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My curiosity concerning the expertise of fellow Hyundai and Kia house owners prompted me to scout out the Kia Discussion board, and my newest discover didn’t disappoint. Whereas some would say that Hyundai and Kia are, at present, doing what Toyota did some 20 years in the past, there are additionally identified points that plague a few of the Korean fashions. One Kia Sorento proprietor finds himself in an attention-grabbing predicament as his 2017 SUV consumes irregular quantities of oil. This is what he says:
“I’ve a 2017 Sorento with the two.4L at 115kish miles. I used to be studying the TSB from Kia on the oil consumption and I’m could also be over their limits for how briskly it is dropping oil, however I used to be questioning if I haven’t got rock stable historical past of oil change, will Kia mainly deny a brand new engine even when my oil consumption is over the restrict? I do know I went over the mileage a couple of occasions a minimum of, however nothing loopy like 5k over. I’ve by no means gotten any work performed on the vendor apart from a couple of oil adjustments, so I doubt they’re going to do it as a courtesy with out extra historical past there.
If Kia doesn’t present a brand new engine, is my finest plan of action to simply preserve topping off the oil each week till I find yourself getting a brand new automotive? Can this realistically final for a couple of years if I preserve including oil and ensure it by no means runs low/dry? Is there every other preventative upkeep I can do to maintain this going until 150-200k?”
I see an issue instantly in the proprietor’s description of the issue. Going 5,000 miles over the advisable oil change interval a few occasions is not any joke. In my expertise, whatever the engine or what the producer says, change the engine oil no later than 6,000 miles or 12 months. Sure, some engines are much less vulnerable to issues associated to irregular oil adjustments, however ultimately, issues happen.
The NHTSA investigation
The 2017 Kia Sorento in query comes outfitted with a 2.4-liter gasoline engine from the Hyundai/Kia Theta engine household. All of those engines are identified to be very problematic, attributable to poor manufacturing, inflicting a major variety of engines to develop irregular quantities of noise and to grab. The Theta engine household has been burning a gap in Hyundai’s pockets and continues to plague even newer fashions.
Over 1.7 million Hyundai and Kia automobiles are affected by this. Nonetheless, I’ve to offer credit score to Hyundai for issuing its newest mass recall that impacts over one million automobiles, a few of which over 10 years outdated. Then, there’s the difficulty of excessive oil consumption, which, from what I feel, is not being dealt with in one of the best ways.
Based on the technical service bulletin, if the engine’s oil consumption is lower than 1 quart per 1,000 miles, the engine won’t endure restore. If the oil consumption is greater than 1 quart per 1,000 miles, the engine will probably be topic to a restore.
In my expertise, a problem-free usually aspirated engine should not devour greater than a quart of oil per 6,000 miles. To place issues in perspective, the Lambda V-6 engine in my Hyundai Genesis Coupe was dropping a couple of quart of oil attributable to a leaky entrance foremost seal and valve cowl gasket.
Turbo engines are likely to burn a bit extra by design, due to the turbocharger’s lubrication necessities and the actual fact these engines generate extra warmth. Additionally, turbo engines historically use thinner piston rings for lowered drag.
Some fellow discussion board members have chimed in with potential options to the issue, however it might be too late at this level.
Rhysoul says: “I don’t assume they’d offer you a brand new engine instantly, they’d do the oil consumption take a look at first (you come again each 1000 miles 3 occasions) and if that fails, they’d attempt a prime finish cleaner (fancy piston soak).
But when they deny all that, I might attempt a minimum of three or 4 4,000-mile oil adjustments with Valvoline Restore and Shield 5w30. It’s designed to wash up the engine and particularly the oil management rings, and should assist cut back your consumption. Been listening to fairly good evaluations on it to this point. I’d attempt that earlier than dumping the automotive.”
Missingcurlybracket says: “It’s a Kia direct injection 2.4L, it may very effectively sh*t the mattress tomorrow as they’re identified to do and it wouldn’t essentially be your fault in any respect.
What number of miles are we speaking anyway? 8000+ is pushing it. You’ll most likely wish to do 3,750-mile intervals in keeping with the handbook’s extreme schedule which probably applies to you.
The handbook most likely says 7,500 usually, however don’t exceed 5,000 for this. you are able to do it in different vehicles, however not these.
Simply monitor oil degree, preserve receipts, hope for the very best.
There are others like coolant, brake fluid, trans fluid, rear diff/switch case you probably have an AWD, however the coupler itself is destined to ultimately fail and that’s a pair grand if you wish to preserve AWD. (@118k for me)
PCV valve change would possibly assist consumption.
I don’t hassle with the flamboyant oils personally except given a particular purpose however value a shot.
Make sure the KSDS engine replace was utilized by the vendor up to now for the guarantee on the underside finish.
And keep in mind, in case you do the whole lot proper, you would possibly nonetheless have to tug tooth on the vendor. There have been terrific and less-so experiences, so simply hope for the very best.”
Remaining ideas
Whereas there is no such thing as a definitive proof that the oil-change intervals haven’t been religiously saved up with (apart from the proprietor’s confession), any sludge buildup, discovered upon inspection, might be utilized by the vendor as an excuse to not substitute the engine. If we take the proprietor’s phrase with no consideration, it feels like the two.4-liter engine on this 2017 Sorento is consuming greater than a quart of oil per 1,000 miles.
Whereas the 150,000-mile purpose isn’t unrealistic, it might be time to assume for an engine overhaul or a substitute engine. Some variants of the Hyundai/Kia Theta engines are nonetheless in manufacturing, on some markets, however they’re regularly being phased out in favor of the brand new Smartstream engines.
When you have the same expertise or any insights, I might love to listen to about them within the remark part beneath, so we will present a extra informative article for future reference.
Dimitar Angelov‘s automotive pursuits made him an skilled in all kinds of automobiles. Japanese manufacturers like Toyota are closest to his coronary heart, though efficiency vehicles basically are his favourite phase, which is why he’s always looking out for the very best offers available on the market. Dimitar Angelov’s automotive ardour and knack for the written phrase led him to finish a Grasp of Arts in Media and Communications, and traditional automotive restoration. Dim is completely satisfied to get behind the wheel of any automotive and share his impressions. You’ll be able to observe Dimitar on X, Linked-in, Instagram, and Fb.
Picture supply: 2017 Kia Sorento
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