Hi,

I have been driving in my wonderful Hyundai Matrix 1.6 gasolin for a few months now. For about a week ago i noticed that the engine was nosiy and loud in the cabin around 110-120 km/h, not a "knocking" sound but just more loud engine sound than under normal conditions. I have been driving around 800 km's with that noise.

Today i checked the oil level, and unfortunately i discovered that it was missing oil. The oil pin was completely dry, not even wet in the bottom. However the oil lamp has not been ignited in the cabin at any time. Also it has been driving perfectly with full force all the time, just that more loudy engine.

I filled oil on it to the max. mark, and took a test drive. Everything was normal, and the noise had dissapeared.

My question is, have i been lucky, or can something be harmed in the engine, that i need to check before driving further? As mentioned it runs perfectly, and no noise.

Thank you very much
Jens

 

the fact that the noise stopped is good, so damage SHOULD be at a minimum. however, 800kms....don't abuse your car! asking weather or not damage has been done or to what degree is kinda like Schrodinger's cat. don't know if the cat is alive or dead until you open the box.

i would be more concerned as to where the oil went. it shouldn't just disappear so either you've been neglecting oil changes BADLY or you're leaking oil somewhere. that means it can happen again. a good rule of thumb: check your oil at least once a week, even every time you hit the gas station. eliminates this trouble.

as for the oil sensor, that is troubling. with the engine off, put the key in the ON position. the light for the oil pressure should come on the dash. if it doesn't, you have a bad sensor. easy to fix/replace.

 

Yea you really need to find out where your oil went because no oil will kill your car. Make sure to check your oil whenever you put gas in your car! That's what I do with my old rust bucket =P

 

was the dipstick dry or did u pull the plug and nothing came out? cuz theres a quart or so of oil left below the dipstick. If your engine was running on no oil at all there'd be a bigger problem and no oil pressure hence the light should come on. If youre running now with no noise you may be lucky but i'd try to find out where the oil is leaking. If there's no leak watch for a bad smell when you punch it or blue smoke that'll tell you if it's internally burning or losing it.

 

Hi, thanks for answers.

The dipstick was dry, i guess that oil was present if i removed the plug. The engine pressure light did not light up.

Now i have driven around 20.000 km (12 427 miles), and the oil usage (the much i have refilled) is around 4 liters. That is 1 liter for each 5000 km. I dont think this is dramatic is it?

When i punch it i see no extraordinary smoke/smell. And there is no oil beneath the engine when standing still.

I have read somewhere that it could be valve gaskets that are leaking a bit.

I think my main mistake was not to check oil level regulary on a car that i did not know. Now i know that it uses one liter pr. 5000 km's and can refill regulary.

Do you agree that is ok, with 1 liter of oil pr. 5000 km? Or should i try to get it fixed?

Thanks for helping.

Jens

 

You don't mention the year of your car so I'm not sure if it is fairly new or older. What are the total kilometers on the car? Are you the original owner or did you purchase it used?

You mention that it has used 4 litres of oil in 20,000 km. Was the oil changed in that distance?

I don't think using a litre of oil in 5,000 km is necessarily something to be concerned about but it depends on the car. My 2006 Sonata has 127,000 km on it and I do not need to add oil ever between changes. If it started using a litre every 5,000 km then I would be concerned because that is not normal for this engine. I have owned cars where the rate of oil usage you are experiencing was totally normal from the time they were new.

If I were you I would keep monitoring the oil level regularly to see whether the oil usage increases. You could also check to see if there are any visible leaks around the engine or oil dripping where you park.

 

most cars will use some oil between changes. idk about your metric measurements but i have 90k mi on my 04 elantra. i use royal purple and change it at every 5000mi and it uses maybe 1/2 qt between changes but it's also still slightly purple when i drain it so it's not being burned much and the engine is still running cleanly due to the low miles and yes i can say 90k is low because i had a 96 accord with 275k before this and a 95 sentra with 220k before that lol It depends on the car's age and how worn out the internals are like rings and valve stem seals but those things will naturally leak a little they arent a perfect seal. they cant be. Also just because you dont see oil doesnt mean it's not leaking. You could be right about valve cover but if it's leaking that bad your engine should be coated in oil and dirt. Also a leak could only be present when the engine is running like a crank seal and it wont drip exept when running and when running the car is moving so the oil ends up coating the undercarriage due to movement instead of dripping