New Truck Oil Consumption

[Mike Wenrich]

Have 1400 miles on a new 6.4 truck now and took it into the sealer for a couple possible glass issues and to document oil shows down what I though was a half quart. Tech says it was actually one and a half quarts low. Have any readers here experienced that kind of oil loss on a new engine? I'm almost certain I checked the oil when I brought the truck home so I don't believe it left the dealer low on oil as suggested by the service writer. I'm hoping I didn't buy an oil burner. They also told me there is a new recall notice on the steering that just came out that day and that I will be getting a letter in the mail. Safety recall B2A-Malfunctioning SCCM. Told the steering is now connected by wire to the ECM. Fortunately I have not noticed anything wrong with steering.

 

[06 Dodge]

Have 1400 miles on a new 6.4 truck now and took it into the sealer for a couple possible glass issues and to document oil shows down what I though was a half quart. Tech says it was actually one and a half quarts low. Have any readers here experienced that kind of oil loss on a new engine? I'm almost certain I checked the oil when I brought the truck home so I don't believe it left the dealer low on oil as suggested by the service writer. I'm hoping I didn't buy an oil burner. They also told me there is a new recall notice on the steering that just came out that day and that I will be getting a letter in the mail. Safety recall B2A-Malfunctioning SCCM. Told the steering is now connected by wire to the ECM. Fortunately I have not noticed anything wrong with steering.

I would take a guess it left the dealership low on oil because of poor dealer predelivery work, it could of used some oil in 1400 miles but 1.5 qts to me seems like a lot in that short time span... Do keep and eye on it just to be safe...

 

[danielmid]

Did they add oil or do a full change? I'd be asking for a full change and document the level before leaving so you can monitor.

 

[Daw14]

It is very common to use some oil for the first 5 thousand or so miles ,the rings are still seating . This is normal , give it some time and things will settle down.

 

[huntergreen]

Most likely came to you low. Keep an eye on it and bring it back if if you have an issue. Use that warranty if needed. Congrats on the new ride !

 

[Mike Wenrich]

Used the truck last night in our local Christmas parade to pull my car trailer modified with a sleigh, reindeer, elves and Santa and Mrs. Claus. Had 50 entries and we were the last one and the only one with Santa. Had to idle through the parade for about an hour. That bothered me a bit as I have read we are not supposed to idle our hemis for long periods due to cam failures. But everyone in the truck and on the float appreciated the amenities and those kids seeing Santa Claus took my mind elsewhere for the most part.

As for the post, I will update when I get another 1400 miles on the truck or get to the 4,000 miles when I had planned to do the change. The dealership only added oil and did not do a change.

 

[Tulecreeper]

Used the truck last night in our local Christmas parade to pull my car trailer modified with a sleigh, reindeer, elves and Santa and Mrs. Claus. Had 50 entries and we were the last one and the only one with Santa. Had to idle through the parade for about an hour. That bothered me a bit as I have read we are not supposed to idle our hemis for long periods due to cam failures. But everyone in the truck and on the float appreciated the amenities and those kids seeing Santa Claus took my mind elsewhere for the most part.

As for the post, I will update when I get another 1400 miles on the truck or get to the 4,000 miles when I had planned to do the change. The dealership only added oil and did not do a change.

From what I've read, the cam thing was more of an issue with the 5.7 in the 1500's but is pretty much a thing of the past now. Besides, if you can't idle your truck without worrying about some kind of failure then there is an engineering problem that shouldn't exist. There have been a number of times in the past 6 months I've sat outside a doctor's office or the grocery store waiting for my wife and had it idling for an hour or more to keep the A/C running because it was 100 degrees outside. If you are correct, then that just means mine will fail while still under warranty and they'll replace it.

Idling itself doesn't kill the cam (as in, it gets lubricated well enough while idling), but Ram states (and no, I can't find it now) that cars and trucks which idle a lot fall under severe duty usage and need their oil changed every 320 hours instead of the 350 the manual states. I'm going to assume that means if you have a lot of idle hours you should change your oil at ~5000 miles instead of the 8000 miles/350 hours it says you can go.

 

[Mike Wenrich]

I hope you are right. Seems all I have read about the cam issue is that it does not get the oil force fed. It's a splash system for the middle lobes that only get adequate oil via higher RPM and maybe movement? Thus a recommendation for installing the higher pressure 6.2 cam. There are a lot of these engines out there on jobs that require them to idle a lot so it might not be a concern. I would be changing oil more frequently anyway so I hope to prevent any problems.

On another note I seen threads mentioning oils today lack sufficient ZDDP? or something like that but I have not seen where owners have added that to their synthetic oil. I believe it's available as strictly an additive. Any thoughts on that?

 

[Scottly]

if you can't idle your truck without worrying about some kind of failure then there is an engineering problem that shouldn't exist.

Stating facts out loud like that isn't allowed on this forum

 

[truck2569]

Have 1400 miles on a new 6.4 truck now and took it into the sealer for a couple possible glass issues and to document oil shows down what I though was a half quart. Tech says it was actually one and a half quarts low. Have any readers here experienced that kind of oil loss on a new engine? I'm almost certain I checked the oil when I brought the truck home so I don't believe it left the dealer low on oil as suggested by the service writer. I'm hoping I didn't buy an oil burner. They also told me there is a new recall notice on the steering that just came out that day and that I will be getting a letter in the mail. Safety recall B2A-Malfunctioning SCCM. Told the steering is now connected by wire to the ECM. Fortunately I have not noticed anything wrong with steering.

Your still in your break end period on the truck engine. See if your truck is still burning oil between changes in 10,000 miles. Just check it before you drive. I'm surprised your mechanics at the dealership didn't tell you that. It takes a little time for things to seat.