it showed a washer used on the sender for the dash guage, but did not show a washer for the low oil sender (idiot light), which is what I am replacing, I didn't see any of these washers for sale by any of the vendors... any suggestion for a source if i do in fact need one?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[spiderserie4]

My only concern is that when i tried to tighten the sender, it kept rotating... Hopfully the threads on the block aren't stripped!

I'm afraid it sounds like they are, and that was probably the leak in the first place, a PO overtightening things, or maybe not using the copper seal ring....

to me it looked like the oil pressure gauge sender (with washer) from here, not the idiot light sender (no washer on this as the threads are coned / edit: tapered!)
The idiot light sender is on the alternator side, the gauge sender is above the starter motor....which is it in that photo?

You might be able to get away with some sealer as long as some of the threads are holding.........if it goes around and around by hand, I would not trust it at all.
Personally it'd scare me thinking one day the thing might fall out altogether..

Only real repair (if it is the gauge sender) is a heli coil.......but getting down there is not gonna be easy, if at all.
If indeed it is the idiot light sender, then sealant should do it.....but it still shouldn't turn round 'n round, as the threads being coned, get tighter and tighter.

 

[PSk]

Many cars ago, I owned a 16 valve VW Jetta. I took it to an independent VW/Audi shop because I could not figure out why it was running poorly at idle.

The employee did a compression test and told me my car needed a valve job. Why? It has low compression. I challenged him and asked how he ran the test. He ran it cold with the throttle closed. I came and got my car and paid my bill. On the way home, I bought a compression testor. I ran it dry/wet with the throttle wide open. The car had excellent compression. I went back to the shop and demanded that the employee re-run the test. He did, this time with the throttle wide open as per my instruction. The results were excellent. He said, "you did something to your car." ***? I got my money back.

Later, I figured out the issue, it was the differential pressure regulator.

OMG!

Pete

 

[Crowbar44]

The leak from the sender is on the drivers side of the block, from the low oil (idiot light) sender, the sender had a single spade connector with one wire running to it....i don't think it needs a washer...

What's a helicoil?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[spiderserie4]

The leak from the sender is on the drivers side of the block, from the low oil (idiot light) sender, the sender had a single spade connector with one wire running to it....i don't think it needs a washer...

What's a helicoil?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

OK, understand.
No washer required on that one

A helicoil is a metal replacement insert thread, but you'll likely get away with sealant on the idiot light.

 

[Crowbar44]

OK, understand.

No washer required on that one



A helicoil is a metal replacement insert thread, but you'll likely get away with sealant on the idiot light.

Hopefully it will hold with sealer!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[samakijoe]

I don't understand the comment.

"A helicoil is a metal replacement insert thread, but you'll likely get away with sealant on the idiot light. "

The oil pressure at the sending unit is the same as at the "idiot light".

A helicoil is the way to go but you don't want to get drill or tap shaving to get into the sump. This might not be a real problem because all the oil has to go through the filer before it goes to the bearings. I have seem guys put heavy grease on the drill bit and tap. Going really slow and cleaning out the shavings and regreasing every few seconds of drill/taping will help.

N.B. I came across something the other day.

a. Do a Google on the word "idiot".
Click on the images option on the top of the page.

b. Do the same for the word "moron" for a more extensive definition .

Much fun... ......:grin2:

Hey, don't blame me, I didn't do it.

 

[spiderserie4]

I said he'll "likely" get away with sealant (as long as the threads are not so far gone, that the sender turns round 'n round by hand)

different to the oil pressure sender, the 'low oil pressure warning sender' ( that's a better name) has tapered threads, which seal as you screw the item in (hence no need for a copper seal ring), and once tightish, you stop wrenching.....sealant might allow you therefore to tighten the item sufficiently.

If it won't tighten sufficiently with sealant then yes, a heli coil would be the 'correct' repair, as I said.

At least that side of the engine is easier to get at, so a heli coil (or similar) shouldn't be a problem.