Red Triangle Warning Light and NO OIL after 5000 mi service!

looks like they forgot to add the oil or added insufficient oil.

Call the dealership and tell them to send a tow truck.

...If they forgot the oil...tell them that you want a new car...if they resist, call you lawyer.

 

Perhaps they did not tighten the oil filter sufficiently. If it's loose, tighten it by hand, add oil and take the car to the dealer for a check-up. Also, make sure that you have a drain plug.

 

Geez, if there's that little oil in it you really don't want to drive it at all. Zero, zilch, zip. Don't even start it. Tow it somewhere, or try adding oil yourself and see where it comes out.

 

Re: Red Triangle Warning Light and NO OIL after 5000 mi serv

DO NOT DRIVE THAT CAR!

CALL PRIUS ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE AND HAVE IT FLAT-BEDDED TO THE DEALERSHIP.

(I hope you heard me!)

877-304-6495 is the # for emergency roadside asst.

 

One step at a time. Let us know what happens on Monday.

 

hmmm you drove the car 2 weeks without problems? did you take a long trip or something. your post suggests that you drove 5000 miles in a month and ½?

i hope everything goes well for you. since the ICE only runs part time, its possible it was low and you didnt notice since the engine doesnt make a lot of noise under any circumstances. but low oil like that will greatly increase the wear and very well could shorten the life of your engine.

unfortunately, your engine would most likely have to be torn down to find out which is a risk in itself. i have always suspected that the ICE in the Prius would last much longer than a normal engine as evidenced by a Vancouver taxi company that has been using Priuses since 2000 and has a few with over 250,000 miles on them still going strong.

let us know how everything goes... we are praying for you.

 

The first thing to do is make a movie of the Toyota tech draining the remaining oil out of the engine. Any less than 1 liter and I'd be talking to a lawyer. If it's 2 liters I'd suspect that the motor has a low oil sender that triggers the MIL and Triangle. If 2 liters to 3 liters I doubt any damage. The dipstick probably won't register any less than about 2 liters. Get the dealer to pull the code that triggered the MIL and Triangle, that should provide a bit of information. I doubt that Toyota would honour the warranty, and you will be dealing with the actual dealer who did the service. Sorry.

 

Toyota will blame the dealer and say they are not responsible for their damage. So your actions will be against the dealers insurance company. To prove fault you will have to document all your actions. Thus the movie of the reamaing oil in the engine. If your the least bit mechanical take a metal coat hanger and cut it off at the top and straighten it out and insert it in the dipstick tube and see how much oil is in there. Put a mark or a piece of tap at the top of the tube so you have a reference point to compare it to the dipstick and see how much oil remains in the engine, mark to oil and relate it to the dipstick. With your "dipstick" on the bottom of the oil pan and your dipstick to make a reference to the roughly 4 liters, capacity of the engine, should get a good idea of how much oil is in there.

 

Toyota warrants the car against defects. They do not warrant it against negligence. If the dealer indeed failed to add enough oil, it was negligence, and the dealer's responsibility, not Toyota's. Since there is no oil in your garage, and presumably no oil (from spillage) in the engine compartment, it sure sounds like they neglected to add oil.

I think you would be entirely within your rights to have any further work/investigation done by a dealer of your choice. I don't think there is any need to go back to the offending dealer.

The best of luck to you.

 

Be compulsive, very compulsive. Document everything. Keep records. Put them in a file. Pictures with dates imprinted on them. Film is better than digital. Please remember this. Vidieo needs to be documented and witnessing by several people they kept by a totally independent party, a lawyer but not your lawyer. This lawyer will server as a trustee of the documentation. Video and digital pictures can be seamlessly altered by computers and therefore are suspect. That is why the chain of evidence by independent third parties must be maintained. Good luck.

 

One possibility (from personal expericence) is a double oil filter gasket. For years I changed my own oil. One time I didn't notice that the old gasket hadn't come off with the filter. Ran fine for several weeks, then for whatever reason, the seal between the gaskets failed. Oil light on! Stopped the car, added oil and noticed it coming out the bottom. Dark and late so I had it towed to a service station where they found the problem the next day.

 

I'm still a little confused as to why you were able to drive 1200 miles until the MIL came on. I worked in the service department at a VW dealership this summer, and saw a customer drive his Passat out to the street and then reverse back to the service drive immediately... the technician simply put NO oil in the car! It was apparant within less than a minute there was a bad problem. So the case you are trying to prove may be harder than you think. How can you prove that the dealers actions caused the oil to dissipate over time? (it wasn't leaking in your garage). Don't get me wrong, it's obvious that probably the dealer did something wrong, but I am flummoxed as to how you would lose all of your oil without an apparant leak.

Dr. Fusco said that the whole documentation process seemed to be overkill, but when dealing with insurance companies and lawyers, it's unfortunately what you need to do. (I even keep my camera in the glove in case of an accident. ) Also, if your engine has been damaged by the dealer's actions, don't take anything less than a new engine or if you must, a new Prius. Best of luck to you