first DIY oil change 2012 PIP

welcome to priuschat! no, everything is different. you can find everything you need on ebay or amazon. you may want to check places like walmart for good deals on synthetic. the procedure is the same though. all the best!

 

If you go to a dealership parts department and ask for the oil filter and drain washer they'll sort you out. They also sell oil, I've found the Toyota brand very reasonable price. You need a 14 face, 64mm inside face-to-face socket for the oil filter housing (torque is 18 ft/lb), and 14mm for the drain bolt (torque is 27 ft/lb). Oil capacity with filter drained/changed is 4.2 liters (4.4 us qt). Oil grade is 0W20.

 

okay, you might have me on the oil plug and gasket.

 

put 4 quarts in and check it before adding more. for some reason, a few people can't get the whole 4.4 in and end up overfilling.

 

I always find when I've just put in 4 liters, run the engine a bit, then checked the dipstick, it's markedly low. I'll put in additional .2 liters (this is now the same as 4.4 US qt), check the dipstick again: it's typically still maybe 3/8" below the top mark. At this point I leave it as-is, 'cause I know, a day or two later, it will miraculously be right at the top mark.

 

It is relatively tough to change the oil on a 2012 prius..

You have to lift the car up some way.

You have to have the special size oil filter remover. Do not buy a cheap one.

When you replace the o ring on the plastic cover for the oil filter, make sure it is in the right spot. Not where it was on the one before you remove it.

I can do an oil change in 10 minutes on a regular car, on a prius I plan for 30 minutes.
It is t

 

I suppose "tough" is in the eye of the beholder, but the required intervals of the different maintenance requirements allow me to combine services so that I end up working on the car for a couple of hours once a year in nice weather

1. Oil change
2. Partial 1 gallon Engine coolant exchange
3. Tyres rotation
4. Underneath inspection
5. CV boots cleaning and silicone spray

In summary: Some 2 -3 hours and ~ $30 - $40 once a year. I'm good.

 

Currently, WalMart has 0w20 five quarts of Mobil 1 for $22.66 a bottle. That's a good deal.

 

Sagebrush, what are you doing with the coolant again? Basting out and refilling the reservoir? My engine circuit reservoir is down to the low mark (inverter circuit a bit better) and I'm trying to figure out what to do with the gallon you have to buy, just to remedy the those levels.

 

Mendel,
I drain (from below, using the stopcock) and replace (from above) one gallon without letting air into the circuit. I use the Lisle funnel attached to the radiator, but I don't know any good reason why the reservoir would not serve the same purpose as the Lisle. EdtheFox would be a good person to ask.

It has become a couple minute job every 10k miles. I have seen argument on PC whether it is wise to leave behind an aging, albeit in decreasing quantities, amount of coolant through the years but my opinion is that the Toyota recc of first replacement at 100k miles and then every 50k miles thereafter rather than a 'flush' is convincing evidence that old coolant stays behind using the 'proper' Toyota way and is not a problem.

 

I always changed the oil on my cars before I bought a Prius. It is just too much trouble for me and besides the problems you mentioned, you have to remove the splash cover underneath the car. Only have to change the oil every 10,000 miles. I have Toyota do it.

 

If I reach your age I might do the same.

 

^ The plastic cover covers the whole engine bay underside. It's got maybe 12 push-in fasteners, and at least a couple of 10mm (socket size) bolts, near the front. You can quick-access the drain plug and filter by just removing 2 fasteners and and bending down a small flap portion, at a "hinge". Trouble is, the hinge will start to crack after repeated bending, it is not very flexible.

I prefer to take the whole thing off. There's two fasteners (the ones near the flap) that are larger, in my case they are grey colored (the rest are black). It's worth marking them somehow, make sure they're not mixed up. I believe there's actually some variation in the remaining fasteners, but it's subtle enough that you can mix them.

I'm using a Honda filter wrench, it's a perfect match. If you google "Prius oil filter wrench" you can find them online. Or check with your dealership parts department. (Honda parts dept's have a wrench that'll work too)

 

Your first paragraph sounds very familiar, you explained all this to me before. Thanks for going through it again, sorry for my memory lapse.

 

This one works;

If you go to the auto parts store, just make sure that you get one that is 65mm with 14 flats. I saw one made by Great Neck OEM at O'Reilly's. It was selling at $9.99.

Any one made with two steps is too deep and won't work.