[george_c]

I have a fairly new engine but I am losing oil somewhere. It is a carbed 351 with holley carb and edelbrock intake. PCV is on the passenger side and goes to the carb. Drivers side is a vented oil filler that plugs into the valve cover.

I changed my oil the other day and it was low. So low I noticed valve noise when it was idling, checked the oil it was low so I changed it. I am a bad owner and I was not regularly checking the oil, (hopefully the few minutes of valve noise did not hurt anything) but who checks the oil when it is a fairly new engine and it is not blowing smoke or leaking out on the ground.

So where is my oil going? I am not leaking on the ground. My No. 4 spark plug is blacker than the rest but not even close to being fouled. The engine is loosing some oil from the PVC and oil filler, but really how much could that be, it is not showing up on the ground.

I sometimes get a small puff of smoke on start up, but I typically pump the gas twice and pull the choke. I would guess it is unburnt gas fumes since the PO removed my cat.

Could it be the PCV system causing the blackened No. 4 plug? The PO removed my emmisions stuff. I just have a 10 inch hose with PVC valve running valve cover to the carb vaccum.

Would an oil seperator help with the blacken no. 4 plug? Maybe I am slowly loosing than much oil out the PVC and oil filler when I run hard????

 

[JScatt]

Exactly how many miles are on this engine? Is the #4 plug oily or sooty?
I had this same problem with my rebuilt 351(less than 10,000 miles)turned out the valve covers and pcv grommet were seeping oil, enough for me to have to add a quart more often than I thought was right.
How often do you add? Using synthetic?

 

[george_c]

The lower block is a 97 roller block with 45k on it. Great shape still had cylinder hatching and the crank bearings clearanced to be like new. Used heads, edelbrock RPM, but appeared like new, etc. I put about 3k on the motor since assembly,

I guess the No. 4 is more sooty then oilly but definity more black that the rest, not wet to touch.

I had not added oil for 2000k until the valves starting making noise. I was running 10w 30 dead dinosaur oil but now I am runnning 5 w 30 synthetic for the last 150 miles and seems I am low again, maybe a quart? The valve covesr have fresh oil on them around the PCV and the oil filler. I would hate to have to add 1 quart every 150 miles because it is spitting it out the top of the motor.

 

[JScatt]

Is oil in your radiator? Does your coolant look milky? Loosing a quart after only 150 miles aint good.

 

[george_c]

Coolant looks good not milky