I have a 2020 Hyundai Tucson with 79K miles and when taking it to my local shop for a coolant leak last week they did a quick once over and said there was zero oil on the dip stick (4000 miles after last oil change) and to immediately go to the dealership for an oil consumption test.

I was told by the service advisor it's a known maintenance issue caused by gas not fully combusting in the chamber and leaving a residue that causes the piston rings to stick and not scrape the sides of the chamber causing carbon buildup and use excessive oil.

I know less than nothing about this stuff so I'm wanting to make sure they aren't trying to pull something and wonder if there something that I should have been doing besides regular oil changes that would prevent this.

It's a known issue



The 2020 Hyundai Tucson has recurring complaints regarding excessive engine oil consumption, connecting rod bearing wear, and an anti-lock braking system (ABS) electrical short that creates a fire risk. Drivers also report infotainment screen freezing and low-speed transmission hesitation.

Engine & Oil Consumption

Excessive oil burning: GDI engines can suffer from stuck oil control rings, leading to low oil levels and potential engine knock.

Connecting rod failure: Low oil or bearing defects can trigger diagnostic codes like P1326, leading to severe engine damage.

Solution:

Monitor frequently: Check your oil level every 500 miles or before any long road trip, rather than waiting for your next scheduled service.

Thank you.

So to make sure I understand the video correctly, it's basically a design issue they try to mitigate via maintenance?

I did see using fuel additives help, but can't find if they are required part of regular maintenance nor what I'm supposed to actually use (said I know nothing about this stuff)

I don't think there is a correction. I hope they didn't suggest a fix at the shop or dealership.

I'd think about trading it in otherwise it's seem like an every few week check and an oil top off if needed.

I'm doing a oil consumption test right now. At 1000 miles I take it back to see how much oil has been used and then they recommend a plan from there.

After some additional research it seems the next common step is a carbon cleaning but it sounds like just topping of the oil every so often will be much cheaper

You might want to consider switching Valvoline Restore and Protect. Take a look at the Oil Guys video and their claim about freeing up rings.

Could you put a couple tablespoons of seafoam or marvel mystery oil in the spark plug holes and let it sit on top of the pistons overnight to try and loosen things up?

Would I have to pull the spark plugs first? If so that would be a no. Don't have the tools for that.

Never been very car mechanically inclined.

I have a '19 kia optima 2.4L with a gdi. First gdi I've ever owned. I bought it at 110 k miles. I had the intake off for a knock sensor replacement soon after. The top of the valves looked terrible. Coked up severely. It was also using a quart of oil every 1000 miles. I was regretting the purchase.

It now has 240,000 miles. Still uses a quart of oil every 1000 miles. A set of spark plugs, a coil, and a cv joint are the only maintenance I've done. It's been a great car.

In short, don't worry about the oil consumption on a gdi.

I would think that burning that much oil would clog the catalytic converter and cause a check engine

Icecream_Ag said:

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I have a 2020 Hyundai Tucson....

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I stopped reading right there. The answer is yes unfortunately.

Do you use any additives or something to help out or just refill the oil every few gas fill ups?

We had a Telluride for a while. Took it in for a recall (I think) and overheard a conversation with a service advisor. I forget what model he had.

They told the owner that his oil consumption issue was "within spec" and advised him to keep a few quarts of oil in the car and top it off during every fill up.

Every. Fill up.

No thank you.

Icecream_Ag said:

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Would I have to pull the spark plugs first? If so that would be a no. Don't have the tools for that.

Never been very car mechanically inclined.

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Yes generally you pull plugs, pour a little carbon dissolver of your choice in each one, reinstall plugs and let it sit overnight before running again.

You may be able to do the ol "siphon seafoam in through a vacuum line" truck, if you can find an appropriate line to use. Let it suck seafoam into the engine until it starts running rough then shut er down and restart in the morning. Surely someone on the interwebs has done it on your model.

Burning a ton of oil has got to eat cats?

Icecream_Ag said:

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Do you use any additives or something to help out or just refill the oil every few gas fill ups?

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No, I use conventional Penzoil. I figure no need to put synthetic in it since it's getting fresh oil all the time. My wife drives this so multiple times I've checked it and no oil on the dipstick, needing 2+ qts. My point is that there's nothing to worry about. Just keep adding oil. My goal is to get this car to 300k.

Ultra low weight oil seems to be the Achilles heel of many of the newer engines -from all manufacturers. In order to get better fuel economy, they specify water, or almost water; 0w-8, 0w-15, 0w-20…. The oil just runs down the cylinder walls and around rings, resulting not only in high oil consumption, but also rapid wear or catastrophic failure