PCV replacement how-to with photos

[galaxee]

well, we promised that if nobody had done a PCV replacement guide before we did ours, we'd write up a photo how-to. our prius is nearing 60k miles and DH is finally home from school for a few weeks, it was a good time to do some maintenance.

you will need:
new PCV
10 mm socket
14 mm socket (just for the wipers)
adjustable wrench (for PCV)- DH didn't measure the size of the valve.


new part:


step 1
remove clips in corners of wiper cowlings






sometimes the rubber stoppers at the end come out, so note how they sit.

next is removing the wipers. this is best done on a somewhat dirty car so that the wipers leave a bit of a dusty mark on the windshield. this makes it easier to line them up when you replace them.

the passenger wiper comes off with 2 nuts:


wiggle it to pop it free, and you have


the driver's wiper is next, first use a screwdriver to pop off the cover for the nut:


remove the nut. it's advised to hold the wiper arm so you don't twist the assembly:


push and pull on the hinge where the wiper folds up to remove this:


there are 3 clips on each side of the cowling that need to be disengaged. see where DH's finger is, there is that indentation- those are the locations of the clips.


this will pull out. separate the 2 halves where it splits, but don't pull away the gasket from the plastic.

once that's gone, you have this:


unplug the wiring harness and unclip it.


remove the 5 bolts from the wiper drive assy. all 5 bolts have big washers and rubber bushings.


and it just pulls right out:


next is the relay box- 2 bolts


and it's off


reach in behind the clips that hold that relay box wiring in place, and push them out with a needle nose pliers. don't unfasten them from around the wiring harness, it's easier to break them doing this. DH did because he knows how to keep them from breaking.

pull the harness out of your way like so:


next is the drain pan. 3 bolts in the center on the bottom, 2 on each end. 7 total.




and the pan also pulls right out. it may be stuck a little, so you might need to wiggle it a bit.


now here is our uncovered engine


see this L-shaped wiring harness guide DH is ratcheting on? there are 3 silver bolts on this that need to come out. one at each end of the L, and one at the bend.


lift up the bend of the L, and underneath is the PCV.
be careful how hard you pull up, the coil wires will limit how far you can pull it up.


the hose comes off, just a finger clamp.


get a box end wrench on that thing and it'll come right out.


old and new
the new one didn't come with thread sealer on it.


replacement installed: current time at job is 13 minutes
don't forget to put the hose back!


now to put it all back together:

replace the 3 silver bolts, make sure the metal bracket is in place on the one behind the oil cap. get all 3 started by hand before taking a wrench to them.


replace the drain pan. set it back in place, start all 7 bolts by hand, line up the dust prints of the washers (start with the middle 3) so that you get the best gasket seal back.


replace the clips for the relay box wiring harness.

replace relay box


replace wiper drive assy. set it in place, start all 5 bolts by hand before tightening. plug the wiring harness back in and reattach its clip to the drain pan.




replace the plastic cowl. when lining back up, make sure the plastic tabs (like the one over DH's finger) go under the edge of the windshield glass.

to replace without tearing the seal, overlap the two halves. rotate the pieces so that they form a "v" facing you. guide everything into place.


lining everything up:
be patient if it doesn't line up right the first try, it can be tricky.


and it's right when it looks like this:


pull the center pin of the clip up to replace them, push them in to lock into place.


replace the wipers by lining up the wiper with the dust line on the windshield. once it's lined up, try to seat the spline so it's lined up the same way as when you took it off. replace the nuts- and the cover on the driver's side wiper.

you're done! DH's time, explaining and allowing me to take pictures and such, was 27 minutes.

our PCV was replaced at 58008 miles, and still sounded like new. it's cheap insurance to replace these every 60k or so.

[Rae Vynn]

Wow, thank you.

Um, so what would it generally cost to just have a Toyo mechanic do it?

[donee]

Hi Rae,

Remember your not being charged mechanic time, but shop time. And well, you know the governemnt wants it property tax, and the gas company wants their Natural Gas paid for, and the owner wants some profit too, and so on....

[galaxee]

you could probably expect about a half hour labor charge for the job. that's $45-50 depending on shop rates in your area.

[KD6HDX]

Thank you for the fine post. I bought the PCV valve at Longo around 70K miles. Now the 05 prius has 105K miles. I have bookmarked this page and will attempt the swap on a day off soon, thank you again.

Question. Does all this have to be done when the spark plugs are replaced too? (just had em replaced at 104K miles)

Muchas Gracias from Sunny (soon to be soggy) Southern California. Merry Christmas to you.

PS, how do I nominate your post for some kind of a reward,- moderators???
here's a shot of the same part

[efusco]

moved to Knowledge base...this is too good to let get lost!

For anyone considering getting the BT strut brace this is the same process necessary to install the brace. If you're getting the BT brace and are anywhere near 60k miles you may as well replace the PCV valve at the same time.

Gadgetdad's BT Brace install guide may be helpful here as well as I think some of his pix and descriptions may augement those in Galaxee's guide.
Thread: http://priuschat.com/forums/prius-mo...ures-text.html
Pics: BT Strut Tower Brace Install (by Gadgetdad) - a set on Flickr
Word Doc: http://priuschat.com/forums/attachme...dad-lee-v2.doc

[galaxee]

no need to replace the PCV when you replace the plugs. they are independent of each other.

yep, the strut tops are exposed when you remove all the cowling. i thought to take pictures a little too late. oh well, strut tops are strut tops

[spitinuri]

Thanks! These types of blogs are very helpful. It is a bookmark for me.

[Patrick Wong]

Great photos and explanations. May I suggest that the PCV hoses should be removed and cleaned using brake parts cleaner. One hose will not need cleaning (since it provides fresh air to the valve cover) while the other will contain substantial HC deposits (since it carries the HC from the crankcase that flow into the valve cover area).

[galaxee]

Originally Posted by Patrick Wong

Great photos and explanations. May I suggest that the PCV hoses should be removed and cleaned using brake parts cleaner. One hose will not need cleaning (since it provides fresh air to the valve cover) while the other will contain substantial HC deposits (since it carries the HC from the crankcase that flow into the valve cover area).

hey Patrick,
brake cleaner and rubber are incompatible. there may be some deposits, but unless it's clogged (in which case, the PCV itself will also be sticky) there isn't too much of an issue.