Oil consumption on E46, am I missing anything?

[BLINGMW]

E46 325 with 160k, oil consumption has increased over the last year, now in the 1qt / 1000 mi ballpark which is for us about every 2 weeks.
No evidence of oil / coolant mixing
Never have seen smoke from exhaust
No evidence of leaks, or if it is leaking it's being 100% burned off
No oil in any of the coil pack / plug holes
Almost no evidence of seepage around valve cover, I wiped down what I could 2 weeks ago and it's still clean
Checked compression, all good and within 10 psi of each other
No codes or drivability issues, running great AFAIK
I CAN smell oil right after pulling in the garage
I've been reading about the CCV (or oil separator), which can lead to oil consumption when it fails. Makes some sense, but the two ghetto "tests" I can find (cause there's no mention of it in my Haynes or Bentley manuals) go something like this, and please comment on validity:
1) Check for excessive negative pressure at oil cap. If cap is hard to remove when running, or it gulps air, makes noise when you do, there's your sign. It's supposed to be a little negative, which mine is. When I remove cap, idle changes just a touch and recovers, which is what I call normal.
2) Check for positive pressure at dipstick hole by removing dipstick and capping it with a balloon. Mine was negative as it should be.

So, did I miss something simpler or does this thing need a head gasket, valve guides, or rings? Or more realistically, cheaper oil?

[ViPER1313]

Look for leaks when the car is warm and running. I think the smell when you bring it into the garage is the key here. Main and cam seals will leak when running but usually not when sitting still. Look around the exhaust, if you smell it it's probably burning on the exhaust pipe. It could also be a PCV issue if e46s have those, that is cheap and easy.

[D_Eclipse9916]

Look for leaks when the car is warm and running. I think the smell when you bring it into the garage is the key here. Main and cam seals will leak when running but usually not when sitting still. Look around the exhaust, if you smell it it's probably burning on the exhaust pipe. It could also be a PCV issue if e46s have those, that is cheap and easy.

:thumbup:

1 quart every 1000 miles is a lot, but to me it is a good sign you can smell it cause it is most likely leaking not burning.

[PDenbigh]

Is there oil on the tray under the engine? Ours started leaking quite nicely around some seals on the driver side of the engine, toward the front. It's been a while so I don't remember what the exact part was (helpful huh?).

Valve cover is only one of the many gaskets that fail (learned from experience).

[BLINGMW]

It could also be a PCV issue if e46s have those, that is cheap and easy.

PCV = CCV.... unfortunately in e46's case it's not easy to get to

Ok thanks all, I'll lift the thing up and look around while it's running, as I haven't done much of a search. I just figured a leak that fast would show up on the floor. If I find it by hot oil dripping in my face I'm gonna be pissed though.