HELP Is my engine messed up?! Oil dry

You're doing better than 90% of car owners out there....

Knowing what you do not know also places you ahead of the pack.

Short answer:
Delete Automatic Transmission, and stick with the maintenance recommendations with 'transaxle.'

Longer answer:

Your Prius has a transaxle.......-ish rather than an automatic transmission.
Some people will also refer to it as a CVT - or Continuously Variable Transmission (no gears) which is functionally correct (ish) but does not account for the electrical windings for the Motor/Generators.
Toyota calls this unit a Power Split Device.
It sounds horribly complicated, but it's not, really.
There's fluid inside that lubricates everything - but the [sic] transaxle is a sealed unit, and there's no combustion and little contact with air, dirt and moisture.....so there's not much that can contaminate the fluid.
It does get very warm however, and over time the fluid can break down.
Some people also advise that the fluid be replaced just after break-in, which in your car has long ago passed.
So.....the [sic] ATF needs to be checked to ensure that none is leaking......and, depending on who you listen to, it needs to be replaced (or....not) periodically.
In my never to be humbled opinion, (street value < $0.02!!!) the transaxle fluid should be replaced at around 30,000 miles and thereafter every 60,000-90,000 or so, depending on how tough a life your car has.
Strong opinions and arguments surround this particular maintenance item, and it's one of the few items that I think that the manufacturer got wrong in 2009, and again in 2010 (with the G3s)....etc.
If you own a G2 Prius....the replacement interval is 100,000 miles according to the guide.
If you own a G3 Prius.....there is no replacement interval.

You're at 133,000 miles.
Toyota CURRENTLY considers this fluid to be good for the normal life of the car (about 20y/250,000 miles)
If it were my car, I'd replace it myself right now and call it good for a while.
I would NOT let a dealership do it.

Your Dad's friend said something very valuable (according to you) that caught my full and immediate attention!
I believe it went like something like......
"He mentioned he could do a engine compression test, but told me I probably didn't really need it....."

When all of this settles down in a month or two, I'd buy the [sic] ATF from Toyota and have him (or her) do the transaxle fluid replacement.

Note!!!
This is one of the few times where you want to absolutely use the OEM fluid!!
The CVT/transaxle/Power Split device has electrical windings in it.
Using a non-OEM fluid could damage your transaxle....for real....no kidding.


Good Luck!

 

... and that fluid is Toyota ATF-WS.

 

All liquids should have been changed in your car by now. Engine coolant, inverter coolant, transmission fluid, brake fluid and you know about the oil. Keeping all fluids checked and changed is one of the most important things that need to be done to keep and engine healthy.

 

you need to find a local mech, hybrid specialist or dealership. changing the fluids is experienced diy only, unless your dad or someone can teach you.

you can plug your vin (vehicle identification number) into the toyota owners website, and see any dealer services and recalls performed before you purchased the car.
the vin is n the lower left corner of the windshield, and on your registration.

 

Yes, or from a Toyota dealer's online parts website if you're happy to wait a couple of days. Buy out of state to save state sales tax.

Not sure, but you can find out from a Toyota dealer's online parts website.

You need just short of 3.9 qts, so you'll need 4x 1 qt bottles. You will also need 2x drain plug crush washers (called gaskets by Toyota).

Yes, it is no more complicated than an oil change. Make sure you get the right tools, as one of the plugs needs a hex socket. You won't need a lift, but drive up onto a 2x6 under each wheel (or some low ramps) to give you some more clearance.

There are a couple of good posts on how to do it here on PC. Use the search function.

 

talk to the mech, tell her you only want toyota fluids. she can get them ahead of time. don't let her try to talk you into something else.
if she prefers, you can get them and bring them with you. there is a maintenance schedule and all the fluid specs in your owners manual.

 

Your spreadsheet is missing replacement of the engine air filter which needs to be done at 30K mile intervals.

You can buy the engine air filter and cabin air filter on amazon.com or at your local Toyota dealer, or at one of the Toyota dealer web sites. I recommend you buy the correct Toyota engine air filter (not aftermarket.)

