Around and Around - Where the Oil Goes in Your Engine

Page 1 of 3

Around and Around - Where the Oil

Goes in Your Engine
Phil Ramsey
Tags: automotive, motor oils

Machinery Lubrication (9/2003)

Most people know to add oil to the top of their engines, and that oil drains out the bottom.
Because I have worked in auto repair for 35 years, it is no mystery to me what happens
between filling and changing the oil. But I am surprised at the number of people who do
not have a true picture of the path the oil travels while it makes its way around inside of
the engine.
I am told that after the Noria seminars, informal question and answer periods turn to the
most-often asked question: How often should I change my cars oil, and what should I
use?

Click to see Figure 1 enlarged.

To answer that question, I would use the Socratic method and ask a few questions of my
own: What kind of car do you drive? What driving conditions do you encounter most?
Where do you live? How old is your car?
The answer to these questions will determine the best oil for your vehicle, and how well it
protects and lubricates your engine while it goes around and around inside. Where does
the oil travel, in what order, and what exactly does it do inside your engine?
First, the oil you pour in the top of the engine goes through many paths eventually arriving
in the bottom oil pan, often called the sump, where the drain plug is located. The oil goes
through several different paths returning to the bottom - but only one path, under
pressure, to do its job.
Figure 1 shows a tube with a loose-weave metal screen at
the bottom of the pan. The screen is attached to a pickup
tube, which leads directly to the oil pump. The tube and
screen are submerged in the oil at a depth of about four
inches. The screen prevents large pieces of trash, usually
lrger than 1/32nd of an inch, from entering the oil pump.
Many people do not realize that most oil pumps are just a set
of special gears, which take in the oil under low pressure and
squeeze the oil to a high pressure, where it then passes
through a chamber with a spring-loaded valve. The valve

http://www.machinerylubrication.com/Articles/Print/532

Oil Consumption
One of our readers wrote
asking three distinct
questions about his car and
its recently changed oil
consumption. For 30,000
miles, his car had not used
any oil between changes

20/07/2016

Around and Around - Where the Oil Goes in Your Engine

allows the oil to leave only under a specified pressure,

2

usually between 1 and 60 lbs./in. Any pressure higher than

this will be vented back to the sump because high oil
pressure can damage bearings.
From the pump, it goes to the outside of the oil filter, and
there it is forced through the filter media to the center,
where it exits into the oil galleries inside the engine. The oil
filter also has a bypass valve to keep the pressure from
dropping too low if the filter becomes clogged. The first and
most important job of motor oil is to lubricate the rotating
components of an engine, and it must be under a good
pressure to do its job.
Oil is forced into the space between the bearings making
contact with the crankshaft journals and the journals. The
bearings are simple metal sleeves encircling the rotating
components of the engine. The block has main bearings on
the crankshaft, and connecting rods bearings are on the
crank throws. This thin space, usually one-thousandth of an
inch on newer engines, holds a thin film of oil between the
bearings and the moving surfaces on the crankshaft. Under
pressure and within the correct operating temperature, the
oil protects and prolongs the life of the machined parts. Metal
should never touch other metallic surfaces while it is moving.
It is important to note that some of the oil is forced out of
the sides of the bearings and drips back into the sump. If the
clearance is too much, say 0.004 of an inch or better,
pressure starts falling in the upper end of the engine. A
flickering oil light or a slight tapping sound in the rocker arm
area on the topside of the motor is a good indication that not
enough oil under pressure is reaching the top end of the
engine.
Looking aside for a minute, I would like to see an automotive
engine with roller or needle bearings replace the far cheaper
and sufficiently long-lived sleeve bearings. I know it would
cost a fortune to build such a motor, but it would last forever.
Many larger engines have needle/roller bearings. Generally
they turn at lower rpm (speed) than gasoline car motors.
RPM is not the limiting factor. I have flown model airplanes
for 40 years and many of my highest-revving engines
(25,000+ rpm compared to 2,500 rpm in an automobile
engine) are equipped with roller bearings for lower friction
and higher rpm. A roller/needle bearing-equipped auto
engine would have higher power and longer life, but at what
production cost?
Most of the oil lubricates the crankshaft area, while the
remainder lubricates the camshaft and rocker arms. If your
car has pushrods rather than an overhead camshaft, then oil

