Oil Overfill - Three Times Now

They either didn't drain it completely, or didn't change the filter, or put in four quarts.

Tell the next oil changer to use three (3) full quarts, no more and no less. If they do everything correctly that will put the level halfway between ADD and FULL, which is exactly what is required.

 

Howdy,

I personally take three quarts of oil to the dealer when I have them change the oil (Mobil 1). The dipstick indicates low but not alarmingly so. When I get home (about ten miles from the dealer) the first thing I do is top the oil off. No fuss no muss. The Prius service writer has no problem with this process.

 

I have done all my own oil changes for some time now. The only time that I have used the dealer for regular maintenance is the 15k check which involves more stuff and figured it was worth it to keep my warrantee valid. I've install the Fumoto F-103 drain plug replacement --> one less wrench I have to pull out. It is also great for those overfills because it allows one to drain off small amounts easily and neatly. Recently, the company sent me an e-mail for a 15% discount on the part through the end of December. Below is the text of the e-mail for anyone who is interested.


Dear Valued Customer

Thanks for your interest in Fumoto Engine Oil Drain Valve.
If you have already purchased one, we are sure you have
enjoyed using it for Quick, Easy and Clean Oil Changes.

YM International Co., Authorized online retailer of Fumoto
Engine Oil Drain Valve, wishes to provide you and your friends
with a SPECIAL 15% DISCOUNT OFFER to thank you for your supporting
our business and celebrate the Holiday Season.

Using Expiration: 12/31/04

Thank you for your business and happy oil changing!

Best Regards,

Yoshi Mizukami
GM- YM International Co.

P.S. Please take this oppotunity to send this unique product
as a gift to your families and friends. They will be glad you did!!

 

All this talk about overfilling made me check the oil on our brand new (500 miles) Prius. Turns out that even straight out of the factory it is still about 1/4" above full. I guess I need to get under this car sooner than expected.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(enerjazz\";p=\"53264)</div>

If they didn't mess with the pressures, but rotated the tires . . . you now have 2 PSI more in the rear than front tires . . . not good!

 

I watched my local Toyota dealer tech, their Prius-certified tech, change my oil. He drained the oil and removed the filter, then put a new gasket on the drain plug and put that back on, along with a new filter.

Once the car was on the floor, he put in exactly 3 litres of oil, powered on, waited for the motor to start, and checked for leaks. He THEN took a long coffee break, returned, and carefully added half a litre more while checking the dipstick.

I'd guess most shops would just dump in 4-5 litres and send you on your merry way.

 

I took my Prius in to theToyota dealer to have its 5000 mile oil change and they overfilled it. I checked the oil just before going to the dealership and it was overfull. It must have been delivered overfull. If I hadn't been watching this forum I wouldn't have even checked. Thanks

 

For the record: Champion Toyota in Austin DID check the tire pressure (and reset it to factory levels), and DIDN'T overfill the oil...

 

For the record, I just had mine changed at Carson, CA Toyota and they overfilled mine (even said 4 qts. on the invoice).

I didn't discover this until a couple of days later when I noticed my mileage was 7-8 miles below normal and the engine seemed to labor at freeway speeds.

So I took it to Hollywood Toyota (closer to me) and asked them to drain a half a quart. They said they couldn't just drain a measured amount, but said that they could drain it all then refill it.

They charged me for a full oil change (but didn't change the filter) and still ended up overfilling it (though only by a smidge) - probably because they didn't account for the amount of oil that would be left in the filter.

Suffice to say I'm miffed that no one can seem to get this right. I will say that my mileage is back up to normal (50 mpg). It's not like the Prius is still a novelty car - while I was sitting there waiting I saw one Prius leaving the service bay and another come in - they seem as common as Camrys!

 

For the record: Halterman's Toyota in East Stroudsburg, Pa. has never overfilled my oil, in fact the first time i brought it in, the prius mechanic told me how important it was not to overfill it.

 

8)


http://www.alldata.com/tsb/Toyota/11035296...G050-04/50.html

Print and keep a copy with your vehicle. Show it to them when you go for your oil change.

Ben

 

Question for everyone: the manual and TSB clearly state that 3.9 US quarts (3.7 litres) should be added when the oil is changed. Yet the posts here recommend using only 3 (US?) quarts or 3 litres.

What is the rationale behind this? After draining the pan and replacing the filter, is there really nearly a full quart of oil left in the coolant system? Or did Toyota overstate the fill capacity?

-Steven

 

If you change the oil and filter, 3 litres will put the level around halfway between Add and Full on the stick. That appears to be an excellent compromise.

About the only problem is that a lot of folks in North America have been raised on "more is better" and think that even an *over* full is better. Anything from Add to Full is a *safe* operating range.

Having the level too full can be just as bad, if not far worse, than too low.

 

So I have a question. At 5k I called the local dealer (got my car elsewhere) to get the service done and the person I spoke with said "bring it in any time to our quick oil change service". I said that I thought the book said to have a tire rotation. And I was told that they did not recommend that on 04 just on the earlier Prii as "they had tire problems". Long and short I took it to my usual mechanic. I need to have the nav upgrade so I called the dealer and set it up with the 10k. The question is this should I take 4 quarts in or pour a bit out and take 3.9 (or 3.8) or what? I guess I am asking should I test them?

 

Now that's goofy. You wrote 3.8 and the stupid software renders it as 3 point smiley-face-with-shades.

 

Well I did it. I did leave a major hint when I left the 4 Qt. of Mobile 1 that they could leave the extra oil in one of the bottles in the back. They left about 300 cc of oil and the fill was 1/4" below the full mark. They rotated the tires. I am sure of that because the rear was now 42 and front 40 psi. Oh well. I don't think they had the Prius Master Tech on the job so I called them on it and got it fixed. I got the Nav up grade as well. So the dealer is batting .500

 

Seems to me, if you left them 4 U.S. quarts and they left behind 300 ml, with the level just touching Full, it would be entirely safe to just leave them 3 U.S. quarts.

I bought several cases of Mobil 1 0W-30 last time I was in Minneapolis, and I have an oil change coming up sometime end of March. I'll change it myself at the hobby farm and report back what the level is with only 3 U.S. quarts.