P0401 with massive oil consumption

[jmd10]

I have a 2000 Windstar 3.8 (118,000 mi.) and am getting the P0401 code, plus the van is using almost a quart of oil per week. I'm not even sure if the two are related. I don't know where the oil is going other than fouling the spark plugs, because the car doesn't smoke and leaks very little. I have had to change the plugs twice in the last year. I had the TSB 03-16-1 done in Sept. of '07 (101,000 mi.), everthing was done (I assume for $351) except the valve cover replacement. Mine has the hole at the 5 o'clock position. The DPFE was also replaced during this service , I now have the black plastic one. Checked all vacuum hoses yesterday and they seem to be fine. I am going to clean the EGR ports this weekend and was also considering putting on new lower intake manifold gaskets while I had everthing apart. Has anyone had similiar problems? I have found great info on the TSB service in this forum, but nothing on the oil consumption. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[chrisb7711]

P0401 is the code I have had for a month now and I have changed ever possible part in the emissions system..changed to DPFE, MAF, EVR etc I even put a new throttle body on the stupid truck and still the light is on..was not having a problem with oil consumption but I am using up my gas so quick it makes no sense to me.
Good luck and if you find the answer please post as I see P0401 seems to be a problem for a few folks.

[wiswind]

P0401 code, DPFE and clogged EGR ports in the lower intake manifold are the 2 leading causes.

To Clean the EGR ports, you remove the UPPER intake manifold.....and clean the small 1/4" ports at each cylinder, it is in the passage that does not have the IMRC butterfly.
The upper intake manifold gaskets are re-usable.

Other than that, make sure that the connections to the DPFE are good.....the 2 hoses are not cracked, and that the electrical connection is good.

Make sure that the vaccum line to the EGR valve is in good shape, follow it back to the Electrical Solenoid that controls the vaccum to this line, located on the back of the upper intake manifold.....and make sure that there are no cracks in the line.

As far as the lower intake manifold gaskets, you do not need to replace them unless they are leaking.....from the point that you are cleaning the EGR ports (Upper intake manifold removed, lower intake manifold still in place) it is STILL a lot of work to replace the lower intake manifold gaskets.
Any time the lower intake manifold is removed, new lower intake manifold gaskets MUST be installed.

[jmd10]

Thanks for the info, I am going to clean the EGR ports in reply to the P0401. But what about the oil use? Could a bad DPFE cause the oil loss or could the original LH valve cover be responsible for such a large loss of oil (1 qt. per week)? Or is it the valve guides? Or is it the lower intake gaskets? I checked the PCV hose earlier today and it did have a considerable amount of oil at both ends. I also checked the vacuum line that connects the fuel pressure regulator to the intake manifold but found no wear or corrosion and just a tad of oil. Too many questions and possibilities at this point.

[wiswind]

The oil consumption sounds really high for the valve cover baffle to be the cause....but I am not familiar with it..
I would still repair that problem, as it is a known issue and go from there.

[bdahl385]

Originally Posted by jmd10

such a large loss of oil (1 qt. per week)?

How many miles do you drive in a week? I assume since you don't see a pool of oil under the vehicle after sitting, it must be consumed only while driving. If you don't see a lot of blue smoke coming out the exhaust, then it must be dripping out while driving and not being burned.

I remember reading a post about a blown gasket on the oil filter causing oil loss but only while driving. No drips when parked and no blue smoke.

[glennet404]

Hello-

If your spark plugs are getting fouled to the point of replacing them twice within a year - AND your losing a quart of oil a week. Clearly your burning oil - even if your not seeing it.

What you need to do at this point is test the compression in each cylinder. While this is gonna be a pain with the rear three cylinders - it's a necessary analytical tool. The compression values, any differences between what each cylinder measures, and the location of the offending cylinders can tell you volumes.

There are several styles of compression testers - buy or borrow the style that has a hose with fitting on the end that screws into the spark plug hole. The hose is generally 12"-18" long and connects to the actual dial gage itself. You'll need this style tester to measure the rear cylinders.

Take those measurement - and post the results.

Glenn

[jmd10]

After further observation I noticed a stream of oil leaking between the lower intake manifold and the engine block. It looks like the leak is coming from the rubber end seal on the back of the engine (right side of the engine compartment). Does anyone know if this leak could cause the spark plugs to foul and the EGR ports to become clogged, thus triggering the P0401 code?

