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Old 06-25-2016, 11:29 PM   #1
motoden
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Default 2010 Impreza OBS Oil Consumption

Hi everyone, I'm new to NASIOC but I've had this car for about 3 years now and have developed an oil consumption/disappearing issue I would like to ask about. Car is 2010 Impreza OBS with 130k

About every 850-1000 miles I'm burning up about 1qt of oil. Some say this is "normal" but it randomly just started to happen a few thousand miles ago so something has "changed". When I first got the car (with 72k miles) the oil was always steady full but at about 115k it began to disappear. I now have 130k on the car.

No oil leaks that I can see except a little seepage in the pass side rear cylinder spark plug hole. No where near enough leak to cause any problems or misfires. (The plug wasn't even oily) Here is a pic of a spark plug for diagnosis(They all look the same):




They are a little old but to me it doesn't look like a plug that has been burning 1qt every thousand miles for 15k. I see no leaks on the ground and no blowback under the car. I have already changed the PCV (OEM Subaru) with no change in consumption.

Any ideas?
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Old 06-25-2016, 11:34 PM   #2
bdubblu
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2004 WRX Wagon
Stage 5.1.2a.2

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What oil are you running?
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Old 06-25-2016, 11:43 PM   #3
motoden
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Default

Currently running 5w30
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Old 06-26-2016, 02:33 PM   #4
bdubblu
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Stage 5.1.2a.2

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5/30 of what variety? If your running a synthetic, then there's your answer. Our cars seem to love a good 5/40. There is supporting evidence for several brands to go with. Off the top, motul and rotella T6 have great UOAs with the EJ motors.
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Old 06-26-2016, 02:35 PM   #5
bdubblu
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And for giggles (or not) you might as well do a compression test while you're pulling plugs and stuff. Easy and may yield further info on the health of your motor.
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Old 06-28-2016, 10:08 PM   #6
CosmoTheCat
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How's your PCV valve? They're cheap, I'd recommend replacing it as they can cause oil consumption. Get an OEM one, not aftermarket.

How's your driving style? Lots of engine braking? High RPM driving? Heavy on the throttle? Those will all cause oil consumption.

What KIND of oil are you using? If you're using whatever is cheap, try the oe/Idemitsu or a euro spec oil.
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Old 01-29-2017, 04:41 PM   #7
DocDo
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New to the forum and looking for advice in buying my first Subie. This is the closest thread I can find on the 2010 Impreza, so maybe you guys can point me in the right direction. I'm looking for a daily driver and found a 2010 Impreza on Craigslist. It has ~170,000 miles on it and I'm wondering if it would be worth buying. He has it listed at $5,500, but I think I can talk him down some since the KBB value is only $4,500 for excellent condition. He says he needs to fix a power steering fluid leak, but that's about it. Long term, he says the next owner should get new motor mounts and replace some suspension parts.

Is this car too high mileage to get me through 4 years of medical school and maybe a few years after that? Is this car prone to having problems? I'll be in school, so I can't drop a lot of money into random repairs but I can definitely maintain it. I have read about this model eating oil and sometimes gasket problems, but it seems hit-or-miss. Any advice or insight? Thanks in advance!
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Old 02-03-2017, 11:53 PM   #8
vtwinjunkie
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Quote:
Originally Posted by motoden View Post
Currently running 5w30

I was running 530 in my 2.5i and it burned about the same.

I switched to 540 and have not had an issue since.
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Old 02-05-2017, 01:59 AM   #9
CosmoTheCat
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DocDo View Post
New to the forum and looking for advice in buying my first Subie. This is the closest thread I can find on the 2010 Impreza, so maybe you guys can point me in the right direction. I'm looking for a daily driver and found a 2010 Impreza on Craigslist. It has ~170,000 miles on it and I'm wondering if it would be worth buying. He has it listed at $5,500, but I think I can talk him down some since the KBB value is only $4,500 for excellent condition. He says he needs to fix a power steering fluid leak, but that's about it. Long term, he says the next owner should get new motor mounts and replace some suspension parts.

Is this car too high mileage to get me through 4 years of medical school and maybe a few years after that? Is this car prone to having problems? I'll be in school, so I can't drop a lot of money into random repairs but I can definitely maintain it. I have read about this model eating oil and sometimes gasket problems, but it seems hit-or-miss. Any advice or insight? Thanks in advance!
Check for rust, make sure everything is working, and drive it. Do some tight circles in both directions - looking for binding that would be an indication of center differential problems. Drive it at highway speeds, radio off. Listen for rhythmic noise from wheel bearings.

If you can, get it in the air or crawl under it and look for drips. Look at the bottom of the engine between the exhaust and oil pan.

Head gaskets were probably done once, and might be about due again but then again they could be bone dry.

They're good cars, but like any they have to be maintained. I currently own two first gen Imprezas, a 96 OBS with 230k and a 93 with 248k. The 96 I pulled the engine and resealed, the 93 I'll need to do the same as soon as I've got room freed up in the garage.
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Old 02-18-2018, 08:07 PM   #10
iandv23
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Default

is there such a thing as normal oil consumption for our cars?
mine is a 2010 subaru STI and been consuming oil despite good leakdown test and compression test.
Installed crawford V3 AOS and it helped a lot but during trackdays would still consume oil
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Old 02-19-2018, 08:50 AM   #11
Charlie-III
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Silver Sleeper BK, 5MT

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Quote:
Originally Posted by iandv23 View Post
is there such a thing as normal oil consumption for our cars?
mine is a 2010 subaru STI and been consuming oil despite good leakdown test and compression test.
Installed crawford V3 AOS and it helped a lot but during trackdays would still consume oil
Cross post much?
I replied to you in another thread.
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Old 02-20-2018, 12:37 PM   #12
rhinh25
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About your oil burning, I also had the same problem 1-2 years ago. I mainly used Mobile 1 5W-30 and it was burning the oil every 1000 miles (from full to empty). Penzoil was better but still had to top off oil at every 2000 miles.

After reading posts on this forum, I found that Rotella T6 5W-40 was highly rated. The owner's manual will specify the oil range but for my 2007 Impreza, it fits. I gave it a shot and it works very well. The engine starts up faster and the ride feels smoother (at least for me - could be in my head). I top off this oil every 3000 miles and perform an oil change every 5000 miles.
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