My Q45 I purchased in March is using about a quart every 100 miles. There are I leaks or smoke. Infiniti is doing an oil consumption test on it. I have a lifetime drivetrain warranty and another one for 40k miles of which I've only driven about 5k of. Has anyone ever heard of such a thing? I have had my oils changed twice since I got the car both at 3k miles.

sadly,very common known problem with the 2002-2006 q45 engines.Infiniti replaced many engines,sadly with the exact same engines with no updated fix to the problem,so some had the same issue even after engine replacement.

I thought it might be a fluke but it does not sound like it. I love the car but this is ridiculous. I hope they replace the engine. What about the lemon law. Does it apply since it is a known problem?

If it's using a quart every 100 miles (not 1000?) it should practically be dripping out of the exhaust!

I'm glad you have warranty coverage... let's hope it's a good company backing it!

Heath

Just had the oil changed and I have 130 miles on it and it is a quart low. I have a lifetime warranty from Memphis Infiniti and 40k from Route 66. We will see.

This one dude on one of my recent threads is using Shell Rotella 15W-40 on his 2002...says he doesn't have issues anymore and hasn't seen a significant drop in mileage...weird, becasue that oil is primarily for big diesel engines...maybe you might look into it...

It might be worth the try if all other avenues do not pan out.

tarascarlet, make sure that your Infiniti dealer puts EVERYTHING in writing - and keep a copy of the paperwork.

Wiggler wrote:This one dude on one of my recent threads is using Shell Rotella 15W-40 on his 2002...says he doesn't have issues anymore and hasn't seen a significant drop in mileage...weird, becasue that oil is primarily for big diesel engines...maybe you might look into it...

Under identical conditions, 15W-40 is thicker than the 5W-30 or 10W-30 commonly used - which helps to reduce oil consumption somewhat.

Although it's way outside the manufacturer's recommendations, my old Mitsubishi oil-burner likes 20W-50 - Goes MUCH farther on a quart than 10W-30 does! Yeh, it pours like molasses in the winter, but whatever...

Another "trick" for reducing oil consumption is to use single-weight oil (i.e., SAE 30), instead of the customary multi-weight.

None of these things are recommended for engines still under warranty, but if you've got nothing else to lose...

tarascarlet wrote:My Q45 I purchased in March is using about a quart every 100 miles. There are I leaks or smoke. Infiniti is doing an oil consumption test on it. I have a lifetime drivetrain warranty and another one for 40k miles of which I've only driven about 5k of. Has anyone ever heard of such a thing? I have had my oils changed twice since I got the car both at 3k miles.

Do you mean 1 quart every 1000k miles or did you actually mean 100 miles? It's not uncommon for the Q45's engine to burn oil but if the engine is burning 1 quart every 100 miles, your Q45 will need a new engine.

Just checked the oil and I have driven 150 miles and it is a quart low. I will check it again at 500 miles. Owned 1994 Q45 and two 2000 Q45 Annivsary editions. And never had this kind of trouble!! :-(

If it's actually using a quart every 150 miles, probably best to check it again well before the 500 mile mark.

Oil consumption that high indicates serious trouble - and it's not usual to see the consumption get much worse in just a short amount of time.

So - definitely keep a close eye on it!

Thanks I sure will

Well...the continuing saga of my lovely 2005 Q45 and its thrist for oil. I had Infiniti do an oil consumptioin test and guess what...it failed the test. The guideline was 7.something but my car was 10 so it is doing something with the oil. The "LIFETIME WARRANTY" that the Infiniti Dealer provided does not cover oil consumption! They know that there is a ring issue causing it but we would have to have the engine torn down so they could take a look...to the tune of $800+ so we are going with route two and having the extended warranty company step up and will cover replainc the engine. Here is where it get tricky. They at first wanted to put an engine in that had 87,000 miles on it. That is going to happen!! So now they are looking at a remanufactured engine. The question I have is the remanned engine going to have the same problem or how they come up with a fix for the engine? I called Infiniti USA and opened a case since they know about this problem and the car has been serviced at Infinit dealers all its life. The previous owner hardly drove the car. In 8 years it had only been driven 57K miles. So, I guess since we drive it on the interstate and not just around town we are noticing the oil consumption problem? Do any of you know if they ever fixed the oil consumption problem or can I expect the remanned engine to have the same issue?