Coolant: get three gallons of Toyota Super Long Life Coolant. This will cost ~$25/gallon. You will need around 7 quarts for the engine and 3 quarts for the inverter.
Transmission ATF: get four quarts of Toyota ATF-WS and the two aluminum drain/fill plug washers. The ATF will be ~$10-$12/quart and the washers should be $2 each or less.
Brake fluid: any quality DOT-3 rated brake fluid, the large 32 ounce container. It is quite possible that the brake fluid would have been replaced when brake service was done, but there is no guarantee about that.
The correct iridium spark plugs will cost around $12 each at the Toyota dealer, you can get them for less on amazon.com:

I have posted on how to replace engine coolant, see my post #22 here:
Changing engine coolant | Page 2 | PriusChat

The inverter coolant drain/replace is not a big deal as long as the correct drain plug is removed on the transaxle (there are two; one for the coolant and the other for the ATF.) The one closest to the engine is for the coolant.

The transmission ATF fill plug is on the side of the transaxle facing the front of the car.

There are also posts from others on brake fluid replacement. I suggest that you have the Toyota dealer do that unless your mechanic is experienced with Toyota hybrid service and has access to Toyota Techstream. It is too easy to screw up the brake system, otherwise, if air is allowed to get into the brake actuator.

 

If you don't have such damaged signs, drive that car dude! Engine's durable

 

Looking through a pdf of the 2005 Prius guide, they use the term "automatic transmission oil". They do not recommend replacement, ever, in the regular maintenance schedule. in the "Additional Maintenance Items for Special Operating Conditions", they do recommend the fluid be replaced, every 60K miles (or 6 years).

 

I would change the fluid (with Toyota ATF WS) as soon as possible. My opinion, the best time to change it is very early in the car's life, say at the one year mark, then you can stretch the interval.

Still, the engine is the big question mark, having pretty much drained. Hope it works out ok.

 

$140 for spark plugs?!!!

They cost about $10/each (Denso SK16R11. Bought at Advance Auto Parts for $9.50 each) and you need 4 of them. That's $40. If you know how to turn a screw driver and a ratchet wrench, you can change the spark plugs yourself. It takes about 20 minutes if you take a 5 minute coffee break in the middle of the job.

As others have suggested: PAY NO ATTENTION to the service light. It's useless and pointless. You need to keep track of your own intervals. Spreadsheets are great. I keep a log of my auto maintenance in spreadsheets. I also zero the B trip odometer when I change the oil and check the oil level every 1,000 mile or so. I have been owning and working on my own cars since early 80's. I was a little younger than you are right now then. I bought me a set of Craftsman tools from Sears (was a big outlay of money for me in those days, but I still have and use that set today) and learned basic auto maintenance. I bought more tools as I needed them, which would usually be cheaper than having the work done by mechanics. So if you spend $40 on plugs and $40 on tools you need to replace plugs you will still be ahead of $140 quote and will own some tools for very useful jobs like spark plug changes. Of course your Gen 2 Prius will only need plugs once in 100K miles, but still, the advantage of doing simple maintenance tasks yourself is obvious. Same goes for changing transaxle fluid and other things in the car. You will be that much more aware of your car's health and will have that much more understanding of basic concepts of car maintenance and will not succumb to silly quotes of $140 for spark plugs easily.

Best of luck to you. You chose an excellent car to start with. It's reliable economic and inexpensive to maintain if done by yourself.

Edit: Spark plugs are under $8 on Amazon right now.

 

Thanks for the clarification.
I try not to give specific advice for G2s because I do not have much time in type.

Concur.

Just to put a bow on this, there are opinions in Priusdom that the [sic] ATF should be replaced early in the car's life (30,000 miles-ish) in order to remove contaminants that might have possibly been shaken out during break-in, and then every 60,000-90,000 miles to prevent fluid break down, and just because.

I think in the OPs case, we can recommend changing out the fluid on a non-emergency basis, and IF this procedure can be done correctly at a decent cost.
It's not very hard to do, and it should cost about $120 on the high end.

I'd probably schedule it for a few months out, just to make sure that everything checks out with the oil issues, and after the spark plugs have been replaced.