No Oil Left

[mikelowrey]

hey guys i havent posted anything in a while but ive been reading up on the site lots. Anyway, today i was at work (i work at a honda dealership as a lot boy for anyone who forgot). and i was like, its been about 5000 kms since the last change i should check the oil and maybe do the change now (today was a slow day).

so i check the dipstick and its bone dry so then i borrow one of the techs hoists and open up the oil pan, and practically nothing comes out (THERE ARE NO LEAKS PRESENT) so then i ask one of the techs to come over and hes like ur an idiot for not checking ur oil more often (noob = me still). So anyway, what i ended up doing today, or rather the mechanic did, was oil change. and then he also changed the timing which was for some other reason, and he increased the idle a little bit for me too because it was a little shaky when i was just sitting at idle.
I was also told to put half a bottle of this stuff called Lucas formula or somehting in there to help the engine from burning oil. this stuff was thick almost like honey.

So my question is, was this the correct course of action? should i have upped the oil to 10W-30 perhaps? and do i have a bigger underlying problem, like fryed sumthin in the motor? I was told it might just be because i drive the thing too hard, which is a possibility, but is it possible i may need to rebuild the damn thing? which will lead to a lot of decision making...thanks if u made it through all that.

talk to u guys later

Chris

[oompahlumpa]

damn. you inspire me to check my oil!

[imported_Lacuna]

I think you need to figure out where that oil is going before you change anything. If it's a blown headgasket, or a leak than you should fix it rather than changing viscosity.

[simplegreen]

sounds to me like your burning oil. If your positive there are no leaks. Oil is a chemical combound that doesn't just disapate when applied heat to it. So you're either getting oil into your combustion and burning it out or it's leaking and you dont know it.

Check your head gasket and get one of those techs to do a compression test on your cycl's

[mikelowrey]

alright guys thanks, a compression test is probably the best bet in terms of diagnosing the problem. but i noticed another sound since i did the oil change...

if im climbing a hill of any kind really, and my revs are below about 3000 the car makes a rattling noise( i realize its one of those "define rattling" situations but its just a hollow rattling sound i dunno how else to describe it) , but as soon as the revs get to be at 3000 or higher it sounds totally normal. is this at all related to my oil problem, or have i got something else to deal with?

thnx guys
Chris

[imported_Kyle_G]

Also.. is your car pumping out any colored smoke from the tailpipe? Like say, a blue-ish grayish color? Does your coolant look like chocolate milk? Spark plugs/tips covered in oil?

[imported_Kyle_G]

Originally posted by mikelowrey@Jun 11 2005, 05:14 AM
alright guys thanks, a compression test is probably the best bet in terms of diagnosing the problem. but i noticed another sound since i did the oil change...

if im climbing a hill of any kind really, and my revs are below about 3000 the car makes a rattling noise( i realize its one of those "define rattling" situations but its just a hollow rattling sound i dunno how else to describe it) , but as soon as the revs get to be at 3000 or higher it sounds totally normal. is this at all related to my oil problem, or have i got something else to deal with?

thnx guys
Chris

sounds like its just struggling a little. Do your RPM's drop while going up the hill? Or are they still at 3K while climbing it.. and starts to make the noise?

[mikelowrey]

i havent checked the coolant yet, or the spark plugs. but no theres no great billowing clouds of smoke coming out the back. i mean when i first start it up in the morning theres some swirls of smoke for a bit while it warms up, but nothing excessive.

as for the RPMs, they dont drop and if i have the music going i dont notice anything. but if i listen carefully, the rattling is there.

[CivicSi04']

given the age of ur car, and that fact that i used to have one also i think that the rattling may be the heat shield on ur catalytic converter. mine made the same noise when i had the car. give it a look, and check ur oil when u get gas, shit its not like ur doing anything else