Engine Burning Oil Problems of Chevrolet Prizm

The piston skirts on the 2000 model were too short (they were replaced with appropriate skirts in a later year model). The very short skirt allows the piston to tilt in the cylinder much sooner than would happen in normal engines. This causes the rings to fail to seat properly much earlier than would happen in an engine with normal skirt lengths. This causes excessive oil consumption where the amount of oil consumed rises exponentially with the number of miles driven. At some point, the engine could malfunction while the driver is driving.

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Chevrolet Prizm. . . Corolla in disguise. Car drinks oil bad. Have owned a 2000 model bought in 2008 with 44,000 miles car looked and drove like new so I thought car is made by Toyota no need to check under the hood. Wrong!!! got home with the car and my dad wanted to drive it,he's a mechanic. Gets back home mad. He heard a ticking noise,( I didn't notice cause last car was wore out and noisy. . . This was quite for me) checked oil and there was less than a quart in the oil pan it only holds a little over 3qts. He put oil in it and it was super quite motor. Drove the car til bout 94000. At first the car needed only 1 qt every 600-800 miles. That was ok I was used to that. Then it got worse and worse. 1 qt every 50 to 100 miles. My dad tore it apart looked every where for a leak. None nothing!!! it was burning oil he found out but could not tell where it was coming from. This is very bad because the catylactick converter can only hold so much before it clogged and burnt slap out!!! almost 7000$ I paid for that car suposedly of Toyota quality, not counting all of the oil now in our o-zone. Besides the oil problem that almost every one faces when owning these vehicles including corollas same motor, best car I have ever owned. I just bought another one hoping it would be clear of engine issues. Wrong. . . My dad has looked it all over can't find out still what the problem is. Please research this really good and help us Prizm owners have restitution to see that recall envalope in the mail. Look at every car review site and yall will see that 9 out of 10 complaints are oil usage. Maby thats the reason you don't see them much anymore. But most importantly us Prizm owners( that are left lol) need our cars fixed where the earth does not have suffer any more nether the less our wallets. Oil, diagnostics. Catylactic converters. . Etc. You have to check oil constant. Oil light never works for anyone thats why their all gone. You will see on all review sites.

Excessive oil consumption (one quart low every 300-400 miles), worsening, appears to be known defect for Toyota supplied engines in 2001 Chevrolet Prizm and possibly other years of this motor type (possible factory ring, valve early failure issues), no leaks or heavy smoke apparent, air filter normal with no apparent blow-by from rings at that point. Regular oil and filter changes, car driven daily for local use, no other known defects or recurring problems, car operates normally other than high oil amounts used.

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Oil consumption in 2001 prism is overwhelming!.

2001 Chevrolet Prizm with Toyota engine began burning excessive amounts of oil at 70,000 miles. Now burning 1 quart of oil every 300-400 miles. Toyota has admitted a problem with the engine, but gm refuses to do anything.

Engine is eating oil!! -- I purchased an 18-month old chevy Prizm lsi with a 1zz-fe 1. 8l engine back in November 2002 with about 27k miles. This car is still in mint condition. It's garaged and I do all the routine maintenance and use pure synthetic engine oil since I purchased it. Unfortunately at about 50k miles, my engine started eating up oil at about 1 quart per 200 miles. After researching the 1zz fe 1. 8l engine block series, it appears this engine has piston and ring problems leading it to consume oil at a rapid pace. I keep a case of oil in the trunk for long trips and put in at least one quart each time I refill the tank. This engine can be found in at least 10 Toyota and one chevy model (prizm). This is an excellent car, however I can't believe GMC hasn't issued a technical service bulletin (TSB) regarding excessive engine oil consumption problems. These cars can run for at least 250k miles if you make sure the engine has enough oil. Buyer beware -- 1998-2002 chevy Prizms and their siamese twin, Toyota corollas with the izz fe 18. L engine with more than 50k miles will consume much more oil and it is therefore imperative to ensure you have enough oil in the engine block to prevent engine seizure. GMC should issue a TSB for this problem. I realize this car is more than 10 years old, but there are millions of 1998-2002 Prizms and corollas on the road. If you buy one, make sure the previous owner is honest with you regarding oil consumption, otherwise you may be buying a car with lots of engine problems. Your engine may seize up on you and leave you stranded in timbuktu. . .

I own a 2001 and a 2002 chevy Prizm. Both cars are using excessive oil (several quarts every 100 miles each). Dealer states this is a common problem due to carbon buildup in the cylinders. Excessive oil consumption started around 50,000 miles. The chevy Prizm is really a Toyota corolla. Toyota has had this problem and has warranted the repair. General motors is not assisting its customers with the repair. I guess that is why Toyota is number one car maker and gm is number 2. I will never buy another gm product again.

Spring 2004, oil change mechanic noticed excessive sludge (appx 65000 miles on car). Cleaned engine out, changed oil (car has had regular oil changes every 3-4k miles). After that car was noted to be using too much oil (topping off at each 1500 miles they had to add 2 and a half quarts). Took to dealer at about 67000 noting oil problem and check engine light. Light turned out to be a catalytic converter problem. Replaced. Nothing done on oil problem. At 70000 miles engine was hesitating and continuing to burn oil. Took back to dealer. Charged me for new spark plugs first then found other problems (believe it was air flow sensor. ) at 72,000, took back to dealer for excessive oil use. Changed oil and told me to come back when it had burned a quart. On the way home from dealer, engine blew up. Under gm extended warranty, lower half of engine replaced. Three weeks after it was repaired (which took a month) transmission died. Replaced tranny under warranty. Apparently I'm lucky it was under the chevy name and not Toyota, but same problem is noted on a number of those.

The contact owns a 2000 Chevrolet Prizm. The vehicle began burning a quart of oil per month and currently uses three quarts of oil per week. When diagnostic tests were initially performed, the results indicated that there was nothing wrong with the vehicle. The lines were tested and the results indicated that there were no leaks and the pressure was normal. Currently, a mechanic has concluded that the oil ring in the engine needs to be replaced, which would cost $2,000 - $3,000. The purchase date was unknown. The current mileage was 104,000 and failure mileage was 74,000.

My 2001 Chevrolet Prizm has been burning oil since around 60-70k miles and has only gotten worse. Chevrolet didn't build the engine right and the rings/heads I think need replaced (what I read on). And Chevrolet has not fixed this problem and its costly as it burns around a quart every 200 miles.