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1992 Ford Ranger 3.0L V6 - Burns oil like a Banshee! What to do?
Hey guys, got a 1992 Ford Ranger XLT with the Ford Vulcan 3.0L V6. Got the five speed Mazda manual too.
Truck has 185,000 miles on it, engine runs absolutely phenomenal, no super noticeable valve noise and starts reliably every time. Love the 5 speed too!
It’s a southern truck and I’m up here in West Michigan so it’s got very little rust on it, really would like to keep it since you just don’t see these older square body Rangers in such nice shape! Totally original paint and interior and it’s really in good shape. Runs and drives very well and I’m very happy with the little thing!
As someone who wants things to run like they should, I have one a big issue with this thing. Ever since I got it about eight months ago, I have noticed it burns oil. Which is to be expected with it over 32 years old and 185k on the motor. But this is not like burning a quart every 1500 miles which I could expect, its burning about a quart every 500 miles which is obviously extremely bad. I tried putting a quart of Lucas oil stabilizer in it a month ago last oil change and it has not changed anything.
Like I said, the motor runs extremely well and I would hate to tear it down, and it’s a daily driver so I don’t have anything else to drive during a teardown anyways. When starting it up when cold, there is no visible blue smoke or any real smell of any oil burning smoke, just normal exhaust smell. No noticeable smoke coming out of the exhaust. Little bit of carbon on the end of the pipe but I’d say it’s normal.
With it having 185,000 miles on it, it seems fairly well-maintained, I have trouble thinking that the rings are bad on it with how good it runs. But I may be wrong I guess. I’m sort of looking for cheap things to try and fix first before going as far as tearing the motor down. Is there a chance the PCV valve could maybe be bad causing this?
As a side-note, I’ve got a family member who’s got a 2011 Honda Accord that’s got about 240,000 miles on it and it burns oil but doesn’t burn nearly as much as my little Ranger, so to think the rings are severely bad I just can’t really understand….
Are these Ford Vulcan V6’s known to be oil burners? What’s considered “normal” for them as far as oil consumption? Any recalls on piston rings over the years? Any thoughts on this would be appreciated!
You said, there's no noticable smoking out the tail pipe. I may be totally wrong but that truck would be smoking like a tar kiln if it was "burning" a quart of oil every 500 miles. Are you sure it's burning oil or leaking oil?
Yes, no noticeable smoke from the tailpipe. And yes, I am sure there are no large oil leaks, I replaced the oil pan gasket and rear main seal a few months ago. One of the back corners of the new oil pan gasket seeps just a little oil but that's my fault for not putting enough RTV sealant on the corners of the rod cap when putting the new gasket in place. I know it's not leaking oil while running, doesn't leak enough to even to leave a drop on the driveway and when inspecting the undercharge no big oil spray or leaks is apparent.
I'm thinking about replacing the PCV valve and seeing if that helps. My guess also is the oil control rings could be stuck or something? Like I said, the truck runs amazing, and over multiple tests I am losing 1qt of oil every 500-600 miles. I fill the oil to the full level on the dipstick, reset the tripmeter and then check it at about 250 miles or so. Dipstick usually shows 1/3-1/2 qt. gone at that point. I then usually top the oil off then as I don't want it to get to the low level but if I leave it I'm sure it would be down to the low "add 1qt." level on the dipstick. Also just so you know I always add/check the oil level on a completely flat surface and after the truck hasn't been running for a few hours or overnight to ensure accurate readings.
This is a picture of one of the plugs I pulled out a while ago just to check and see how they look. I haven’t pulled out all the plugs yet as I haven’t had time. I have new plugs I bought I still need to throw in.
This one looks good to me.
Also I have a new PCV valve ordered and I’ll be installing it tomorrow. I took the one that’s in the truck out and it rattles a ton. Not sure if that’s good. Also there is a chunk of carbon in the port that plugs into the valve cover. I’m guessing it could be bad.
