I’m actually using a car older than yours as my daily driver now, my 62 Caddy. I only use it for short trip local driving, only in good weather. I’m 68, so it ( and I) only have a few more years to go.
Sheesh, just can’t help commenting. I’m 70 and I expect I’ll be buying two new cars in the next year or so. All I can say is suit yourself-do what you want. My diesel had 200K on it and was taking a quart every 2-300 miles. Can’t recall anymore exactly. I kept adding oil but it wasn’t long before a knock developed and I spent $2500 on a new engine. One of the stupidest things I ever did because that wasn’t the end of it. Yeah no one has any money for a new car but just for kicks go look at what you can get (even on a lease) and how it compares to what you’ve got. Comes a point is all.
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Sorry to sound insulting, but that’s about the worst car maintenance strategy I’ve ever heard of. First of all, the light comes on well before the crankcase is empty or else it would be the “replace engine” light, not the “low oil pressure” light. Second, you are adding 5 each time when it may require 2. Do you ever actually check the dipstick, either before or after adding oil?
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Common_Sense_Answer pretty much said it all. No need for this extensive discussion of viscosities, rings, seals. He’s toasted his engine and from his maintenance plan, it looks like he’s only done more to damage what’s left. Time to buy a new car and get a couple bucks for the scrap of your current car.
About 30 years ago I bought an old Datsun 4-banger for my short commute to work. When my 12-year-old son and I used it to get from Texas (Fort Hood) to DC (Smithsonian), the trip was made with a case of cheap oil in the back, as the engine burned a quart every 200 miles. One cylinder, I later learned, had awful compression. Probably the rings, not the valves. Otherwise, a reliable little car. Unlike the guy who sold it to me, I told the new buyer about the rings and set the price where it belonged.