Where to buy the oil access cover rivet/fastener?

The dealer would be ur best bet

 

Yep. If you could take some pictures to show the guy at the part's counter and describe where it's at, he should be able to bring up a diagram and tell you the part # and cost.

 

There's a oil filter cover on a 2006? My 07 does not have any cover.

 

OP is probably referring to a 3G Prius.

 

Maybe but he's in II forum and also lists a 06. I bet he thinks he has to take the front splashplate off to get around the filter.

 

You got me. Right of drivers rear wheel? Have no clue what your talking about. Your on the wrong end of the car. Engines up front.


My 07 and all Gen II's afaik only have the one cover under neath the engine.. It stops right at the oil filter. You can clearly see and grab the oil filter. Now there's no room to get a wrench around the filter so go to auto store with a new filter in your hand as they sell an oil filter socket that fits over the end of the filter and has a 3/8 socket hole to hook your srwnch to it. I say bring your filter (I prefer OEM) so you can get exact size filter socket. they amke alof of diff sizes. And oil pan is in the clear.

 

How about posting a couple of photos, one which is zoomed back to provide perspective of the location relative to the underside of the car, and another zoomed in to the door that you are concerned about.

 

Patrick Wong is spot on as always. It sounds like the OP is doing something wrong. I too would like to see some pics of what he is describing. Our '09 is like all the Gen II's out there. Easy access to the oil drain and filter. And yeah, the oil filter wrench that fits on the ratchet is highly advisable. Otherwise you end up having to use over size channel locks and mush the filter in the process of removing it.

 

Where did you get that idea?

Drive it for ten minutes, drain the oil until it stops coming out, reinstall drain plug (if washer is not aluminum, replace it with one that is), remove the old filter, install an OEM filter, (they come lubed) refill with 3.5 quarts of 5W-30 (or 0W-30) full synthetic motor oil, reinstall oil cap, close hood, recycle used oil. Do not bother checking level right after, however, check it once in a while.

 

Why bother driving it first and then letting it cool? Hasn't it been driven before? Waste of time & gas. Longer it sits before drain the better off you are. And then not necessary to let filter or pan drain for an hour because after 2 minutes here both pretty drained. You could let it drain for 2 days and never get all the trapped oil out.

If this is your fist change prepare for big mess on the ground. Get a big cardboard box and open it flat and lay it under the engine to catch any dripping oil. I know what I'm doing and still do that.
And buy Nitrile gloves at Auto store too.

I take the oil filter off first before pan bolt. The filter is above the pan and will only dump whats in the filter. Its easier to maneuver an empty oil catch basin to catch the oil filter drip than the other way around. This only matters if doing it on the ground.
And then like Avi says put in exactly 3.5 quarts. Don't bother driving it around after the oil change to circulate the oil to check it. That's just a waste of gas & time. Check it in a day or so.
3.5 will put it right at the dot.
And make sure your bottle that you will use to recycle oil has a cap that you can tighten for transport. And they do not want your old filter.

And lastly I would buy a new oil pan dump bolt and washer. $7 at dealer. The bolt is sacrificial and wears out after a bunch of changes. Its designed softer then the pan threads so if you strip it you won't hopefully ruin the pan.

 

Well, you should make the Prius READY after you've changed the oil and oil filter, and let the engine run for a few minutes. The point of doing that is to look around under the car while the engine is running, to make sure that you don't have an oil leak at the oil filter and the oil drain plug. You don't actually need to drive the car unless you want to go somewhere.

I like to fill the new oil filter around 50% with fresh engine oil before installing it. The point of doing that is to help the engine pressurize the oil system immediately upon startup. If you install an empty filter, it will take a few seconds for the engine to fill the oil filter and start circulating oil. The engine is running without lubrication for that short period and you will hear funny noises.

I recommend that you use a plastic funnel as you are adding fresh oil to the oil filler area by the valve cover. Otherwise there is a good chance that you will dump oil on the valve cover, etc. which is really not helpful.

 

Yes, well, at least start it. The idea being there is still a tiny bit of oil around to lubricate until the new oil fills the system. Filling the oil filter is not a bad idea, nor the end of the world if you don't, at least for Prii. Definitely use a funnel to fill the oil. Getting a new drain plug isn't bad either, just remember your new one will last a while so don't change it next time.

 

Also, if you watched a video on a GenIII the filter is different. Gen II Prii have a spin on filter not a cartridge type like Gen III.

 

Suppose you decide to work on your car on a Saturday morning. The car was last driven Friday evening when you drove from your office to your home, and the car has just been parked since then.

All of the oil that is going to drain down from the various engine parts has dropped down to the crankcase area, over the 12+ hour period from Friday evening to Saturday morning.

Now if you can raise up the car and remove the engine oil drain plug without needing to start the engine, all of that oil will drain into your drain pan.

The only possible issue is that the oil film clinging to the drain pan surfaces may take a bit longer to drip down than if the engine was at operating temperature. However this is really minor.

If you want to get every last ounce of old oil out of the car, then you should lower the right side (passenger side) of the car after you've opened the drain plug, keeping the left side (driver's side) elevated. That will encourage more oil to drain into the drain pan.