Capn Pete

100% same here :

- '02 Z28
- no oil consumption
- heavy foot
- piston slap

I believe that GM recommends NOT using synthetic oil in LS1's if you are suffering an oil consumption problem, but it seems contradictory considering they deliver Corvettes (for sure) with Mobil 1 synthetic already in them!? (I don't think anyone knows *officially* if ALL LS1's get Mobil 1? ).

StormSigma

Good man. That's what I like to hear. I drive the same way.

SilvercamZ28

Mine also burns oil... about a QT every 2K or so... kind of ****'s me off but what are you going to do.... I took it into the Dealership when I first noticed the problem and they can't seem ti figure it out... and they won't put a new engine either.. I've tried.

Fred94LT1

It's not uncommon for high output engines back as far as the early 60's to burn some oil at high rpm's. In other words expect some oil lose... BTW mine doesn't or hasn't lost any yet either,lol
My 71(340) duster did and my 85 (302) GT Mustang & 88 LX (302) did. Usually after 60,000 miles.

DJD

The SS did come with synthetic oil as factory fill. go here and look at SS performance package http://www.gmcanada.com/english/vehi...a_details.html

Fishv12

SS Performance Package - includes 325-hp 5.7 L LS1 V8 with forced air induction system, unique hood air intake, low restriction exhaust system, synthetic engine oil....

Capn Pete

I almost can't believe they actually took the time to determine whether the LS1 being built was going into a Z28 or an SS before they put the oil in?! I think there would be too much likelyhood of mixing up!? Considering they already put synthetic into Corvette LS1's, what would the extra cost really have been to say "screw it" and put synthetic in ALL LS1's that were built?!??

koolaid

The SS got the synthetic oil while it was at SLP. So, I would assume GM filled up the motor with fresh dino, put it on a truck, dropped it off at SLP, drained the dino, and filled it with Castrol.

chuck

My '98 didn't use oil, well not under normal conditions. Flogging it on a road course would make it use a little.

My '01 uses a little, but nothing excessive.

z28chrizz

My Z is oil consumption free. First time I ran synthetic, I had the low oil light come on as it was time for an oil change. Now, I put in 6.5 qts in during the autocross season (extra oil gets trapped in the lifter valley and valve covers... so a little bit of extra protection never hurts) and right before I change the oil it still reads full. Which means in my 3k of hard driving, it burns that 1/2 qt which is well within the tolerance for any new engine.

Some thoughts... if you guys are using the larger M1 filter, are you adding extra oil to compensate? There is a somewhat significant increase in volume (8oz ish) between the M107 and M111 (?) I believe.

If you are letting the engine rev down hard ie, rev to 5500, then let the engine braking slow the car down to say 2500 rpm... you are fluttering the oil rings and naturally going to burn some oil. That is a common problem with all cars and sustained high decelrating revs. Only time I do that is when I am autocrossing the car... rest of the time as cool as it sounds I resist and shift to a higher gear and use my brakes.

Carlos01SS

I didn't know about the M111, that is a recommended oil filter as opposed to the Mobil1 M1-107???

z28chrizz

I had the number wrong... its the M1 206... larger filter, same threads and diameter as the M1-107. I think I got the 111 from somewhere else... for my jeep, or maybe my old stang??

jasons93z

I feel sorry for you guys with new cars that burn oil like crazy . I have a 94 z28 and it burns absolutly NO oil at all when i change the oil every 3k miles. It has 82k on it, and i go WOT quite a bit. Im not trying to brag, just saying that that sucks.

z28chrizz

Nah, yours leaks out the intake, rear main, and all over your opti. j/k

I assure you all cars burn oil (especially upon startup), just some are more sensitive about it than others. It has a lot to do with the driver, the type of oil used (dino = not as easily burnt in the combustion chamber) , and a number of other factors.

It is true that GM probably should have stepped up the quality control, but there are other factors I dont know about with these engines... I would assume that they need a different amount of room (than a cast block) to allow the engine to expand upon startup since the aluminum/sleeve combo has very different thermal characteristics. I might even propose that this oil burning is almost always in startup, due to the nature of the metals in the motor. After all, this is one of the suggested sources/reasons for the piston slap issue as well.
I have never in my experience, seen a LS1 car (at the drags, or on the autocross course) with grey smoke coming out the tailpipes, suggesting that it is being burnt at high RPMs under load, (black yes... but thats fuel) like those 80's caravans we all see cruising around. Hadnt really given this much thought till now since my car doesnt seem to have this problem.

DanBUCF

I am pretty sure the problem only occurs in '01 and up LS1's. I had a pretty bad case of Oil consumption in my car. Brought it to the dealership to have a conusmption test done....1,000 miles later GM decided that they would replace the piston rings under warranty. Its only the 2nd ring that was the problem....It wasn't a tight enough fit, and when you downshift to slow down it would creat a vaccum that would suck oil past the ring. This is why the problem only really occurs in M6 cars. You can drive any car at high rpm's all day long ant it will use oil....thats just the nature of an engine. This specific Oil consumption problem associated with LS1 is because of the "faulty" piston rings. I belive they replaced mine with a chrome-molly ring that made a much better seal. I haven't noticed any oil consumption since then and its been about 14,000 miles since they did the work. I also drive the hell out of my car every day. It sees WOT at least 3-4 times a day and I always downshift because hearing my loudmouth just makes my day.