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Hey Guys

I have a 2004 liberty 2.5i and it consumes quite abit of oil. Does anyone know if fitting an oil cooler will help this issue? I know it is a bit of an issue with that motor but has anyone seen any fixes for this problem?

Cheers

Hey welcome,
What you need to know is why it's consuming oil.
I don't really think that cooling it would help.
There is Probebly a quick fix solution still.
Thinking rings.

Cheers Cam

apparently there are some issues with the pcv valve seems to be a common problem but my car had its 100,000km service done about 20,000km ago and as of around 5,000 km ago i did an oil change and filter change and it lost oil rapidly(it had droped below the low line) i dont think that an open pcv valve could generate that large a loss?

id be investigating further.

ive never heard of this problem on this model motor, nor is it common. I also doubt youd be losing that much thru PCV lines.

No obvious leaks/seaping gaskets? How many km on the motor?

alex

Doesn't hurt to change your PCV valve, it's really easy to do. My Forester burns oil (No leaking) of about 500ml every 500-1000km depending how I drive. I know it's either the rings or valve stem seals. Keep and eye on your oil, top it up, maybe even put a thicker oil in. Change your PCV valve too and see if there is any difference.

The PC valve is a consumable item that should be changed every year - just that no one does it!

As for the oil consumption, from what I've heard the EJ25s tend to use more oil than other EJs. As taza said, it's probably being consumed in the combustion chamber by the valve guide seals leaking a small amount of oil into the inlet or outlet manifold. This constant small amount being burned wouldn't show up as blue smoke as it would be cleanly burnt.

But to answer your original question about oil cooling - it's pretty simple to do, all you need is a "sandwich plate" that goes between your oil pump and oil filter. This then allows you to put in an oil cooler. A unit like this one is probably the easiest way to go

Cheers

Bennie

You could check if it's your valve stem seals by coasting down a long hill in 3rd and smelling the exhaust at the bottom, works for me

taza wrote:Doesn't hurt to change your PCV valve, it's really easy to do. My Forester burns oil (No leaking) of about 500ml every 500-1000km depending how I drive. I know it's either the rings or valve stem seals. Keep and eye on your oil, top it up, maybe even put a thicker oil in. Change your PCV valve too and see if there is any difference.

Thats a good point i am using a light oil 5w 30 full synth nulon, which is recomended for that motor but maybe i should switch to a havier oil would help.

Alex wrote:id be investigating further.

ive never heard of this problem on this model motor, nor is it common. I also doubt youd be losing that much thru PCV lines.

No obvious leaks/seaping gaskets? How many km on the motor?

alex

Its 120,000 km and the engine seems clean had a good last time i had it up to do my last oil change. There was pretty much nothing on the underside and i was looking at the rocker covers yesterday and i there was no noticable oil. But yeah i was even trawling the us forums for info with little luck maybe what i read about the pcv was incorrect who knows?

who did the 100k service? if it was non-subaru, perhaps they fitted non-genuine cam and front seals and are leaking or popped-out? sometimes a big oil leak blows off the bottom of the motor when driving and only looks like a little residue when looked at.