Timing cover leak

I heard about tools to squeeze tubes of RTV but have never tried one. It might be too late for this job.

http://www.amazon.com/Valco-Cincinnati-Tube-Grip-Dispensing-Sealant/dp/B007IQ539C

 

Well this is what I'm thinking, absurdly specific bead diameter and location, and THEN this all has to be snaked down the side of the engine and pressed into place, near blindly??

If it was a minor leak I'd be strongly inclined to just leave it.

 

All true unless you are doing the head gasket and need to do it.

Winston’s the man.

 

Ah yeah.

 

I'm currently having this issue fixed at the dealership here in Raleigh, NC, cost is $1200 and extended warranty has just expired. Does anyone know if there is a TSB for this repair, seems to be a major problem with these cars, based on the number of replies I've seen here. If there isn't one, then maybe we need to file a complaint with NHTSA to have this looked at for a recall. Any help would be appreciated, would really like to have Toyota pay for this fix.

 

$1200 is actually a good price, well at least comparing to the $1700~2000's reported here. If it's just a bit of leakage from the timing cover, and it's minor: ignore it? At least for a year or two.

Have you seen it, how bad it is? I've not tried this myself, but I'd speculate if you raised the front right corner, took off the passenger side wheel, and the plastic shields at rear of wheel well, you could see the leakage, get a first hand idea of how much is leaking.

Valve covers are simlar, in that they'll start to weep a little oil; you don't have to leap on it. OTOH, they're easier to access, and it's a simple gasket replacement involved, not form-a-gasket in tight quarters.

 

I don't think the leak was that bad, haven't seen anything under the car at all. The service tech. sent me a couple of pictures of it and I really couldn't see much. He said I could drive it back to FL where I live now, but I checked with my mechanic down there and he said to get it fixed, that the price wasn't too bad and he wouldn't risk driving that far. I just wish they had found it sooner, extended warranty just ran out at 100K, car has 103K (mostly highway back & forth from FL to NC) on it now. I would expect some kind of leakage around 150-200K, but not this soon and others here seem to have the problem around 75K, that's way too soon. This seems to be an issue with the Prius, because the service tech mentioned that they see this a lot. I've never had the number of problems with a car that I have had with this one, at least most have been covered by TSBs or recalls. I joined this chat group when I was having the rough idle/engine knock problem, that was supposed to have been fixed, but I've experienced it again twice in the past year and will have to get that checked again. Anyone know of any updates for that TSB?

 

Thanks, I never knew this type of tool existed. It'll be much help trying to squeeze out thick RTV.

It's not that bad looking back.

I'm nothing without you guys helps from here. And got lucky with the timing chain off a few teeth and be able to correct it without major issue.

 

Would you be able to post some of those pics? Just curious. Thanks.

 

Below are copies of the pics the tech sent me from his iPhone, not sure if you can really see much. I've already had it fixed, but still intend to file a complaint with the NHTSA about the issue:

 

Sorry about all the attachments, they didn't show as being attached when I replied, that's why I copy/pasted into the message.

 

Pretty clean? Their cash cow?

I mean you can see there's a little leakage, attracting dirt, but minor.

 

Thanks for posting the pic. It does not look bad at all and it's on the firewall/exhaust side of the engine. Maybe it's not from timing chain cover but from the valve cover where valve cover/head/timing cover meet or some oil from filler hole from up above? I don't know how they can charge that much with straight face. Maybe I can become Prius mechanic and make a fortune with all those head gasket, EGR, etc. issues.

 

Just took my 2012 Prius C in to the dealership today for routine 45K mi service and the tech found a timing cover oil leak. Quoted $1700 repair. I bought this car brand new, never missed a scheduled service, even for a tire rotation. Most of the posts I have been reading here about this issue have occurred at 75K mi and above. Can’t believe I am having this problem at only 45000 mi. Very P.O.’ed and extremely disappointed with Toyota. I purchased this car in large part because of Toyota’s reputation for dependability and durability. What really makes this such a bitter pill to swallow is the fact that I only have a few payments left on the car, and the repair costs more than my payoff. Although the mileage is well within the warranty, it is out of warranty based on the years I have owned it.The service manager filed a request with Toyota to see if I can get some goodwill assistance with the repair costs, but I’m not holding my breath.
Luckily, it appears to just be seepage at this point, I haven’t seen any fluids on my driveway, although until now I haven’t paid attention. Just have to keep a close watch on it. Probably gonna bite the bullet and get the repair, if I don’t, every time I use my car I will be stressing about it.
I was surprised to see so many Toyota owners with this problem. If anyone has an idea about how to get Toyota to pay up, I am willing to sign off.

 

Check your engine warranty, it's 6 yrs or 60,000 miles, whichever comes first. It includes all seals. That's what I got mine repaired under after I printed out the warranty off the online pdf file and showed it to them.

In your case, you can get them to reimburse you.

Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.

 

Thanks, I will check that out.

 

If you don't get any help from Toyota, sleep on it before going ahead with the resealing job. Maybe pull the wheel and check for yourself how significant the leakage is.

This is semi-major surgery, in tight quarters, unlike the clean, engine out of the car conditions at the factory, AND not cheap.

A minor leak, I would just live with it.

 

Both the headgasket replacement and the timing cover re-seals can be done without engine removal. But removing the engine will allow you to truly clean up the sealing surfaces correctly and place the beads of RTV in the correct areas. The 1.8L engine will come out from the top with the electric water pump removed, but dropping the subframe (and removing from the bottom) is easier and sometimes faster if you have access to a hydraulic table and a lift.

 

I wonder what the dealerships do? Might depend on the Service Manager's attitude.