When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
To preface, I have an 09 fit with 190k on it. I've been losing about a quart every 5k for as long as I can remember. The car is coming up on 200k and I'm trying to iron out a few issues before that, this being a major one. Some relevant maintenance background: Oil changed every 5k with new crush washers, valves adjusted at 153k - new gasket at the time + rtv in the corner, and the PCV was changed at 168k. I checked the valve cover for leaks and it still looks bone dry as of now. For what it's worth, I ran BG EPR at 175k and Valvoline restore and protect for the last 3 oil changes and noticed no difference in my oil consumption.
What should I start with to pinpoint the cause of this? I attached some pictures below to show what I saw during my last oil change, these pictures were taken before I did any work.
Thank you for any help or suggestions!
Front of engine
Beneath airbox Bottom of engine Bottom of engine - oil drain plug Bottom of engine - oil filter housing
Oo mine the front main seal would leak at highway speeds, and leave almost no trace on the engine, I didn't find it till I bought the optional center under tray and installed it, and it stopped the wind from blowing the oil away.. .
I had to do other work so "while I was in there... " I had the head off and the front timing cover off so the seal was an extra 5 minutes.. It supposedly removable just by pulling the crank pulley.
Were you using conventional or synthetic oil before switching to Restore & Protect (which is Full Synthetic?)
I just had a similar scenario involving Restore & Protect after using conventional and semi-synthetic high mileage for roughly 238k miles on my 2010. After about 1500 miles of R & P, I developed rear main seal/oil pan gasket leaks. I immediately went back to semi-synthetic high mileage with a dose of AT-205 reseal. I'm only about 400 miles in and it's still leaking. FWIW, I also used BG EPR at about 218k which helped for 3-4 oil changes. My engine didn't really start "burning" any measurable amounts until my driving habits changed significantly at around 190k with lots of short trip driving. It never leaked until using R & P.
I would not recommend Valvoline Restore & Protect on high mileage engines that have been using conventional oils all along based on my experience. I guess it depends if you want the oil to leak out or exit the tail pipe. I did see evidence in the R&P drain that indicated carbon being released inside the engine. Plus, the BG EPR improving for a short time would indicate that my oil consumption was/is related to carbon buildup and not engine wear.
This didn't really answer your question directly, but may give you additional insights.
Were you using conventional or synthetic oil before switching to Restore & Protect (which is Full Synthetic?)
I just had a similar scenario involving Restore & Protect after using conventional and semi-synthetic high mileage for roughly 238k miles on my 2010. After about 1500 miles of R & P, I developed rear main seal/oil pan gasket leaks. I immediately went back to semi-synthetic high mileage with a dose of AT-205 reseal. I'm only about 400 miles in and it's still leaking. FWIW, I also used BG EPR at about 218k which helped for 3-4 oil changes. My engine didn't really start "burning" any measurable amounts until my driving habits changed significantly at around 190k with lots of short trip driving. It never leaked until using R & P.
I would not recommend Valvoline Restore & Protect on high mileage engines that have been using conventional oils all along based on my experience. I guess it depends if you want the oil to leak out or exit the tail pipe. I did see evidence in the R&P drain that indicated carbon being released inside the engine. Plus, the BG EPR improving for a short time would indicate that my oil consumption was/is related to carbon buildup and not engine wear.
This didn't really answer your question directly, but may give you additional insights.
Been running full synthetic oil since I bought the car at around 75k, I ran r&p and the epr long after mostly just to check and see if I had any internal issues along with the external leak. As I've been slowly narrowing it down, I think it's either the camshaft seal or the VTEC solenoid gasket or both. I've got some oil showing on the rear side connectors on the engine but I can visibly follow a path coming from the solenoid/cam seal area.
I'm going to try replacing the VTEC gasket either today or tomorrow, clean the engine, and then add some atp-205 maybe in a week or so to determine the cause and I'll update with my findings.
