Questions and Answers

Chevy Prizm Consuming Oil Q. Vince, My daughter has a 1998 Chevy Prizm, automatic transmission, with 90,000 miles. The other day she had to add 2½ quarts of oil. I told her to take it to a mechanic as that seemed to me a problem. The oil had been changed about 4,000 miles previously.

The mechanic said that there was nothing wrong with the engine and there were no leaks. I remembered that about a year ago the same thing happened, when the oil was very low, the light did not come on, but after filling it, the level remained okay. Is it normal that a car with that many miles could use up oil like that?

Thanks a lot,
Pat

A. In my neck of the woods we suggest that people change their oil every 3,000 miles. She would then be 1,000 miles overdue for hers. While it's not normal for cars to run themselves dry between oil changes, I would look at the PCV system if there are no oil leaks. I would also pull the spark plugs to see if one or more is oil fouled.

Fuel getting into the crankcase could also make the oil thin out and be burnt faster. One last thought is to make sure the cooling system is okay. An overheating problem is not good.