OIL Consumption (on 2003 Infiniti M45)

[GJEMD]

I have come very close to buying a 2003 M45. I have gotten spooked by the talk of OIL CONSUMPTION " 1 quart/1000 miles. " Whats the concensus? Is this a tragicmanufaturing issue or a few M45s thrown around to excess. Most high performance engines use oil if pushed hard and in fact are not known for longevity. I can understand how it would be difficult to stay out of the accelerator in these cars.Maybe this car is a 50,000 mile wonder and thats it. please respond Greg

[szh]

I have come very close to buying a 2003 M45. I have gotten spooked by the talk of OIL CONSUMPTION " 1 quart/1000 miles. " Whats the concensus? Is this a tragic manufaturing issue or a few M45s thrown around to excess. Most high performance engines use oil if pushed hard and in fact are not known for longevity. I can understand how it would be difficult to stay out of the accelerator in these cars. Maybe this car is a 50,000 mile wonder and thats it. please respond

Welcome to NICO, Greg!

The oil consumption is not necessarily a killer issue, but it can be a concern if the engine was maltreated or neglected in its early days. Lessors of cars tend to not care about maintenance as much as you would want ... they know that any problems will be simply returned at the end of the lease with the car! Sad ...

Regardless, most of these first-gen M45's probably do not approach the worst-case scenario, I'd think! If the engine uses about 1 qt every 3750 miles, that is apparnetly relatively normal for this engine - slightly looser fits (to get the high power) result in this use.

The "1qt used in less than 1000 miles" seems to be the criteria for Infiniti to replace the engine ... if you push them hard enough, etc. But, not a guarantee that they will respond. Particularly if the warranty has expired.

I am now at 44k miles on my 2003 M45 (purchased new) and do not see any problems, but I also treat my cars very well. Better than the typical lease returns you see on the market - because my plan is always to keep the cars for long periods. I use between 1/3 to 1/2 qt every 3750 miles. Yes, this is more than my older Infiniti's used to (no oil usage between changes), but not a cause for me to be concerned ... yet!

Basically, I'd follow the advice that Dennis (Q45tech) has posted here about checking the engine. Also, look inside the oil cap for varnish, etc. Get a compression test done. Ask for the oil change and service records, etc. This will give you some indication of whether a particular vehicle is okay or not.

There is no guarantee, of course, but I think that many of the 2003 and 2004 M45's are probably in the acceptable ranges. So, what you get for a relatively low cost (particularly in the used market), is a fairly luxurious, amazingly fast sedan, that performs better than many "sports" cars!

Z