The FACTORY overfilled my oil!

I think maybe we're getting a little "too excited" about overfilling the oil. I don't think that little extra has much potential to cause problems. I think were talking problems when we get into the extra 1/2 quart range. PS but 42/40 in your tires you'll notice a little extra mpg and much better tire life.

 

My oil was overfilled from the factory also. Just a tad above the full mark.

I didn't do anything about it 'because I was going to change the oil at 1000 miles but ended up doing it at 1800 miles.

I figurred the only harm the overfill could do (per other posts I've read) is give me worse gas milage, therefore when I changed it I would only stand to gain.

Got about 4K on Misti now... looking forward to a boost in MPG when get around 10K, unfortunately that probably won't be until next spring...It would be nice to get that before or during the up coming winter when my milage will decline a bit.. Oh Well :huh:
I can't complain about my mpg (I'm just spoiled now and getting greedy)

 

The only flaw in posting boards is that well hashed topics eventually stop being posted to and fall off the first couple of pages.

Oil overfill is one of the most hashed and rehashed topics on this board and every other Prius board out there.

The sump, along with the rest of the car, is metric based. Which means that until our system of measures in the US moves to metric we will be buying quarts of oil for sumps which are metric in nature. The offical sump capacity is 3.9 quarts. That is nearly 4 quarts. So, the sump is a bit shy of 4 quarts, or in my thinking, and that of others, it is a 4 quart sump.

The "overfill" that people notice from the factory, which is just about all of us, seems to be in the line of 4 quarts total fill. A .10 of a quart is not going to cause any harm to the pump, crank or other parts of the ICE and isn't even a significant enough volume of oil for all of us to worry about. I feel so strongly about this that when I change my oil I put in a full 4 quarts (Mobil1) and the oil resides at the same point on the dipstick as it did when the car was delievered.

Frankly, I'm more concerned about those who choose to fill their sump short and fill between the dots on the dipstick. It just seems like a unnecessary risk to take to be exact for no documented or reasonable reason.

Oh, and I have to say this, a dipstick is not a precise measureing instrument. It is gross in nature and as such it might show an "overfill" but the sump will most likley not be overfilled.

 

I won't disagree with you, jeromep, because I agree that a little over fill (or under fill) probably won't hurt anything or do much to MPG. But I would like to point out that 3.9 US quarts is 3.6907765 liters. Hmmmm, people like "round" numbers, and .69 isn't very round.

On the other hand, 3.5 liters is 3.6984087 US quarts, which sounds like a bit of underfill.

What is the oil fill recommendation in other parts of the world that use the metric system?

 

The factory overfilled my new Prius too. I don't know by how much but the service manager guessed that it was by at least half a quart. I wish I had checked it when I got the car because it would have saved me a lot of hassle. Not to mention the money it would haved saved Toyota for paying to have my car towed, supplying a rental and having to send out the regional tech with the HV battery charger because I was down to 20% and it couldn't start the ICE. My daughter (Drifter) started a thread when we were having the problem (Remember it, Bill?) but it's one of the threads that got lost.
For those of you who don't worry about a little overfill, I wish you luck.
I'm quite happy to have the service dept. put in 3 quarts and to check it myself the next morning after the car sits for a while. That puts me dead center on the dipstick. When I got my oil change and told them 3 quarts, the service manager said it was a good call and pointed to another Prius sitting in the shop that had a half quart overfill that caused it to need service. I don't think this topic can be over addressed on this board. It sounds silly that you can overfill the oil until you have to deal with the result.

 

mine too was overfilled but no matter, I changed the oil myself at 500 miles and put in 3.7 quarts. I took the car in for my prepaid 5000 mile service to Walnut Creek toyota and they filled it with 3.7 US quarts of oil as per their own printout and the dipstick confirmed that amount.
I can't for the life of me understand Toyota corporate overfilling the oil from the factory. It's wastefull and cost $ and flies in the face with toyotas policy of a "green" car. It makes no sense. It also makes no sense that the dealer doesn't do an adequate pre delivery inspection on the car prior to delivery adding the front licence frame and getting the oil fill level right.
What it shows me is that Toyota is slipping and the dealers are mostly inept for not bringing it to toyota corporate or fixing the oversite themselves.
-Paul R. Haller-

 

I didn't notice the overfill on my '04 Prius until a week after I took delivery: After I gassed up I popped the hood and was VERY surprised. Almost 15mm over the Full dot.

I went back to the dealer and after a bunch of head scratching and "how the hell did that happen?" they sucked out the excess. I immediately noticed a very slight difference in fuel economy (4.8 l/100km instead of 4.9 l/100km) and the engine seemed a tad quieter.

At the first oil change at 8,000km, they had my Prius waiting in the enclosed customer pickup bay with the hood up. They like to "prove" the necessary work was done, and most folks simply slam the hood shut and drive off. I checked the oil with their supplied clean gloves and rag, and showed the dipstick to the service writer.

About 15mm over the Full dot.

They - naturally - blamed the Prius tech who was very red faced and apologetic. After sucking out the excess, that same Prius tech took me into the service bays and gave me the Grand Tour of the 500 litre tote bin full of "Toyota" 5W-30 oil and the sophisticated digital dispensing equipment.

By the time my 16,000km service rolled around, I had already discovered this forum and knew better. I was at a conference in the Twin Cities a month before that service and picked up several cases of Mobil 1 0W-30 on sale. Naturally they were in quart bottles.

I gave the Prius tech 3 quart bottles of Mobil 1 0W-30, and he was worried the level would be below Add. So I looked around the showroom, sat in a few Lexus cars and SUV's, and went back to the Service area when they paged me. The Prius tech was quite surprised:

Three U.S. quarts will put the level slightly over halfway up from the Add dot. About 14mm below the Full dot. We were wondering if the stated capacity was a "dry" refill and not a "service" refill like it should have been.

I changed the oil myself at my hobby farm when the car reached 24,000km. I had purchased Mobil 1 0W-20 on sale at Canadian Tire, to be used as a "winter" oil. Naturally, it was in litre bottles. I have found that 3 litres will put the level almost 2/3 of the way past the Add dot, about 12mm below the Full dot.

I was taught that the Full hash mark is the absolute fill limit, and being overfilled can be just as bad, if not worse, than running low. The range from Low to Full is usually the "operating range." The Prius manual also warns of overfill.

An important point to keep in mind if you change your own oil, which was brought up by forum member Frank Hudon, is how quickly you add the fresh oil. It appears the PCV system may allow oil to enter the intake manifold if you add the fresh oil too quickly, so really take your time adding the fresh oil.