Burn 1 quart oil every 600 miles normal?!

What the manual is trying to say is NOT that it is "normal" but that is their threshold for when something needs to be done about it.
It is mostly a warranty thing.
They don't want owners coming in saying their engine needs to be fixed until it gets REAL bad.

I don't understand the second question.
You check for oil consumption using the dip stick.

 

We have been adding a quart of oil every few hundred miles for years at this point. Our Prius has 465k miles.

 

you could do a compression test to see how the piston rings are working. but the easiest thing is the dipstick, unless you intend to rebuild/replace the engine.

 

We haven't had issues with emissions testing (we are in NY).

 

If you're really using 1 quart every 600 miles, and there's not an oil slick under your car where you park, then you're not leaking oil.
This means that in all likelihood, you're burning it.
You're not going to have to worry about the emissions test much longer because your catalytic converter is probably going to fail before much longer.

It's not at all uncommon for an 11 year old car to be a burner.
When you fail the emissions test then you're going to have to calcuguess whether to put a used engine into this car (few thou) or get another car.
Who knew Texas did emissions testing????

In the interim, I'd club up to 5w30 and see if you can stretch it out to 1q/1000 miles.
The compression test is an OK thing to do, but I wouldn't pay to get it done.
You can buy a compression test kit for <$25 and do it yourself. It's easy to do and you won't be tempted to skew the results......NOT that any mechanic would do so.

Good Luck!

 

If you really are pumping a large amount of oil out the tailpipe, then it will likely start to accumulate in the CAT.....where it will tend to burn out the element inside or catch fire and make a REAL mess.
I've heard that in places where they are serious about the tests, just having visible smoke coming out the tailpipe is an automatic FAIL.

 

Only partially true.

By the time it is thick enough to actually look blue, you are WAY past the danger point.
Just guessing at a quart every hundred miles or so......or more.
Oil smoke will initially show up as white, until it gets real thick.

 

Emissions testing is not always a state wide thing, I think.
Might just be in some cities.

I don't think going to 5W30 will be enough to make any difference.
I'd recommend a 15W40 "high mileage" variety.

 

Why not just check the dipstick?

If you're really going through the oil, consider heavier weight oil.

And then, as a last resort: "high mileage" oil. The latter will (hopefully) swell seals on valve stems, reduce consumption if that's how it's happening. Once you go to high mileage oil, best to stick with it. Returning to regular oil, seals may shrink, and consumption get even worse.

 

There's no other practical way to check oil consumption without using a dipstick. If there's blue smoke coming out of the car, your oil consumption is really bad. Low to moderate oil use will only be seen by checking the dipstick. Do not let your oil use fall low enough to trigger the oil pressure light; engine damage will likely be occurring at this point.

Oil use by the Prius is very rare before 100k miles. You should always check your oil level before and after you change your oil to see how much it's used between changes and see if you should be checking more frequently. Around 100k it's probably good to check the oil level halfway between oil changes. If you notice oil use or have to add oil, then I'd switch to checking every other tank. If you're still needing to add oil when you check, switch to checking every tank. If you need to add oil every tank than most switch to a thicker high mileage oil (eg. 10W-40) and run this thicker oil for the life of the car (exception would be if you live in a climate where it's so cold you couldn't start the car with this oil). Once this too fails to keep the oil use down, it's time for a new engine or car.

 

Mine falls from the full mark to the add mark in 500 miles!

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