101k now / Never done any maintenence, now i'm getting poor mpg. What do I do?

you're really just in time for the first major service, check your owners manual.

 

At a minimum:
Replace engine oil and oil filter
Rotate tires
Replace engine and inverter coolant
Visually inspect brake linings/drums and brake pads/discs

Replacing the coolants may be pricey, but they are old now. After this, every 50,000 miles.

I would be very suspicious of your 12v battery, it may well be 4 years old or more, and in my experience 4 years is old for any 12v car battery. Some symptoms of a dying battery include constant charging, (reduced MPG) odd 'Codes' from the computers, and forgetting settings like door locks and beeping.

eLearnAid has a battery conversion that my interest you.

12 Volt (12v) Toyota Prius Auxilary Battery for 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010 with installation kit

 

Hi All,

Old Spark Plugs are a common source of poor mileage in cars. Less so now with modern electronic engine controls, but still, 100K miles on plugs is going to be it.

Also, have the throttle body mechanism and mass flow sensor cleaned.

And a bottle of fuel injector cleaner is probably a good idea too.

If all the stuff mentioned does not do it, then maybe a look into the exhaust system components.

 

I would first check the 12V battery as well.

Some posters had bad experience with fuel injector cleaners. I would not risk it.

 

Here are the items I would check:

1. Tire pressure
2. Wheel alignment
3. Parking brake drag, raise up the rear of the car and see if you can easily spin the rear tires when the parking brake is off
4. 12V battery becoming marginal
5. Clean throttle body, throttle plate, and MAF sensor
6. Replace iridium spark plugs now, rather than waiting for 120K miles

Although the following items will not negatively impact fuel economy, they are due now:

7. Engine and inverter/transaxle coolant replacement
8. Transaxle fluid replacement
9. PCV valve replacement
10. Serpentine belt replacement

 

Check the battery with the built-in procedure (including a load test) given here:
http://priuschat.com/forums/newbie-forum/73400-weird-stuff-happening-mpgs-dropping-test-battery.html

If you've been using gas containing ethanol then the injectors have already been getting all the cleaner they need.

 

I bought an S13 in 92 brand new. 4 speed. Loved that car. Had it for 14 years. Sold it to a kid who was into drifting. Never should have sold it but it needed to much chassis and interior work. Bushings....There's a huge 240 2.0 group in town here. You can't beat a 12 second 240SX right?
Been to Freshalloy.com?
I lived there for years. So many tuners there use Redline Trans lube.
I'm running Redline D6 in my 07' Prius trans . Runs great. Almost at 22,000 miles on that fluid. Your way overdue on the trans change.
Try it.

 

eLearnAid is a good source for the battery, if it is dying.
12 Volt (12v) Toyota Prius Auxilary Battery for 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010 with installation kit
I would go to a Toyota dealer to get the fluids. I bet any auto parts store will have belts and plugs, if you want to do it yourself.

Quote from http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-...70-what-services-you-need-what-you-don-t.html

"3. transaxle fluid
there is no way to "flush" the trans on a prius. if someone tries to sell you this, run. they can drain and fill, however. the fluid is expensive and is supposed to go 100k, but you can never go wrong changing it early. in most cases it isn't necessary. this is the same fluid that goes into a tundra for 100k under towing conditions. the only complication you might see is again due to tech error- using the wrong fluid or not filling all the way.

4. engine and inverter fluid
drain/fill is OK, but NO flushes. it's not even possible on the inverter and the engine is difficult but not impossible, however NOT recommended as it can cause serious damage to the electric water pump and switching valves. you do not need the drain/fill until your car hits 100k. if the coolant is still nice and pink, don't do it then either. again, the coolant is said to go 100k. while you're not going to do any wrong by changing it early, again it is expensive like the trans fluid. possible complications include more tech error- bleeding these systems is a PITA and getting all the air out is hard. an incomplete fill, use of the wrong coolant, can damage your car."

 

Regarding the 12V battery, Toyota SLLC, and Toyota ATF WS, you may want to call your local Toyota dealer parts dept to find out their pricing. MSRP is $139 on the battery. SLLC is ~$20 per US gallon, you'll need 3 gallons. ATF WS is ~$9 per US quart, you'll need 4 quarts.

Regarding the serpentine belt and iridium spark plugs, there are a number of Toyota dealers that sell parts over the web at 25% discount from MSRP. For example, Champion Toyota Parts - Toyota World, Genuine Toyota Parts, TRD Supercharger, Toyota Venza Parts, Toyota Parts, Toyota Accessories, Discounts on Toyota Parts

The belt is ~$20 and the spark plugs are ~$10 each.

