measured the oil overfill

First experience

Our Salsa Red had its first oil change Friday and I checked the oil level per your recommendation and others on the board. Happily, it was just where it was supposed to be even though it was hard to see because the oil is so clear.

It gave me confidence that a dealer that keeps the small things in specs will also have more of a tendency to do the big things correctly. Only time will tell, but a good start.

Raymond

 

Oil level

At my first oil change, I instructed the write up man to put in synthetic and save the bottle with the surplus. They gave me back a quart bottle with about 3/4th of the oil remaining in bottle. I think they got it right.

 

I went to the dealer for the first oil change. I was armed with oil fill information from this board, but before I could warn him about overfilling, he informed me how critical oil level in the car was. Maybe a bit of an exaggeration but he said "you don't want to overfill it by even a thimblefull". Good to know he was informed. And yes, it was properly filled, plus or minus a thimble's worth.

 

What is the capacity at the "low" mark? It would be convenient to be able to hand the service guys three full quart bottles of lube and then top it off one's self.

 

I finally decided the oil level was too high and took it to one of the local toyota dealers. He took a look, agreed that it was about a 1/4" above the high point, but said it wasn't a big deal. Having heard all the warnings I called a second dealer's service dept. and told them the condition. They asked if the engine warning light was on (which it isn't) and they too said it was fine.

So now my skepticism leaves me in a quandary. Can someone elaborate on why it's so bad (or for that matter, how bad it really is)? Are my local dealers just being lazy (which wouldn't shock me)? Am I endangering my nice new Prius by driving it this way?

 

Don't you think it's silly to design an engine with 3.9 guarts oil capacity? Most mechanics are simply going to put in four quars.

 

I have been to Champion and Maund in Austin and I think that if you spend a few days on this site you will know more about the Prius than anyone at either of those dealerships. It's scary how uninformed they are. I knew more about my car before I bought it than the dealer that sold it to me or anyone who has touched it since. I bought 1/8" clear tubing about 6' long and ran it down the dipstick tube. I siphoned out enough to fill a 16 oz. dasani bottle and that got it just below the full mark. I worried about melting or disolving the tubing but had no problems. I let the engine cool first and it took a long time to do the siphon with that small tube. I just read a book and glanced at it occasionally. This was much easier than pulling the plug out to drain a pint.

 

Very smart.....but I have to admit.....
WHAT A PAIN IN THE A$$.
[Broken External Image]:http://jm.g.free.fr/smileys/rant.sml.gif

 

I understand the question about whether "we" are being too picky, however why shouldn't we want to do the best for the environment and our cars?

After a few experiences re adjusting the oil level in my Prius, I think the service people at dealerships probably just might not understand why anyone would be so picky.

However, my car seems to have improved its MPG after my requests, even though I have felt like my reasons were not really understood by the service departments.

My car came with 10W oil, which Toyota says is ok if it's your only option but that it should be replaced at the next oil change with 5W. I made sure to bring my own oil for the 5000 mile change, and my mileage has improved since.

I brought my own oil & asked them to put in only 3.9 quarts, but afterwards I found the oil level to be about 1/4 to 1/8 inch over the full line, so I took it back & asked them to remove some; well now it's still a hair line over the full line, which is not really what I wanted, but I figure that I might (& might not) wait until the next oil change to rectify this. I am starting to get the feeling that service people might be afraid to fill the oil less than the full line? My plan for next time is to bring them only 3.5 quarts of oil & say this is all I want you to put in.

 

Fortunately my Dealer seems to be on top of it. They gave me a free 1K Oil change when I bought the car, and when I brought it in, I started to caution them about overfill and not putting in a full 4 Quarts.

They said - We know, actually, the best thing to do is put in 3.5 Quarts to start with, that usually is about right.

 

The oil won't be corrosive What you did is what most people with inboard engines (at least sail boats, I don't know powerboats) HAVE to do to change their oil. No way to get under the engine. There are lots of oil change kits from fancy to pretty plain. Mine is a little 12V handheld thing with alligator clips for the battery terminals. Or find a friend with an inboard engine on their boat. If you let them drive your car, they'll likely let you use their pump ;-)

 

An update on my situation. I finally called Toyota and was eventually connected to their customer experience line (1-800-331-4331) to enquire/complain about the oil situation and the dealer reactions. At first, the rep also thought the overfill wouldn't be a problem, but put me on hold to check. At this point I was prepared to get irritated if she came back and said it wasn't a problem and complain that if it wasn't such a big deal, they shouldn't have included a scary warning box in my manual that said I could damage the hybrid system.

Much to my relief, though, she came back and asked me some more questions, about where I had bought the car and which local dealer I had contacted. She indicated that the selling dealer should have checked the oil before delivery (as I already knew), so the only issue was to work out how to charge any work performed at my local dealer to the original selling dealer. She said I should be contacted in 3 business days by the local dealer to get things taken care of.

Before I hung up I also indicated that I knew of other Prius owners having trouble with oil being overfilled by their dealers both at purchase time and after oil service. She apologized and repeated that they would emphasize this to the dealers I had encountered.

I would encourage anyone else who has had problem with overfilling (even if you've already taken care of it some other way) to call the number and let Toyota know that this is not a limited occurence but seems to be happening regularly and at numerous dealers. Maybe it will give Toyota enough incentive to proactively contact dealers to re-emphasize the oil overfill issue.

 

I think I have been dealt an overfill, I called the dealer and they said they put 4 quarts in. I have had a 10mpg hit on my mileage from 57 to 47. Is there any threat to hurt my vehicle? Also should I go back to the dealer and have them drain some oil. What should I look for on the dip stick? Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Peace,

Fr. Bill

 

Not sure about the damage being done but my 03 Classic was overfilled upon purchase. I drove it for month before I took it back and had them drain off the excess oil when I was made aware of the proper fill level.

To add insult to injury, on my first oil change a month later (Yes, I drive 5K a month) they overfilled it once again! They insist that 1/4 inch above the max is the factory recomended fill. I asked them to please check the owners manual for the the correct info. They said they did not have one of those???? I said you can look at mine in my glove box. They changed their tune real quick and promptly returned my car to the service bay to drain the oil. Needless to say, I have 2 more Dealer oil changes left. Upon checking in the car for the oil changes, I am informing the service writer that I want to visually inspect the level before it leaves the service bay. I hate having a dealer do something I have done myself for years and cant wait until I have used my free oil change coupons.

 

There's no need to fill the thing exactly to the "FULL" line. As stated in the manual the capacity at the "ADD" mark is 2.3 quarts (including the filter), so either
1. tell them to put in exactly 3 quarts
or
2. give them three quart bottles of your own oil to use,
and then check it before you drive away, and all will be well.

 

Just had my 5000 mile service at Fremont Toyota. They also overfilled
the oil - to about 3/8 inch above the full dot. I had to remove 12 ounces
to bring it down to exactly on the full dot. Next time I'll make them
show me the correct level while still at the shop!

 

John,

How long did you wait after shutting the engine down, before you checked the oil level.?

Here's the reason I asked: I recently took our '04 Prius in for its 5K mile service. When I checked it after it sat overnight it showed about 3/8" over the full mark. I started it up, shut it down and rechecked it after about 5 minutes. It was then about 1/8" to 1/4" over the full mark. So I drained out about 6 oz to get it to show full. Now, if it's checked within a few minutes of shutdown, it shows slightly under the full mark. Seems OK to me.

CR