Oil overfill

[PR]

Two weeks and 300 miles ago I got a new Prius (05, BC).
Yesterday I checked the oil level, and I found that it is
overfilled by approx. 0.5in (1.27cm). Unfortunately, the
dealer I bought the car from is a bit too far away (100 miles)
to drive there and get the extra oil drained for free.

This morning I went to the local Toyota dealer and I was told that
the price for draining the extra oil will be only $0.75 cheaper
compared to complete oil change ($32).
This price seems a bit too high for just draining sth. like 0.4qt so I just
made an appointment for tomorrow morning and left.

I was wondering whether shall I:
(a) Don't worry about the 0.5in overfill and keep driving the car.
( Bite the bullet and do complete oil change with the local dealer.
© Do something else.

Yes, I know that draining the extra oil is very trivial for those of
you who change the oil by yourself, but doing it by myself is
an option I don't want to consider for now.
I know it will take me lots of time to find the right place to do it, and then
I will make lots of mess
Unless you tell me that I can cleanly remove the extra oil from the top
by using some tiny plastic tube...

Thanks,
PR

P.S. Love the car!

[IsrAmeriPrius]

Call the dealer where you purchased the car and speak to someone with authority.

The selling dealer should pay the dealer nearer your home to perform the correction.

[jchu]

Worry about it, overfill can cause frothing leading to decreased lubrication.
Get them to fix the problem ( at no charge ) as it was their mistake
In the future if you are having someone else changing the oil bring your own oil 3 to 3.5 quarts; that way they can't overfill it.

This seems to be a perennial problem as there are numerous other older threads on PC about this.

[bruceha_2000]

It is possible to drain it through the fill tube, but you would need the proper size hose and a pump of some sort. Inboard boat engines (at least sail boats) are generally drained the way since the drain plug is not accessable.

[TonyPSchaefer]

How to reduce the oil level via the dip stick:
1) insert dip stick entirely into tube.
2) remove dip stick.
3) if oil too high, goto 4; else, goto 10.
4) wipe oil from dipstick.
5) goto 1.
10) end.

[jchu]

Tony,
With half an inch over the full line, the Priapus method PR is gonna take a lo...o...ong time. :P

[bruceha_2000]

Tony does seem to have some ideas that are not as practical as one might like. ;-)

[TonyPSchaefer]

Sorry y'all. I was just in a fiesty mood. :-D

And now that I think of it, as the overall oil level drops, the amount of oil removed with each wipe diminishes.

[PR]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(TonyPSchaefer\";p=\"50675)</div>

How to reduce the oil level via the dip stick:
1) insert dip stick entirely into tube.
2) remove dip stick.
3) if oil too high, goto 4; else, goto 10.
4) wipe oil from dipstick.
5) goto 1.
10) end.
[/b]

Believe it or not, yesterday I considered for a moment a similar algorithm
after I failed to find a tiny tube in the local auto-parts
store. Until I made the back-on-the envelope calculation
that I have to "pull" approx. half a quart/liter of oil.
Well, in my algorhthm I didn't use "goto", but this didn't
change the execution time

Anyway, thanks for the suggestions. Tomorrow morning
I am going change the oil with the local dealer to avoid
developing any potential problems.

PR

[jchu]

If you mean the local Toyota dealer that doesn't preclude and overfill. Be sure to check