92 Camry V6 using LOTS of oil

[larrybum]

My camry was doing fine until I loaned it to someone who drove it too much after a head gasket began leaking. I'm sure the car was seriously overheated.

The car sat in my yard through the winter until I could get to a repair. It sat 9 months or so.

I replaced the head gaskets, water pump, and timing belt. I found about 1/2 of the head bolts on one head to be pretty loose as if someone had done this job before (car had close to 200k on it)...I am not the original owner.

In making the repair, I made the stupid mistake of swapping the head gaskets so that water would not circulate in either head. I drove the car about 3 miles and it overheated...much like a teakettle boiling over. I finally figured out what was wrong and did the whole job again.

I drove the car for a few thousand miles and don't remember excessive oil use, but I did go through a period of excessive gasoline use and heavy smoking intermittently when the car was started. Sometimes it ran on 5 cylinders when one of the cylinders was drowned out with gas. Finally traced that to a faulty engine computer that was turning on one or more of the injectors all the time. Got that replaced and then noticed heavy blue smoke which could have been there before...can't be sure since it may have been mixed with black smoke of a too rich mixture.

Some time following that major fix, I noticed it was burning oil at startup and the car was smoking for about 2 minutes or so after first startup in the am. It was blue smoke and it smelled like oil burning. It has been doing this since...I can't tell exactly when this started happening.

The oil consumption is about a quart in 300 miles or less. I get much less consumption on a longer trip, but around town it just gulps the oil, so I think it is really using the most oil when it is first atarted in the morning.

The smoke is not immediate. It takes about 10-15 seconds to begin and it is heavy and smellable for about 2 minutes.

There is no noticeable blowby, so it appears to be simply burning the oil in the combustion chamber. I am baffled as to what could be the issue. Am thinking carboned/stuck oil rings, but I've changed oil regularly and have had no other issues.

Other things: it seems like it has less power than before the head job repair...less pickup.

I've used seafoam with no noticeable improvement.

Could I have done something wrong during the head job that would somehow cause heavy oil use while the care is very cold???? But, later in the day, there is nothing noticeable being burned???

Any ideas on what it could be beyond the obvious....ring job.

[Mister_Perkins]

If you didn't re-surface your heads then I would say the heads warped from overheating and are not sealing against the head gasket. You cannot re-use a gasket once the motor heats up

edit:

you actually aren't supposed to re-use it once you torque it down. I'm pretty sure the head bolts are supposed to be replaced too. On the 5sfe anyways its recommended

[Jason.MZW20]

So did you re-use the gaskets you put on wrong or did you get new ones?

Have you checked the block and heads for warpage?

[larrybum]

maybe I was unclear. I did not reuse a head gasket. I bought a new set and put them in their proper locations. No overheating afterward.

Some have suggested a warped head. I am confused as to how a warped head would cause excessive oil consumption. There is no overheating. There is no pressure I can find on either the crankcase (no blowby to speak of) or the water jacket...nothing.

A poor leak in a head gasket would lead ot oen of those symptoms and the car runs fine exept for the oil consumption. I think a warped head/block is not related to this problem.

[Mister_Perkins]

Originally Posted by larrybum

In making the repair, I made the stupid mistake of swapping the head gaskets so that water would not circulate in either head. I drove the car about 3 miles and it overheated...much like a teakettle boiling over. I finally figured out what was wrong and did the whole job again.

you re-used a head gasket??

[JohnGD]

Do a compression check and see if the rings are in good shape. The valve stem seals may have been cooked and leaking oil. You might want to check oil pressure as well.

[71Corolla]

Originally Posted by JohnGD

The valve stem seals may have been cooked and leaking oil.

I saw this happen once, car pushed blue almost all the time and ate oil like crazy. But yes do a compression test for sure.

[Silent Runner]

I'm just guessing from the testimony, but it sounds like you swapped the head gaskets, maybe side to side? Ida know.. but it's easy to warp-up an aluminium head on an iron block from overheating. Since aluminium likes to soack up heat more that iron blocks, it could also damage the cylinder head in many other ways including valve guide seals. If your heads where sealed off from coolant circulation altogether, the temp gauge may never have shown you when the issue was getting really bad, and may have been heavily damaged.

[lemegacool]

i'm for cooked valve stem seal...