I suspect my 2013 Outback (FB20) may be eligible for short block replacement as per TSB 02-157-14R (which I think supersedes the TSB that only specified piston ring replacement), and if I'm going to take my car to a dealership for an oil consumption test and possibly major surgery, I'd prefer to be able to request a particular tech (and service writer if possible) who'd be trusted to do a good job and be easy to communicate with, so I'm looking for recommendations for where to take the car. I've never had a car use this much oil, but I'm not too familiar with Subaru engines and especially this Gen 4 version, so I'd also welcome input on whether I'm getting worried about normal usage - although I really think this shouldn't be considered normal. I'm generally easy on the car, especially during warm-up, I never drive short distances, and most of my driving is highway miles. I picked up the car with just under 28K miles on it last December, had to add oil a couple times before the 30K change, but didn't think much of it. After the change (using Pennzoil Platinum 0W20 and a filter and drain plug from the dealer, correct torque on the drain plug with a low-range wrench), I had to add oil sooner, and more frequently, than I would have expected, and ended up going through most of a 5-quart jug before 35K. I decided to wait until the oil light came on after the 35K change to see how fast the oil was being depleted. It showed up after ~1900 miles and I needed to add about 1.2 quarts to full, after which I kept closer tabs on it and went through most of a jug again keeping it topped up before the 40K oil change. The oil light came on again today after ~1750 miles on that change, and the quart I had in the car brought the level up to halfway between the bottom of the dipstick and the full mark. I'll probably need another pint to get it full. My '84 Volvo 240 still only lost less than half a quart between 8ooo-mile-interval changes with 350K miles, and my two allroads (one lightly modded, one fairly extensively) went through less than a quart every 5000 miles. I know this is an entirely different engine, but close to 1.5 quarts in under 2000 miles seems excessive. Back to the original question - if I'm going to look into having this addressed, who do I trust with my car? TIA.
I think the TSB magic number is more than 1qt in 1200 miles, so you may not quote qualify - worth getting the test done though. I trust Christos at Luther Acura Subaru in Bloomington, he is the goto master technician for the other techs.
Thanks, Eric. I did see that 1 qu per 1200 miles number, but that's the maxiumu assuming that one or more of those conditions is met, whereas I don't fall into any of those harder service categories. It also seems that the consumption is increasing with each change, so it's possible that usage may exceed that rate anyhow by the time I take the car in. I assume I can just ask for Christos to be the tech when I call to make the appointment? I've only had one car with a warranty before, and the salesman I'd bought it from had introduced me to the service writer and tech that he liked, so I've never essentially cold-called with a specific tech request before.
Yeah Subaru is really dumb in what they consider "normal" oil consumption. 1.5 quarts in 2000 miles is ridiculous for a modern motor with less than 50k miles! I think the emissions numbers for cars should include average oil consumption into the calculation instead of just gas mileage and I bet the manufacturers would take this more seriously. You might as well have a 2 stroke with all the oil you are dumping in the thing! Subaru isn't the only one with motors eating tons of oil and claiming it is fine. VW/Audi, Toyota, Honda and probably more all have at least one engine with terrible oil consumption.
