I have an 03 Taurus that I have not really taken GREAT care of. its got 128,000 miles on it... and I haven't changed the oil all winter (I do it myself and its been too cold) So its been about 8,000 miles and since it was on my mind, I checked the oil level... and it was really low. It was just below the the bottom hole on the stick.

I really don't know how it got that low, or how long its been that low. I finally checked because I noticed that my gas mileage all of a sudden really started to suffer. Is it possible that I have caused some real damage? At least the oil in there was Mobil 1 full Synthetic.

 

if nothing is noisey dont be concerned

 

K...mobil 1 isn't a real synthetic. It's a hydrocracked group 3 basestock which is derived from conventional sources. The oil is going to be thick and muddy. I suggest buying a real cheap 5w-30 and seafoam the crankcase to dissolve all the built up sludge. Change it out after about 2000 miles then use a real synthetic such as Amsoil,royal purple or red-line.

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Cody if there wasnt any ticking or clanking or any other unusual noise then it should be fine. Even tho you had low oil in it it was still circulating thru and lubricating all the important parts.

 

 

Sure it was however if that much oil evaporated then you know that it's pretty much sludged right up. Do what ya want. I know my advice will clean the inside right up and I doubt any damage was done. However I guarantee the oil filter went into by-pass and unfiltered oil was circulating thru the system

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8k miles is not enough to cause oil to get anywhere close to sludge. How much did it take to bring the car up to full? Those vulcan v6's only take 4.5qts (unless it is a 24v motor then I think it is 5.5qts), but if it was still on the stick and you are not hearing anything abnormal from the engine then I'm sure you are fine. Just top it off and get it changed soon, try to change it hot so the dirt is suspended in the oil and drains with it. I also wouldn't wast the money on any synthetic oils.

I used basic Motorcraft brand 5w30 in my 03 for years, it had the vulvan v6 with about 150K on it and more than a few oil changes that were in the 6k-7k mile range. I beat on that car like crazy commuting over 100 miles a day in stop and go traffic. That car was a champ till the tranny started to fade.

 

Top it off if you have not already, then change as soon as possible.
The Seafoam/motor oil flush would not be a bad idea.

DONOT, I repeat DO NOT use engine flush of any type at the current mileage, they are mostly Petro based (kerosene/diesel fuel) and in high mileage engines will cause more problems than good.

Now, is the engine using? burning? oil or is the PCV valve clogged making it suck oil vapor out. Yes, oil will evaporate over a period of time, due to heat, wear, etc.
Has the engine been low before? Or is there a new problem and/or leak?

TDS

 

I haven't noticed a leak, and its never been this low to my knowledge. I topped it off and will try to change it today. I've driven another full take of gas and my mileage hasn't improved much... I've only gone about 320 miles and have only an 1/8th of a tank left out of 18 gallons. I normally have close to 400 by now. I suppose the gas milage could be a separate issue... I'll check my tire pressures.

 

FWIW, my F150 (4.9L I6) started acting up similar to this. Power was kind of puny and mileage was worse than normal, but nothing too dramatic to suggest engine problems. Then the oil was suddenly at the bottom of the stick when before it would only use a quart in like 3000 miles. I started looking but didn't see any blue smoke at start up and couldn't see any in the mirror as I drove.
This situation continued and a few trips after filling the oil it was super low again. Finally the problem became clear as it was sucking oil like crazy, and then started blowing oil out of the dipstick. Broken ring @ 208k.
Hopefully this isn't your issue, but the symptoms are similar so watch that oil closely.

 

Death by fire...

 

Moved as the "car care" section is regarding detailing (washing, waxing, polishing).

 

Not that its required in this case, but I'm always down for some extreme heat carnage

 

See...Bob knows what's up!!

 

My Dad has an 03 Taurus (also a 2010 Taurus). Somewhere around 60,000 miles on it. His was feeling sluggish also. I changed his sparkplugs, fuel filter, air filter and pcv valve. Works perfect now. I did this at the end of last summer. His torque converter went out a couple weeks ago, cost 1,500 dollars to replace . Seems to me all the older style Taurus had lots of transmission problems....................

 

That was the ultimate demise of mine & many others. The trans really was the weak point of an otherwise very reliable car.

 

https://themustangsource.com/f697/ta...ny-out-481079/



Its paid off... that's why I keep it on life support.

 

Check for shimmer, if there is none you get a get out of jail free card. Change it ASAP.

 

If you Seafoam make sure the exhaust is pointing out! If not, enjoy the fog.