new to jags.. i noticed that a lot of smoke comes from my dipstick tube, but apparently from what ive learned about these is that its normal for them to smoke a little from the tube? anyway, ive noticed ive been losing oil, but its not leaking anywhere.

about a month ago i changed the oil and put 10w40 in it, about 6.5 quarts or so. but ive been reading that its a good idea to put 20w50 (depending on climate).

so the question is, should i be using 20w50? i live in washington state, and its the beginning of fall. ive lost about a quart in a half in about a month or so.. anyway, thanks in advance

 

15w50 is a safe bet to me. If your burning oil as I mentioned before I cannot stress enough if your crankcase vent system is plugged, and to me it sound that way, it will cause consumption! It will blow excess oil vapor back into the motor, causing consumption. The smoke is also a sign as this excess crankcase pressure is trying to find a way out.

 

i checked all hoses and none of them are clogged.... im not sure where else to look besides taking the throttle body completely off but i dont know where to find a gasket for it.

 

Are you sure it's not leaking? Have you crawled around underneath it to have a good look?

There are two 'o' rings that seal the oil cooler lines to the underside of the oil filter mount. It's common for these to fail, even slightly, which causes an oil leak under pressure which then 'blows' under the car as you are driving. Wipe a finger along the oil filter side of the transmission and see if you can detect any residue.

If you are burning oil there should be a tell tale plume of smoke coming out of your exhaust.

10w-50 is a bit thin for an older engine... you'll be safer with 20w-50 in your climate, summer and winter

 

i usually wake up early in the morning so when i first start it, i hardly notice the exhaust vs the moisture in the air + the exhaust. but when its warm out, i never really noticed either, and it doesnt smoke when im driving it. so today im going to remove the throttle body and clean it out real good and adjust the butterfly and all that good stuff, and check for leaks. hopefully that clears it up.
thanks again