http://www.machinerylubrication.com/Articles/Print/532

Page 2 of 3

and suddenly it consumed

oil at the rate of one quart
per 1,000 miles. While the
consumption rate is
excessive, and I think
there is some leakage or oil
being burned, he did ask
the following valid
questions:
1. What is normal
consumption? And why did
his car not burn any oil for
30,000 miles?
2. Why does the oil
consumption occur during
highway miles and not
during stop-and-go
driving?
3. What caused the oil
usage pattern to change
after having driven the car
this long (30,000 miles)?
Cars consume more and
more oil with age. Normal
consumption is a subjective
call; I made mine at one
quart per 5,000 miles. I
also stated that many cars
will not burn oil at all for a
while - once again, a
variable.
The fact that his
consumption is brought on
by highway conditions
leads me to suspect an
internal oil leak around the
valve stems seals or some
failure in the PCV system
(see A Breath of Fresh Air
in the September 2001
issue of Machinery
Lubrication).
The fact that the pattern
changed abruptly would
reinforce my belief that a
failure (either an
undetected leak or

20/07/2016

Around and Around - Where the Oil Goes in Your Engine

Page 3 of 3

is forced under pressure into the valve lifters. These lifters

abnormal consumption) is
also pump oil up through the hollow push rods to lubricate
the culprit.
the rocker arm area. If your car has an overhead cam, the oil
I have one car with more
is carried to the cam and is spilled onto the contact points
than 175,000 miles and it
between the cam and valve stems.
consumes oil at the rate I
After lubricating the camshaft and the related components,
like: one quart every 4,000
the oil flows by gravity back down channels in the head and
miles. My newer car with
motor block to the sump, ready to begin another journey.
only 70,000 miles also
consumes one quart per
In many of the connecting rod designs, there is a small hole 4,000 miles, and it has
that sprays oil onto the cylinder to lubricate the piston ring
always done that.
contact area of that cylinder. Special rings on the bottom of
the piston ring set wipe off excess oil and return it to the
Oil leaks are difficult to
sump.
detect in a car. The
engines are tightly
Regarding oil consumption, it may likely be necessary for you enclosed and difficult to
to add a quart of oil to your engine, at regular 3,000-mile
see from any angle. Add a
intervals. Most of the newer cars will not consume any oil the list of accessories bolted to
first few oil changes. Afterward, oil consumption will
the block and visibility
gradually increase with age. What is too much consumption? approaches impossibility.
If I had to pick an ideal figure, I would say one quart every
However, in the next issue
5,000 miles. The best car I ever owned let me know it was
of Machinery Lubrication, I
time for a change by being a quart low regularly at 4,000
am going to introduce
miles. I saved adding a quart and changed the whole sump
some of the latest leakand the filter.
finding techniques.
Phosphorescence, polymer
Why do I prefer a little oil consumption? In my opinion as a
acrylic, ultraviolet, smoke,
lifelong auto mechanic, those engines that consumed a little
and maybe even mirrors
oil by allowing it to pass around the rings, kept wear on the
will be discussed next
upper cylinder and rings to a minimum. Years ago, we used
issue.
to add top oil to our gasoline for that same purpose.
External oil leaks can be messy, a potential fire hazard, and just plain ugly. Why do used
car dealers go to great effort to clean a motor before exhibiting it for sale? Our general
impression of the engine is formed around how clean it is and how smooth it runs. Most
people open the hood before starting it up. If the salesman starts it up before he opens the
hood, he is depending on the first impression of a well-running motor negating what will
likely be a dirty motor under the hood. If the dealer has failed to clean the motor, it most
likely has a bad oil leak he doesnt want to fix. If he opens the hood and it runs well, look
where the car is parked as you test drive it. Oil on the lot will give you a bargaining tool.
Many types of leaks can be fixed for less than $100.

http://www.machinerylubrication.com/Articles/Print/532

20/07/2016