Looks like I may be replacing the lower intake gaskets after all. Will the compression test refered to by glennet404 in the previous post show a bad intake gasket or any other problem? As far as the P0401, I still need to test the EGR system. I found a good web site that descibes the testing process. Here's the link, www.engine-light-help.com/egr-valve.html. Does anyone know which wire coming out of the DPFE sends the signal to the PCM? I think it's the brown/green one (the one on top of the connector) on my 2000 3.8L, but I'm not sure. Does anyone have the wiring diagram? More help needed please.

[jmd10]

I talked to the mechanic who did the TSB and asked him about the lower intake manifold gaskets leaking. He said that the gasket leak would'nt cause the spark plugs to foul like that. He said that he has seen a lot of Windstars that have bad valve guides, and that was probably the cause of the fouled plugs and oil consumption.

I'm still not sure what the problem is. Does anyone know if faulty lower intake gaskets could cause fouled plugs? If it is the valve guides I'm not sure if it would be worth the money to have them repaired on a 2000.

I also still need some info on testing the EGR system. Does anyone know which wire from the DPFE connector sends the signal to the PCM? Any help is appreciated.

[arjbeauch]

The top wire is the signal wire, middle is ground and the bottom is reference voltage. I just did the EGR port clean today. I had three ports plugged solid, the other three had residue but not bad. What I did find was lots of oil in the intake. I replaced the pcv hoping this would eliminate the oil getting into the intake. Cleaned the throttle body as well. While probing for voltages I kept getting zapped by the plug wires so I thought wile I had everything apart I would replace them as well. My cruise control stopped working recently, found the brake pressure switch connector full of brake fluid. Repalced that also. ABS light has been off all day since I replaced the switch. Interesting part of my story is I never had any codes just heavy amounts of pinging, poor acceleration and lousy gas mileage. 15/20 mpg. Pinging has diminished too a small amount but much better than it was. I'm still not sure the egr is functioning as it should. While checking the signal at the dpfe I was only seeing about 1 volt at idle and 1.3 at high rpm. I haven't checked again since I completed the work.

[serge_saati]

Did you have oil leak on the top or on the side of the engine?
If not, it's mean that the oil is burning. Don't forget that you have 6 cylinders...
So if you burn 1 quart per week, each cylinder burn 0.17 quart/week. This is very possible if you use 15 gallons of fuel/week or more.

The good point with that (if it's really that), it's that your cylinders, valve, pistons and rings will be more lubricated and it's very good for the engine. You'll never had to replace your rings. And also, your engine will last more longer, cause it'll wear slower.

Your engine should run quieter and smoother than before. W/o the Rrroar sound when you accelerate a lot.

So I don't recommend you to repair this problem. It worth to replace the plugs 2x/year.

For your question, many other things can cause that: bad rings, bad valve guide.

[jmd10]

The leak is on the side of the engine where the lower intake meets the block. It's on the back side of the engine (right side of the engine compartment) where the rubber end gasket is located. I was just wondering if the leak (lower intake manifold gasket) could cause the plugs to foul? If not, the valve guides or something else is leaking. I'm not sure.

Also, does anyone know if the 6 EGR port gaskets are reusable after the upper intake has been removed to clean the EGR ports?

[serge_saati]

Originally Posted by jmd10

The leak is on the side of the engine where the lower intake meets the block. It's on the back side of the engine (right side of the engine compartment) where the rubber end gasket is located. I was just wondering if the leak (lower intake manifold gasket) could cause the plugs to foul? If not, the valve guides or something else is leaking. I'm not sure.

Also, does anyone know if the 6 EGR port gaskets are reusable after the upper intake has been removed to clean the EGR ports?

I already have the same problem. This leak seem common on the 99-03 generation. But my spark plugs was not fooled. I just loose a little bit of oil while driving.

So yes, the problem is inside, probably the valves guide.

I was wrong in my last post. Oil will lubricate your piston, but will accumulate in the combustion chamber and will create sludge and stick on the block. When engine will cool down, it'll be solid and may stop pistons from moving and destroy the engine.

You need to repair this problem quickly, if not you will damage your engine.

Yes, you can re-use the gaskets.

[mark_gober]

JMD,

Did you ever get any resolution to your windstar's oil consumption? I'm losing quite a bit of oil myself (although not quite that much). I'm considering replacing the valve stem seals, but I'd like to have that "A-HA!" answer and know that what I'm doing is going to fix the problem.

Mark