Max oil "consumption"

[Richard]

Does Cont or Lyc list a maximum oil useage for their engines? (Qt/hour) Does it differ from say, a TSIO-540 to a O-320?

By "consumption" I mean blow by or actual burning of oil.

 

[Bob Noel]

I know Lycoming has a max oil consumption for the O-320 (it's .8 qt/hr, iirc).

I haven't paid attention to the other engines.

 

[poadeleted20]

Lycoming does, although by "consumption" they mean the difference per hour in amount of oil in the engine before/after flight, without specifying where it went. The numbers are published in Section 3 of the Operator's Manual for each engine they make (by series), and they vary by power setting as well as engine type. For example, my O-360-A has a max comsumption of 0.80 qt/hr at full rated power, 0.45 qt/hr at 75%, and 0.39 qt/hr at 65%. You can get a copy of the manual for your engine (the manuals go by series -- mine covers all O/HO/IO/AIO/HIO/TIO-360's) by calling Lycoming at 800-258-3279 with a credit card handy. It's about $18 including S&H.

 

[gismo]

FWIW, IME the numbers given by Lyc and TCM are way beyond what most pilot's will tolerate. Often serious problems with plug fouling will occur with significantly lower rates of "consumption". It wouldn't surprise me to learn that the numbers are simply based on the point where the excess oil capacity will be used up on a single flight. IIRC the numbers for my IO-470L amount to something like 1-2 quarts per hour (not hours per quart) at cruise power settings.