2019 Toyota Highlander LOTS of metal flakes

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2019 Highlander 2GR-FKS 3.5L. At 1600 miles and after terrible fuel efficiency I decided to change the factory fill. I found lots of metal. I have owned 2 new Fords, 1 New Chrysler, and 2 new Mitsubishi vehicles and have never seen Metal in the oil/filter. Is this normal for Toyota? Has anyone had flakes like this on a newer vehicle and didnt have problems down the road?

Replaced Factory Fill with Pennzoil Platinum and M1 filter.

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I mentioned this in a recent thread that was similar but I'm guessing that this is aluminum from the block casting. I had a few small flakes on my Mazda but I didn't open the filter.

Describe your fuel economy. What are you getting compared to the EPA numbers? A new engine needs some time to get to its best fuel economy but if your numbers are way off then it might be worth having the dealer check it out just to make sure.
 
Originally Posted by PimTac
I mentioned this in a recent thread that was similar but I'm guessing that this is aluminum from the block casting. I had a few small flakes on my Mazda but I didn't open the filter.

Describe your fuel economy. What are you getting compared to the EPA numbers? A new engine needs some time to get to its best fuel economy but if your numbers are way off then it might be worth having the dealer check it out just to make sure.


Its EPA rated for 20 City and I think 27 Highway. Were getting about 19.5 City which is fine but only 16 driving on the Highway with cruise control. Higher octane fuel made no difference.
 
Definitely seems quite low on MPG that also looks like a fair amount of metal is check with the service department
 
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My wife is a Nanny for a family with 8 kids. She drives them to all their appointments and everything. It does 100 miles highway every weekend on cruise control. Sometimes I take it to work which is all highway.
 
Good thing you are using a 0w20 full syn, as you certainly don't want any oil filter bypass events upon frigid engine starts with flakes present on the dirty side of the filter.
I don't think it is normal at all for that much, especially in a Toyota which is known for shedding very little metal. Good to replace the metallic factory fill milk shake!
There isn't much of an action plan. Not much you can do about it. Just document your pictures to Toyota now, in a certified letter, and to the dealership, all on the record now, should a warranty claim become necessary later. You'll have background info. Good news is the powertrain warranty goes a long time.

I would get a Fram Ultra XG9972 from walmart or web-order somewhere for it's superior 80% 5 microns multipass performance. Beats M1, which isn't bad either, but lacks the wire backing and double layer high capacity filter media the Ultra has.
 
Originally Posted by ka9mnx
I hope you saved the oil and filter. I would be off to the dealer. Doesn't look and sound right by me.


Yeah I was going to change my Charger today too but after this I didn't add anything else to the drain pan. Our dealer isn't open on Sunday.
 
Double check the TPMS that the tires are inflated to spec, then confirm the parking brake is fully releasing. Other factor: windy conditions can have a big impact on highway fuel economy.

That you are seeing so close to rated numbers in city driving suggests the parking brake is not an issue.
 
Running the same engine in my Tacoma.
It averages 20mpg a tank. With weekly 520 miles round trips(through Austin and Waco on i35 terrible traffic sometimes) to Fort Worth and urban driving during the week, (truck currently has Mobil 1 0w40 in it.
It runs regular octane gas and get some decent 22-23 (sometimes more)mpg legs on the interstate at 70-75 but if I go 80 such as I10 out in western Texas it drops rapidly to 17 mpg. So it can be speed and even headwind sensitive.
The truck got 5 k oil and filter changes through the Toyota care period. Didn't cut my first filter up just had a dealer change it and put a fresh oil and filter in it, I did the first oil change myself at 15k so I never saw any of this. The filter is doing it's job other wise you would get a code.
The engine will get better mileage as you break it in. I wouldn't waste mo eye on premium gas. I would set the dash computer up to show current trip and tank avg mileage as a coaching tool. The engine can get good mileage but the driver is the key.
 
Hopefully you got a UOA? It would be good for comparison with other similar engines. Agree that it could be leftover from the build....I'd change it out at 5k and do another UOA to see what trends are developing.
 
I do agree that is excessive. Even on fresh overhauls I've done don't have anywhere near that much. I cut the filters open after the first oil change to check theres nothing like that.
 
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This is the reason I have been an advocate of getting the factory fill out early, you really don't need or want that crap roaming around inside the engine for 10K or even 5K.
While it is true some engines produce fewer particles than others you don't know until its drained.
 
That's why I always changed the oil in my new cars at 1k miles or less. I would change it again after 1-2k miles and hope to see a lot less flakes.
 
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