I answered that question in my first reply to this thread........any replacement engine will be a gamble as far as oil usage-if it were my car,I would either live with it and keep the oil topped off or sell the car-NO way I would swap with a used or rebuilt engine,none.

When I started to read this post and you said you had a "lifetime warranty" i had to laugh and grumble my grandmothers old line "whose lifetime." Sounds like that wasn't worth a crap to you. As for you question about the lemon law you are out of luck, that is only applicable to the original owner of a car and only (in CA at least) in the first 2 years.

I don't think you can live with that much oil consumption, I would seriously go back to the place I bought the car and try to get a refund. You were suppose to have a "lifetime" warranty and then you have a aftermaket warranty...what the hell. I would fight to have the engine rebuilt by a trusted mechanic and not let them stick a re-man'ed engine in. If they insist on going with the rema'ed the I would insist that the Infiniti dealership source and install the motor. Living with a car that eats that much oil is just stupid, you have to get it rebuilt or replaced.

tarascarlet wrote:The question I have is the remanned engine going to have the same problem or how they come up with a fix for the engine?

The quality of "remanufactured" engines varies all over the place, so it's impossible to say whether or not your particular remanned engine will be OK.

Do any of you know if they ever fixed the oil consumption problem or can I expect the remanned engine to have the same issue?

The oil consumption problem was particularly bad during the first year of that engine's production (2002). It got better after that.

It wouldn't be unreasonable to expect another 2005 engine to have much lower oil consumption than yours does.

If you were to get an engine from an Infiniti dealership then you are probably very safe to get a good one.

Well the Q went through a heart transplant She had a junkyard engine installed by Orlando Infiniti. The Route 66 Warranty company paid $7600 for the work. Well it had a small leak about the size of a 50 cent piece that at first we thought was coming from my daughters car. Turned out it was the Q. Checked the oil after the new engine was installed at 600 miles and had to add 2 quarts. Called Infiniti and told them I was taking the car on a road trip and would be checking the oil often since they could not get the car in the shop in time for our already planned trip. Well when we checked the oil on the road we did not have to add any oil but it would smoke like an locomovtive when you were stopped at a light. Took it into Infiniti yesterday and got the call today that the Rear Main Seal is leaking. Not sure what that means or who will pay for it. Still is under warranty. By the way when I checked the oil right before I brought it in there was nothing on the dipstick. Could it be possible to lose that much oil out of the rear main seal or is this another case of oil comsumption!!!!????

qship96 wrote:I answered that question in my first reply to this thread........any replacement engine will be a gamble as far as oil usage-if it were my car,I would either live with it and keep the oil topped off or sell the car-NO way I would swap with a used or rebuilt engine,none.

See above

i cannot claim that had you posted your intentions in advance re: the junkyard motor that you would have gotten this advice in advance, but you *may* have.... This is not an "I told you so", --you never even gave us a chance......
always always change out all the softgoods (rubber) while the engine is still on a stand before installing it. that would include the front and rear main seals, valve covers, resealing the timing covers and oil pan. that will in no way guarantee that you won't still have an oil burner, but at least you won't have an oil leaker and can distinguish where the oil is going. There would be other rehab things to do as well before putting the used engine in that would save you grief down the road.

Well we are somewhat at the mercy of the Route 66 and Infiniti right now. We were under the impression they would do all that before they put the engine in. I have not heard but this happened when they installed the engine because the old engine never leaked a drop of oil...it went someplace but not on the ground nor did it even smoke! I just wonder what Route 66 had to say to Infiniti today.

Probably best at this point to review all your documentation and written warranties.
Prepare for a battle, you will not (in my opinion) get any results if you are not prepared and have a written commitment to keep sticking in the insurance company's face.