hi all

I have a 1998 dodge ram 2500 slt 4x4 with the 5.9l gas motor, that is using oil and it is not leaking it, and it is not burning it, I know that it has to be going somewhere but I cant smell it and it burns clean, also I dont see any oil when I crawled under. this has me baffled as to where it is going, I have used 3 litres of oil in the last week.

 

right out the door with that plenum plate
go to hughesengines and start paying that money

 

that could be it, but its also known that on these trucks, there seems to be oil that basically "disappears". my truck used to go through a half a quart of oil about a week or so after an oil change, but never went below that. it was weird. oddly enough(contrary to other's stories) i changed to synthetic and haven't lost a drop yet.

 

If it was going into the plenum would it not get burnt if it was getting into the intake,

 

i think it does burn correct me if im wrong guys but take your airhat of and look down into your intake if you see a pool of oil its probally that

 

Just because its getting burned does not mean you will smell it. I never smelled burning oil in my exhaust or around my engine when I had a blown plenum gasket.

 

so if I take of the air hat and see oil i need a plenum gasket. is this a big job or should it be done at the dealership? I am kind of handy with tools but dont know what is involved in changing this gasket. thanks

 

most every one on here has done it themselves jason took his to a shop just cus he needed his truck back quick but i just got my plenum kit in and for everything and a new thermastat was 178 shipped to my door they say it takes usually like 2 days to complete

 

There's already several plenum gasket threads going on. You might want to check them out.

 

the oil burn is so slow you don't see much if any smoke.
to answer your question, if you see a puddle of oil in the bottom of the plenum its a good indication of a leak. spark knock (pinging) is another indicator. dirty spark plugs are another. clogged cat is another.

if you have no other problems other than some oil loss, it may be easier and cheaper to just add oil and monitor it for a year or so... you can buy a lot of oil for $200.