2001 Toyota Corolla Burning Oil

[merlin101]

A 17 year old Toyota with 72,000 miles on it ! REALLY !

Do we really believe this used, 17 year old car has 72,000 miles on it ?????

Let me guess, it was owned by a little old lady that only drove it to church on Sundays


The OP said he purchased it USED. Come on, it has a real 72K on it after 17 years, in Kansas?

I believe it, then again I also have an 86 Chevy K5 Blazer tucked away in my garage with 29,000 miles!
OP you realy do need to find a mechanic you can trust to look at it. Like other said do a compression test and go from there. The oil additives only extend a problem NOT cure a problem, Lucas and STP and such work great to thicken oil and will help quit a rod knock or piston slap but only until parts break so use with caution!
Years ago there was a product called "lifter looser" or something like that, it was a solvent based product that dissolved gum and varnish and would free up rings and lifters. It did work but remember that sldge and junk has to go somewhere and that somewhere is the oil filter so change it often when using a solvent based cleaner.

[Outpost75]

I don't believe the odometer. But if it hasn't turned back stuck rings are the thing.

Try some Marvel Mystery Oil and then do a compression test. Proceed from there.

My 2008 Toyota has 250k on it, doesn't burn any oil and still gets 32 mpg. What's wrong with this picture?

[abunaitoo]

Little while ago, sold my 1986 Toyota PU. 38,000mi on it.
Used very little. So little, it just sat for weeks. Sometimes months.
Had to get rid of it because of rust. Body was rotten. Leaked as much rain inside as out.
Engine was fine.
I still miss that truck. Best one I've ever owned.

OP needs to find out if it's burning, or leaking the oil first.
With the black on the rear, could be oil, but most likely leaking injector.
Either way, engine is probably not running to good.
Unless the rest of the car is in great condition, might not be worth fixing.

[robg]

I'll bet its the valve stem seals worn ,the easy test for this is to go down a hill on the overrun when you get to the bottom of the hill accelerate if a big cloud of smoke appears that's you problem .hope this helps.

[Petrol & Powder]

I believe it, then again I also have an 86 Chevy K5 Blazer tucked away in my garage with 29,000 miles!
.......

The difference is you KNOW the history of that 1985 K5 Blazer, the OP may not know the history of that 2001 Toyota.

I'm sorry but unless the OP knows the history of that car, it is highly likely that mileage is false.

The first issue is to determine how it is losing oil, leaking, burning or leaking & burning.
The next issue is to decide if it is worth repairing or replacing the engine.
A BIG part of that decision will be based on the actual mileage of the car. If it's a 17 year old car with 275,000 miles on it - that's a LOT different than a 17 year old car with 75,000 miles on it. Then you get into the rest of the car beyond the engine. Toyotas are excellent cars but you must make an informed decision.
At some point you are just throwing money down a hole.

If the rest of the car is in excellent condition and it really has only 75K on it, I would be inclined to fix it. If it's a worn out 2001 Corolla wit 275K miles on it, I wouldn't dump a lot of money into it.

[jonp]

A 17 year old Toyota with 72,000 miles on it ! REALLY !

Do we really believe this used, 17 year old car has 72,000 miles on it ?????

Let me guess, it was owned by a little old lady that only drove it to church on Sundays


The OP said he purchased it USED. Come on, it has a real 72K on it after 17 years, in Kansas?

I bought a used Honda CRV that someone had put about 7,500 miles a year on putting around town I guess. I still have it and it just turned 21 with 170,000 and has been bullet proof except for the usual ball joints, tie rods etc which I put on in the driveway myself so i believe it. You can find these things hanging around if your lucky and you look. My 2008 CRV bought used has 70,000 on it with far less when I got it.

The advice about pulling the plugs is sound. I'd do that as a first resort as well as running some Marvel in the oil first off. A Toyota with that mileage should not be burning oil but it could be from just sitting around.

Replace the thermostat, PCV valve, check all gaskets or just replace them. I seriously doubt that something is very wrong with that engine unless someone did something very bad with it.

As for the soot, your on a cast boolit site and you want advice to remove carbon?

[Lloyd Smale]

quick easy test you can do at home with just a compression guage. Do a compression test on each cylinder. then take an oil quirt can and one at a time give each cylinder about 4 squirts of oil then retest them. If its the rings the oil will help seal the combustion chamber and your compression will go up. If it doesn't go up then you have a valve problem. If its burning and not leaking the oil 9 times out of 10 its a valve issue. Either seals or guides or a bent valve. Years ago it was rings as often as valves but its pretty rare today that a motor with that low of miles has bad rings or stuck rings.

[Geezer in NH]

Using oil or burning oil 2 different things.

72K on a Toyota? bet it's way more but who cares.

What is the amount of consumption 1QT every 3K? do not complain. I change oil at 3k anyway (never bought into the yearly 30K synthetic)

Remember even when "using" a quart every 1K the oil is way cheaper than rebuilding the freaking motor. There is also high millage oil from most company's it is supposed to help all the seals maybe it does maybe not but it might help.

