2010 Prius Oil Burning Issue

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Originally Posted By: storyrd
The oil was changed at the Toyota dealership. 5W20 Castrol Synthetic Blend


Yikes! That's is not the correct oil. This car should have been using the 0w-20 synthetic at 10k intervals. Were you running the 5w-20 blend for 10k intervals? If so, that could have been the problem. At this point, your only option is an engine swap....or continue adding oil.

Originally Posted By: supton


Hmm...

Yaris: 37mpg, starting at $14k
Corolla: 34mpg, starting at $16k
Prius: 48mpg, starting at $24k

If he's put 147k on in 3 year's time, then I bet highway mpg was utmost consideration. 50k/year at $3.50/gallon is

37mpg: $4730
34mpg: $5147
48mpg: $3646

Compared to just the Yaris it's $1,100 saved per year; payback in 10 years time--but last I knew a Prius was a bit more upscale/quieter/etc than a Yaris. Less of a penalty box? Would take 10 years to start saving money--but that is only if gas stays at $3.50/gallon. Which as we all know is very fluid in its pricing.


The Prius is a much more versatile car compared to the Corolla; it should be criminal to compare the two. Yesterday, I hauled a used 4-burner gas grill (in other words, it wasn't in a box), the supporting stand, two baskets of laundry, my detailing bag and a duffel bag in my 2011 Prius. It was impossible to haul the same number of items in any of the three cars that you listed.

Originally Posted By: Danno
OK - one other question.

Why buy a Prius for highway commuting ?????

Corolla, Civic, Fit would give you same highway MPG and the first year of gas would be free compared to Prius price.

I can't believe that people still make these kinds of statements without considering the facts. People like you are the ones who make this site decline in quality.
 
Originally Posted By: storyrd
I would get the oil changed at the dealership every 4,000 or 5,000 miles or so...religiously. I was never told of any issues with the consumption...they just changed it and I was on my way. Never had any notes about this issue of burning oil.


About as often as not the guy who changes the oil doesn't check to see how much oil is showing on the stick, it could have been using a quart or more per change for quite awhile...

As far as engine damage, unless the light was coming on several times a day it's doubtful, just keep a eye on the level and don't worry... You aren't alone on this, there are other owners who have posted similar usage with half the mileage...
 
Originally Posted By: HTSS_TR
The best time to check the oil level and have a quick look at everything under the hood is when you fill up the gas tank. The few minutes waiting for the tank filling up you can finish checking the oil level.


I prefer first thing in the morning. All the oil has drained off the dipstick, makes it a quick affair. At least on a straight dipstick setup.
 
You are not the first "high mileage" Prius to have oil consumption issues.

I'm not going to dig for hours to find the very long thread on prius oil consumption on a international prius owners forum.

Some of the guys with this problem simply went to heavier viscosity oils and had reasonable success. One guy in Greece actually runs 20W-50 in his high mileage prius. I'm not suggesting that.

But, oil as thin as water can be consumed at a more rapid rate in a worn engine.

There are all sorts of experts online talking about Prius oil consumption. Some claim that using a heavier viscosity oil will result in inadequate lubrication, that's simply not true, unless you choose to use absurd viscosities.

Some try changing the PCV valve first (not a super simple matter on a Prius engine) It does not seem to help.

I'd suggest starting with Mobil 1, 10W-30, or high mileage M1 10W-40. People on the other forums have had good results with this.
 
That engine with all the tricks that come with the car make for a bullet proof engine. The comment that someone messed up the oil change is probably your answer. And some more diligence on your part is just what the Doctor ordered.
 
There are a couple of possibilities: you were always consuming some oil, but not enough to go below the "add" line, which could actually be a 1.5 to 2 qts, so the dealer never mentioned it. And, the dealer could have underfilled it during the oil change. If both of those things were true, that could result in the situation you're in now. When engines start consuming oil it's normally gradual, not "zero" to 3 qts in 2,000 miles, unless it's leaking. Also, keep in mind that small leaks that don't even hit the ground (but coat the underside) can actually drain quite a bit of oil.

Part of this may be the dealer not bringing the consumption to your attention, but the other part is that it's your responsibility to check the oil. Regardless, what's done is done. At this point I'd check it every 350-500 miles, checking it under similar conditions each time (first thing in the morning maybe) to get a handle on how much consumption you actually have. Throwing thicker oil or HM oil at it doesn't make sense until you actually determine your consumption levels. If it's a qt every 3K I wouldn't sweat it. More than that and I'd probably try a HM oil.
 
Originally Posted By: JOD
Throwing thicker oil or HM oil at it doesn't make sense until you actually determine your consumption levels. If it's a qt every 3K I wouldn't sweat it. More than that and I'd probably try a HM oil.


Very true and I'm glad you brought that up. Proper diagnosis is always key.
 
Originally Posted By: Cujet


Some try changing the PCV valve first (not a super simple matter on a Prius engine) It does not seem to help.


Yeah, replacing the PCV valve is a major PITA on the Gen 3 Prius engine.

You need a 22mm wrench...and due to the space, you can only turn the valve about 1/6 of a turn each time. The threads have a thread sealer/locker on them, so you cannot unscrew it by hand after breaking it loose.

The easiest way to access it is from under the engine, after pulling the engine undercover.
 
I don't think using a 5w20 would have any impact at all on oil consumption.

This is interesting though. Did the car consume oil prior to this or did this just start happening?
 
The difference between 5w and 0w-20 is next to nothing. Can't imagine it means anything in this issue.

Apparantly, OP has no idea of what his oil consumption is, so does not know what is going on. Is it really consuming oil? Did the dealership under fill? There is no way of knowing without regular dip stick checks going forward.

The best time to check the dip stick is as you go out in the morning before you start for the day. Once per week. My 2009 and 2013 Prii use absolutely zero oil between 5k mile changes. I still check it regularly just in case a problem begins.

Fill ups for us are usually at least 2 weeks apart, so that would be sufficient at first for a quick check at fill ups. Be advised that an oil check at start of day will be a little higher than an oil check after the gas fill up.

Know what is going on before freaking out. Check first, freak out later if required.

I won't say the dealership is not honest, but a person never knows what's going on if they depend on other people to do their work for them.

Good luck, OP.
 
Originally Posted By: Mr_Incredible
My 2009 and 2013 Prii use absolutely zero oil between 5k mile changes. I still check it regularly just in case a problem begins.


Sorry for going OT, but the '12 Prius doesn't use 10k OCI's? I kinda assumed Toyota had gone 10k across the board.
 
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