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New spark plugs and carbon buildup.

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by Prius92, Sep 21, 2019.

  1. edthefox5

    edthefox5 Senior Member

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    That’s so stupid: where to you come up with this stuff?

    Ok so Toyota engineers thought let’s put a full mark on dipstick and thought hmm.... hopefully no one keeps there oil level there because it will fill the cylinders with oil.
    Because we have no idea what we’re doing and need priuschat to fix this one for us.
    We will keep our fingers crossed maybe someone cagey over at priuschat will figure this out and let everyone know about how stupid we are.
     
  2. Prius92

    Prius92 Member

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    The 3.9 quart capacity listed is DRY capacity. That's with EVERY DROP of the oil removed. As if the engine was totally rebuilt and never filled with oil. I'm sure if you took the drain plug out, rotated the engine by hand to clear the oil pump and let it sit 24 hours, you might get close to that number.
    A quick google search reveals the same agreement. Has Toyota changed this since? I don't know.

    So yes, if you add precisely 3.9 quarts to the engine with the filter replaced, it WILL overfill it. It will overfill it more if you do like some and add four 1 quart bottles.

    The engine doesn't like to be overfilled either, as others have pointed out. It will blow oil into the intake.

    The two dots on the dipstick are the safe band of oil level. You can refill your engine after a change, and if your halfway in between the dots, it's fine. Otherwise without this design, an oil-burning car would ruin the engine if it got .5 quarts low.

    The ACTUAL filter change oil capacity is 3.5-3.6 quarts. You can put in THREE and still be over the bottom dot. As long as it doesn't burn oil, it won't hurt anything. As long as the oil level is BETWEEN and not ABOVE that top dot, your fine.
     
  3. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    Uh, no. See post #13, with excerpt from Repair Manual.

    And for corroboration, from the Owner's Manual:

    upload_2019-9-22_17-4-43.png

    And from post #13, the Repair Manual lists "dry" fill as 4.3 US quarts.
     
  4. Prius92

    Prius92 Member

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    Then why does filling it with 3.9 overfill it? Answer that.

    Word of Warning: Oil Overfill | PriusChat
    Prius oil overfill | PriusChat
    Oil Overfill Question | PriusChat

    Look, I'm not trying to be a smart alek, but it's better to have too little than too much oil in the engine.
     
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  5. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    Yeah I've no experience with 2nd gen, only 3rd. I guess it never hurts to hold back about a cup, check level in a day; a lot easier to add oil than delete.
     
  6. Classic_pri

    Classic_pri Former 2001 Prius 0wner

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    "Ad hominem (Latin for "to the person"),[1] short for argumentum ad hominem, typically refers to a fallacious argumentative strategy whereby genuine discussion of the topic at hand is avoided by instead attacking the character, motive, or other attribute of the person making the argument, or persons associated with the argument, rather than attacking the substance of the argument itself." Ad hominem - Wikipedia

    Show me a case where keeping oil level above the minimum mark but below the maximum produced excessive engine wear.
     
  7. Skibob

    Skibob Senior Member

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    Which water pump did they change? A North American gen 2 Prius has 4 water pumps.
     
  8. Prius92

    Prius92 Member

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    The other weird thing is..I've always changed my own oil. I don't trust the rubes at Jiffy Lube or any oil change place.

    I've changed oil on 9 different vehicles of mostly different make
    4? Thought it just had the inverter and engine.
     
  9. Lafantano Sorino

    Lafantano Sorino New Member

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    D4C5C009-A95F-4BAA-85DA-45F1E96BDF66.jpeg 393729BB-0728-42E7-9806-272A95AD969F.jpeg D4C5C009-A95F-4BAA-85DA-45F1E96BDF66.jpeg 393729BB-0728-42E7-9806-272A95AD969F.jpeg
    I have a 07 prius 230k miles and i have to change spark plugs every 4 months each time all in carbon build up what can i do?? How to get rid of the carbon inside the engine ??
     
  10. Classic_pri

    Classic_pri Former 2001 Prius 0wner

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    There's an old saying that many problems that look like fueling are actually ignition. Do all the plugs look alike, or are some sootier than others? You're either getting too much gas or too little spark.

    If the severity of the problem varies between cylinders, I'd swap coils around to see if the problem moves with the coils. I'd also double-check the plugs to make sure they're correct for the engine. I would also check fuel pressure at the rail (you can often borrow a gauge from Advance or Autozone) to see if it's within spec. If pressure is off spec you may need a new fuel pressure regulator.
     
  11. Lafantano Sorino

    Lafantano Sorino New Member

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    All spark plugs look the same and also has a strong gas odor Not oil so u can be right i might be getting to much gas will have to check the pressure also the car sometimes gently vibrates when standing on red light and engine does not shut off.