Base is when running good meaning power AND good gas mileage. Give it a drink of oil when it needs it.

My 2001 GMC 1/2 ton uses 1 qt every 1100 or so miles. fixed some leaks to keep it to that and it will pass 300k this summer. Avg millage 17-18 with balls up the butt.

[abunaitoo]

Toyota did have a problem with collapsed rings.
Don't remember what years or models.
Compression test would be the place to start.

[Lloyd Smale]

I have to agree. The 06 Silverado I bought new did the same thing right from the git go. I sold it at a 100k to my buddy and it now has a 150k on it and still uses the same quart of oil every 3k. If it were my car id probably do some easy checks like the compression to satisfy my curiousity but I wouldn't pull the motor down unless it got much worse.

Using oil or burning oil 2 different things.

72K on a Toyota? bet it's way more but who cares.

What is the amount of consumption 1QT every 3K? do not complain. I change oil at 3k anyway (never bought into the yearly 30K synthetic)

Remember even when "using" a quart every 1K the oil is way cheaper than rebuilding the freaking motor. There is also high millage oil from most company's it is supposed to help all the seals maybe it does maybe not but it might help.

Base is when running good meaning power AND good gas mileage. Give it a drink of oil when it needs it.

My 2001 GMC 1/2 ton uses 1 qt every 1100 or so miles. fixed some leaks to keep it to that and it will pass 300k this summer. Avg millage 17-18 with balls up the butt.

[Petrol & Powder]

ksfowler166 made the first post of this thread and only made that one post.
He never said how much oil he was losing.

I agree that losing 1 quart every 3K miles is nothing to worry about but the OP never quantifies the amount he's losing.

We've all seen old cars with low mileage and they undoubtedly exist BUT, I'm still very skeptical that 17 year old Toyota only averaged about 4200 miles per year.

[HATCH]

Is it smoking or does it just lose oil?

I have a 2004 Jeep Wrangler with just under 80k original miles on it so trust me when I say it is possible that the miles are original.


.
If it is smoking, you can switch to synthetic oil and it will stop smoking.
Synthetic oil doesn’t fix the smoking issue but it doesn’t burn so no more smoke.
Over time depending on the rate of ‘burn’ you will end up having a oil sludge come out of your tail pipe from the unburned oil.

[Petrol & Powder]

And just for fun, I plugged some numbers into the Kelley Blue Book calculator for a 2001 Toyota Corolla in Excellent condition and used the top trim level. The average mileage was listed as 154,000 miles and the fair market value for a dealer sale was about $2500 and a private sale was about $2200.

If the car had a new engine, it wouldn't be worth much more than $2500 even with a perfectly good engine. The rest of the car is still 17 years old. Assuming the rest of the car is free (and it isn't), I wouldn't put more than $2500 into the engine. And you can buy a LOT of oil for $2500.

[Petrol & Powder]

Is it smoking or does it just lose oil?

I have a 2004 Jeep Wrangler with just under 80k original miles on it so trust me when I say it is possible that the miles are original.
.

Does your 2004 Jeep with a KNOWN mileage of less than 80K burn copious amounts of oil ?

Low mileage examples of old vehicles certainly exist but there's a difference between a vehicle with known low miles that doesn't burn oil and a vehicle with suspect mileage that does burn oil.

[HATCH]

Did he say how much oil was being used?

[Bmi48219]

In my experience a motor with rings that no longer expand to the cylinder walls usually produce a blue-gray smoke screen most noticeable when accelerating hard from a stop or while shifting gears. As others have said check for fouled plug as & run a compression test.
All the modern electronics and pollution control equipment make it hard for a do it yourself mechanic. But then you don't have to reset your points and gap your plugs every three thousand miles any more.

[Petrol & Powder]

Did he say how much oil was being used?

No - the OP never said how much oil was being lost.

[Petrol & Powder]

The question is not, "Is it possible that the mileage is accurate". The unequivocal answer to that question is YES, it is entirely possible the mileage is accurate.

The pertinent question is, "Is it LIKELY that the mileage is accurate". The answer to that question is NO ! It is not likely.

[HATCH]

I replaced the cats on my Jeep at 46k miles so anything is possible.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

SNIP...

We've all seen old cars with low mileage and they undoubtedly exist BUT, I'm still very skeptical that 17 year old Toyota only averaged about 4200 miles per year.

SNIP...

I have a 2004 Jeep Wrangler with just under 80k original miles on it so trust me when I say it is possible that the miles are original.

I am partial owner of a 2004 Buick Rendezvous, it currently has 56K mi
BUT,
I also own a 2004 Toyota Matrix with 251k mi

Funny thing is, both cars are worth about the same, LOL. The Toyota does have a small oil leak, but there is no evidence it burns any oil. The Rendezous looks and runs like new...except for the bone jarring STIFF rear suspension, but it was like that from new.

So, my point is, if you hang around with retired people or live in a area with a high percentage of retired people, there are lots and lots of low mileage cars out there. Last year, my Mechanic offered me his Mom's 1986 Buick Century Limited with less than 20K mi...if I recall he sold it a month later for $3500.