Too much oil = DOA

They put 4 quarts even though the manual says 3.9?
Looks like .1 quart too much already. Perhaps you can complain to the place that changed your oil.

The capacity of the engine 3.9 quarts - if every last drop of oil is drained out. If they didn't drain out every last drop of oil, then they shouldn't have put so much in right?

 

Well my opinion is.

It's a lesson learned, relatively cheaply, live with it. It's your car and you should accept the responsibility for it. Just because someone wears a boiler suit doesn't mean they know what they are doing.

Some occupations you have to trust from their supposed qualifications like doctors, dentists, presidents and so on because you really have no choice but for something as simple as this you have no need to trust anyone, take responsibility for your own actions and be thankful it didn't terminate the car.

Life generally would be a lot easier if everyone were not scared to death of doing something wrong and getting sued for it. Macdonalds coffee is hot.

What you learned:
Check (change) your own oil.
Don't use the same company again.

 

4 quarts won't cause the problem you experienced. However, since the problems seemed to surface with the extreme cold weather, I suspect they put the wrong weight oil in during the Jiffy Lube change.

 

What I do is, I buy a four liter canister of Mobil1 0W-30, remove so much that there is exactly 3.3 liters (3.5 quarts) in the canister, and when I bring the car in for service every fifteen to twenty thousand kilometers, I give them the pre-measured canister and a written note that says to refill only with the contents of the canister, and no more.

 

I have to agree with firepa63. Last year I had 4 litres of oil in the car and had no problems. I'm sure our winters are at least as cold as yours. Currently I have about 3.5 litres of oil in the car (and just about due for an oil change - brrrr). I use 5W30 Mobil 1. That -may- be the difference. I don't understand why the engine wouldn't start though. Even with too heavy or too much oil it should start, just roughly. Only when you put in more than 5-6 qts should there be big problems. The Prius engine is just fine with 4 qts. in my experience.

 

Hi Jim...,

This sounds like your car has the old software that had a sensitivty to the engine not firing on the first try. My guess is the extra oil is leaving a film on the cylinders and plug when the car shuts down, or is run in a glide and then stopped. The original 2005 software would trip a code and shut down the car if the engine did not fire on the first attempt to start after a glide.

Did you have your car reflashed with the up to date code ever? There was a service campaign regarding this.

The problem is that not all of the oil can be drained out of a car. So even if the dry fill is 3.9 qts (3.7 liters), you still have around 1/4 to 1/2 a quart in the car after draining and replacement with an empty oil-filter. When I do my oil changes, I refill to 1/8 inch below the max level stick mark, and that takes about 3.5 quarts. If somebody does a oil change and puts in 4 fresh quarter, the true volume of oil will be closer to 4.5 quarts. This is not a problem in a V8, but it is in an engine less than 1/3 the displacement.

 

I believe I always put in 3 qts, which brings the level up to 1/2 way on the dipstick. Thats good enough! I wonder as Evan say's they use a production type nozzle for oil filling that is somewhat inaccurate plus the old oil, left in the pan ( because they do not take time to do it properly) Doing it yourself is the only logic. Anyway, there is nothing like having the warm oil run down your arm while unscrewing the filter, heaven.:rockon:

 

Why hasn't Toyota corrected their service manual after more than four years?

It's sad that this is necessary, but one can avoid this problem by providing the recommended oil yourself, *three* quarts only, and always checking the level before driving away.

 

Indeed, all the lube places (and the dealers) will get it wrong if they follow Toyota's published guidelines.

This is Toyota's failure.

 

there was probably more than 4qts in there to cause that much trouble.

 

If Toyota didn't recommend putting in too much oil to begin with, then there would be some margin. Toyota should be targeting the center of a fill range, not slightly over the maximum. Toyota's already telling folks to put in at least an extra half quart (probably closer to a full extra quart.) As a result any overfill errors (dispenser problems, bottle count, etc.) will put the fill in a dangerous range.

This is an example of setting folks up to fail. Toyota has published erroneous information for dealers and customers. Consumers and dealers need to be better informed when it comes to oil anyway, regardless of this problem. Some consumers are going to feel they've been cheated if the oil isn't at or slightly above the "full" mark. (But that's a problem for the dealer as a better informed consumer is likely to change his/her own oil and double the interval between changes.) They really need a "full" mark as a target lower on the stick and leave the present mark as an "overfilled" mark.

Of course, most importantly, whoever does the oil change should be checking the level when they are done. And the customer should always double check, regardless of whether the dealer or a lube place changes the oil. Relying on others to get it right often leads to trouble. Treat it like you would a drive-thru fast food order. If you don't check it, there is a fair probability it is wrong. If you do check it and it is wrong, things are straightened out quickly.

 

Write a detailed, non-ranting letter to Toyota explaining the problem and their role in creating it. Attach copies of receipts, etc. You might get reimbursed for half (or more.)

 

When I got our Prius, fuel economy was aweful for the first few hundred miles. We couldn't get better than 40 MPG. The dip stick showed the oil level was full. I removed 1/2 qt which brought it to half way between low and high resulting in an instant fuel economy increase of 10 MPG.

When I change my oil, I do a complete drain and add exactly 3 qts which brings the level up to the half way mark. Any more than that and the crank shaft spins in the oil causing drag and poor fuel economy.

 

the oil level does not reach the crankshaft, oil circulates to the head and the level drops while the engine is running.

 

Oil had better reach the crankshaft or the connecting rod bearings would be toast but the oil that reaches them comes from squirters. On the Prius, if the oil level is past the middle mark, the off center con rod bearing journals dip into the oil in the oil pan. This is why fuel economy on the Prius suffers significantly when the oil level is to the full mark. It's also probably why new prius owners complain about fuel economy for the first 5000 miles because that's when the the factory fill, which is too high, is usually corrected.

 

i said the oil LEVEL, i didn't imply in any way that oil was not reaching the crank.

how do you determine that this all happens in the first place, and specifically at any level more than halfway up the range on the dipstick?