I can't believe it! I was just about to post about the EXACT same thing!. I just changed the oil on my 03 today. The truck has 19,500 miles and after 3,000 miles, it used up 1.5 quarts! Yes, ONE AND A HALF quarts of oil was missing from the 6 quarts that I put in 3,000 miles earlier. I don't get it.

 

Mine has burned oil since the first oil change. It uses a quart ever1,500 miles.

 

What I don't understand is don't you ever check your oil? It's one thing to have a truck that consumes oil, but it's another thing not to check it at least weekly and replace what's missing.

 

I looked on my motor and did'nt see any signs of oil anywhere. I may let it get down to the bottom of the crosshatch area on the dipstick, and see if it stops using oil.

 

I've got an 01L I bought new in July of 01. Wasn't more than a couple of months later I noticed the "puffs" of blue smoke every 3rd or 4th time I started it up. Added an oil separetor - seemed to stop that. Then about a year and a half later - I disconnected and capped all the PCV system and put breathers on both the valve covers - and I've never seen any oil or oil residue in the intake system since then. My L in not my "daily driver" (garage queen) and I have about 8200 miles on it. I have changed oil 2-3 times a year since I've had it - always used Mobil 1 synthetic - have no drops of oil I have ever seen on my garage floor - and it's parked in there all the time for over 3 1/2 years - have no heavy oil residues in the exhaust tips - and when I change oil, I change it "hot" and let it sit and drain for at least 30 min's. I've never over filled - put 6 qts in - and check my dipstick every time I drive it (I don't go by the "full mark" on the dipstick), but even discounting the oil remaining in the filter when I change oil, it seems I drain out about 5 1/4 qts for every 6 I put back in. I'd guess there's at least a 1/2 qt still remaining throughout in the engine, pan, etc. But it still surprises me I don't get a bit closer to 6 qts out when draining, so I think it's "consuming" somewhere more than I would expect it to. I've got a 1994 Ranger as my "daily driver" with 117k on it - and when I drain it - I get real close to 5 qts out - it's capacity.

 

Why would you have to check oil levels on a vehicle with only 19,000 miles??????? I know it should be done anyway but you wouldn't think it to be that important on such low mileage.

 

From my understanding isnt the reason why we loose oil is because the oil gets sucked into the intake boot and into the motor. I always get a puff of smoke when my truck sits overnight which means oil is burning so isnt it not that big of a deal and just normal to go threw a quart of oil.

 

Thats what I was thinking too! Because mine always smokes/

 

Thats funny abut your miles on your vehichles. I have a 2001 Lightning and it has 8200 miles and a 96 Ranger (daily driver) with 117,000 miles. The Lightning uses oil but the Ranger does'nt use a drop.

 

Fun Ford;

Sometimes I wonder if the difference in oil consumption between our Rangers (mines is the 3.0 liter V6) and our L's has to do with how much we drive them. I'd guess by your miles that your Ranger is your "daily driver" also, as mine is. I bought my Ranger used in 1998 with 60k on it then, drive it every day, and change oil on it about 4 times a year. The 4WD drive on it really comes in handy in snow times.

When I first got my L in July of 2001, I drove it about 3 days a week - after a month or two was when I first noticed a big "puff" of blue smoke about every second or third time I started it up - startled me. It was about that time when I put a 12" cone filter setup on from PSP, and in taking off the air box and MAF, noted the oil accumulated in the intake boot after the MAF. Thats when I first put on the so called "oil seperator" - and it seemed to pretty much stop the oil accumulation - never saw any blue smoke after that and it never accumulated much oil in the separator. After about a year or so and about 3k miles on it, I put on a SBTB and I've never seen a more crudded up throttle body than the stock one. Thats when I breathers on both valve covers.

 

Yes! I drive my Ranger daily. Its a 2.3 liter 4 cylinder and I have gone as much as 10,000 miles on an oil change. I am going to get an oil separator soon.