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08 T&C With 3.8 uses oil

5K views 10 replies 10 participants last post by  1chinatown 
#1 ·
Hi All:

My 08 with a 3.8 has 27K on it and has been using about 1/2 qt of oil every 2500 miles. Am I alone here or is this pretty common for this engine?

Josh
 
#2 ·
I have the same engine family 3.3L and my experience is that the engine consumes no oil. My '99 3.3L with 210K miles consumed no oil between changes, and my 2008 3.3L also consumes no oil but I've only done 20K miles total so it's barely run in. The dealer won't do anything for the relatively low level of oil consumption you have. I assume you are sure it's not a leak, which possibly can be fixed.

FYI - I use a Trasko full flow + bypass oil filter and I think that helped the '99 to stay fresh. The car went to cash-for-clunker heaven which is a shame, but the rear doors had the typical rust and the shock towers were soon to collapse due to more Chrysler rust. Even the 41TE was original and shifting like new. It had an external filter and extra large cooler. There's NO chance the 2008 41TE will last as long, it shifts way too much because Chrysler "improved" the programming :(
 
#3 ·
There are a number of folks with 4th gen vans with 3.8L engines that use oil. Search the 4th gen sub-forum for topics on that subject. Some have had their engines overhauled by Chrysler trying to fix the problem. Although the 3.3L and 3.8L engines are very similar, for some reason, the problem, though rare, seems specific to the 3.8L engines.

That said, the threashold for action by Chrysler is 1 qt per 1,000 miles. 1/2 quart every 2,500 miles isn't bad really. Our '07 might use a half quart over 3,000 miles, so it's comparable. You can bring the issue up with the dealer, and they may put the van on a "monitoring" program, where they check it for leaks and monitor usage over a period of time, to determine of remedial action is necessary.
 
#5 ·
Mine uses about 1 qt/3k miles. I am trying some things now to address the issue. If they work, I will let you know. Someone found their PCV valve was sticking open and the engine was apparently aspirating oil, more than yours. Is the engine original, know service history?
 
#6 ·
My 3.8 used maybe 3/4 of a quart in 3000 miles. I do a great deal of high RPM engine speeds with mine though. I don't think it used any oil before I started using it. I may be able to measure the oil usage next weekend if I take it on a 1200 mile trip.
 
#8 ·
Someone had said something on this group once about the cross-hatching in the cylinder wall possibly being responsible for oil usage. That may be correct. My 03 uses at least a quart between oil changes and has since I first bought it. My 07 does not use much at all, really none. Same engine, same 5,000 oil change intervial with Mobil One Fully Synthetic. Of course I use 10w/30 in the 03 and 5w/20 in the 07. But that really has nothing to do with it.
 
#9 ·
My '05 3.8 uses around a qt every 4500 miles.
I got it at 29,000 miles and has been consistent since then. I usualy add 1/2 a qt around 3000 miles and then change it around 4500 miles (I go by time, not miles).
 
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