 

If you don't use Toyota Prius ATF you may damage the electric motor/generator windings which are exposed to the fluid. Others may be safe, but why risk a $2000 trans-axle replacement to save $10?

 

470whp and in the 10's is crazy fast. Thats with the Supra 3.0? Thats awesome. I really like the looks of the S14 too. Thats the hot set up on some Lexus's too. I've seen a bunch of Lexus SC300's on You Tube with the same set up. Unreal horsepower.

Here's the link: Red Line Synthetic Oil - Automatic Transmission Fluids - D6 ATF

Need a gallon. 3.8 qrts to be exact.

My 07 runs great on it.

 

I would go with Toyota ATF unless Redline can prove that their ATF is safe with the electric motor windings in Prius hybrid transaxle.

 

I don't think we're going to easily resolve the issue of electrical properties of WS vs another ATF

Consider that WS is used across the board in Toyota automatic transmissions. That means it must have an additive package that allows the torque converter to operate without shudder, the clutches to engage smoothly without slipping or harsh engagement, etc

Typically, a pure electrical oil, like those found in transformers, would NOT be appropriate in an automatic transmission. Or, if you refilled an industrial transformer with WS, there would probably be fireworks once you threw the switch

There are a few folks on this forum who have chosen to not run WS in their Prius. Until we see evidence of failures, it's probably safe to say its ok to run a different oil. All depends on how long we are willing to wait for these failures to pop up: a year, 5 years, 15 etc

 

Many posters here are running many different brand trans flluids. Even Walmart offers a compatible WS fluid. Yikes....

I am a Redline gear oil fan. They make an excellent GL-4 lubricant. Full synthetic. Been using it for years and years.There MT90 fixed my second gear snick on my S13 too. Its the shit.
In my 07 prius I'm going on almost 2 1/2 years on my D6 fill. D6 is full synthetic. Trans runs great. Smooth smooth. Our CVT's are not that persnickety. There a chain drive planetary gearbox. Just a big well engineered gear box. Keep high quality clean gear lube in it and it will outlast you.

BTW, Toyota's recommended CVT fill is 100K. Poster after poster report black fluid at 100K. With no problems.

Try a D6 fill and tell me you don't hear and feel a difference. I wouldn't lead an S13 brother wrong. I intend to change the trans fluid every 30,000 miles. Its cheap and easy. A gallon of Redline is what $40 + ship?

Soon as I buy a car its Mobil One in the motor and Redline in the trans and rear. Most of my new cars have never seen a dealer lift throughout there life. I intend to keep it that way with my Prius.
Only time my 27,000 mile Prius has seen a dealer is when it drives me there to buy an oil filter. Then I get the hell out of there.....

 

Funny you mentioned that. When I got my '07 FJ, brand new, early reports of rear end problems had already come out. Back then, Toyota had this really weird gear oil recommendation for the rear axle

They wanted you to use a straight SAE 90 GL-5 in the rear end, but only if the temps were above 0 F. No doubt, trying to use a straight SAE 90 in winter, the oil will turn solid and you'll destroy the pinion bearing, pinion gear, and cause rapid axle destruction

Makes me wonder about all those early FJ's shipped from Japan with SAE 90 in the rear axles - perhaps that alone explains the rear axle problems, that and poor quality R&P sets

So, with about 1,200 km on my FJ, I drained all the gear oil, The rear axle oil was already BLACK, that was highly unusual and very unexpected. I refilled with a commercial heavy duty gear oil I trust

Mobil Delvac Synthetic Gear Oil 75W-90, 80W-140

What surprised me was the vehicle became much quieter. What I assumed to be exhaust resonance from the rear, was actually a growl from the rear axle. Even gained 1 mpg, not a huge difference but a difference

Toyota officially poo-poo'd the idea of running synthetic in the axles. Some FJ owners even received snotty letters from their dealership AND from Toyota warning them that their powertrain warranty was void because they admitted to running a synthetic gear oil. That the synthetic gear oil wasn't "thick" enough

Then, in late 2007, Toyota issued a TSB for the FJ and 4Runner. Effective the date of the TSB, November 8 2007 (TSB DL003-07), all FJ's and 4Runners were factory filled with a special Toyota synthetic 75W-85

So, the new factory fill and dealership synthetic gear oil is quite a bit thinner than the old recommended straight 90 gear oil, and a bit thinner than normal 75W-90 synthetic gear oil. And that appears to have resolved most of the axle failure problems

Which is something us FJ owners sort of realized when we heard noises from our rear ends, and discovered thick, black, sludgy gear oil in there from the factory