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2013 Prius V Wagon consuming 15 quarts of oil in between 7000 mile oil change

Discussion in 'Prius v Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Devinkalt, Aug 1, 2020.

  1. Devinkalt

    Devinkalt New Member

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    I am writing to get some advice from other Prius V owners and experienced mechanics. I am the 2nd owner of this Prius V which I purchased with about 12k miles in 2018. Today, here in Phoenix AZ where the temps are just below 120, it has just about 155k on the odometer. I have always had the maintenance done on time and properly with full synthetic oil 0w20. I drove the car a lot, it was used for a year as a taxi with Lyft and it also goes on lots of road trips through mountains, but, I baby it and always drive it in eco mode, and use cruise control. I noticed my Prius is starting to consume a lot of oil. We’re talking almost 2 quarts every thousand miles. I had the oil changed recently at Kerry’s Car Care and they discovered “excessive fluid leak at timing cover/ front engine cover”. They quoted this repair at about $1000-1200 dollars. My car does not leak oil on the ground. However, the man that worked on my car said he saw oil leaking under the car which was unable to leak on the ground while parked but does leak while driving.... does this sound legit? Leaking oil while driving but not while parked? Do you think that this gasket repair alone will solve my excess oil consumption? Or is that problem just one of a few others? Has anyone else heard of this problem or worked with this problem? Do you replace the engine? Sell the car? Any recommendations are appreciated. Thanks in advance for you time.
    Devin
     
  2. Devinkalt

    Devinkalt New Member

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    By the way - it’s a 2013 Prius V
     
  3. rjparker

    rjparker Tu Humilde Sirviente

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    They do leak at the timing cover and I believe its very hard to access. These cars also burn oil because of the piston rings which were changed in later years. I don’t know if the excessive use could be attributed to leakage while driving but it would seem that the bottom of the car on the passenger side would be covered with oil if that were the case. Perhaps someone will be more definitive and explain if its possible to severely leak but still not drip on the garage floor.
     
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  4. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

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    If it uses that much oil, I'd suspect that it ran out of oil at some point:cool:.

    Then you are left with an oil eater:eek:.

    Check the dipstick often(y).
     
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  5. Devinkalt

    Devinkalt New Member

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    True there have been at least one or two times when the oil got low and I didn’t have a choice but to drive it until I got to a place to buy oil. That’s interesting to hear for a first - once it’s driven with low oil you now have a oil eater... great... the options are looking... not good at this point especially since I still owe $8000 on the car
     
  6. Tim Jones

    Tim Jones Senior Member

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    New engine.................thanks again toyota.... at that mileage it shouldn't use any oil....
     
    #6 Tim Jones, Aug 2, 2020
    Last edited: Aug 2, 2020
  7. Leadfoot J. McCoalroller

    Leadfoot J. McCoalroller Senior Member

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    You might have some leakage at the timing cover, and $1200 is about right for fixing that, but I don't think they've correctly diagnosed your oil loss situation. I really don't think you're losing that much out the timing cover.

    Lots of Priuseses have a little weep at the timing cover. Enough to notice the dirty bit when you're standing under the car in a maintenance bay. Not enough to cost you 2 quarts in 1000 miles.

    I can't tell you where your oil is going but I urge you to get a second opinion, I think you've got a dud diagnosis so far.
     
  8. rjparker

    rjparker Tu Humilde Sirviente

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    I would not suggest that running it low was the primary cause. First, most well designed engines don’t burn enough oil between changes to be a problem. Most likely the piston rings gave out first or there is another answer like a stuck open pcv valve. I would take it to an independent hybrid shop with decent ratings and get their opinions. Its worth a diagnostic fee if necessary. Pic from google “hybrid repair phoenix az”. In the meantime check the oil every week and keep it full.

    AE3247A1-4C81-446A-B548-1ED6DA66E272.jpeg
     
    #8 rjparker, Aug 2, 2020
    Last edited: Aug 2, 2020
  9. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    there's an aero cover under the engine that could catch a little oil before it hit the ground, and maybe high speed wind could then move it out, but it sounds a little far fetched.

    your car has an egr circuit that should be attended to, and then there are things you can look at to see if it is burning the oil, rather than leaking it.

    with 8k left on the loan, i would just keep adding oil, after cleaning the egr. but you could look around for a low mile engine.
     
  10. Devinkalt

    Devinkalt New Member

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    I’m going to bring it to a hybrid specific shop tomorrow, thanks, I will post more tomorrow.
     
  11. Garry20-20

    Garry20-20 Junior Member

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    Hi Devinkalt,

    Have to suspect PCV valve (beside some other issues)?? Check oil in the IM.

    Thanks
     
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  12. Kenny94945

    Kenny94945 Active Member

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    Wow.
    2 quarts every 1000 miles.
    Bought used car with 12K mileage on year 2018.
    Vehicle (Prius v) had one year of its current ownership life as a taxi and is/ was used in mountainous areas.
    Current mileage 155K in year 2020.
    Maintenance was done on schedule, yet owner did have low oil message multiple times with out timely refilling.

    Two quarts is a huge amount usage (every 1000 miles if not even every 10000 miles).
    A substantial leak (timing cover, valve cover, oil coolers) should be obvious, remove the under fairing!
    (I am specifically unsure about the Prius, but a leak at the engine rear main seal, draining into the transmission bell housing ,could possible be a hidden leak, but 2 quarts ! Again I'd think this would be obvious.)

    Mathematics (155K - 12K = 143K mileage) then 143K / (365 days x 2 years) = 195 miles a day over two years - including Sat, Sun, Holidays.
    (Noting OP's running low oil comments - perhaps for multiple days or heavy mileage days before refill?)
    Wow.

    Looks like this will be be needed to be diagnosed in person.

    Good luck.
     
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  13. Devinkalt

    Devinkalt New Member

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    Can anybody here recommend a shop suitable for this repair? I live in Phoenix AZ
     
  14. NewHybridOwner

    NewHybridOwner Active Member

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    I've never had unusually high oil consumption on any car, but I've always carried a quart of oil just in case.
     
  15. mikefocke

    mikefocke Prius v Three 2012, Avalon 2011

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    I'd think that, from multiple prior runs with low oil, the cylinders and rings may no longer be up to the job and the crankcase ventilation system may be clogged. Or the head is cracked and or the head gasket not right.

    So I'd:
    • check the color of the anti-freeze
    • do a leakdown test,
    • do an EGR inspection and cleaning
    • and see what the results are.
     
  16. fuzzy1

    fuzzy1 Senior Member

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    Did the low oil pressure indicator light up these times? For past readers here, that has meant the oil level was really low. Often damagingly so.

    Most individual engines don't, at least when new. But some fraction may do so, and still not be bad enough to fall under warranty coverage.

    The Owner's Manual of every car I've ever had, insisted on frequent oil level checks, because the oil loss rate allowed under the warranty is high enough to run dry between oil changes. If the owner didn't catch the low oil in time because they didn't check frequently enough, tough. No warranty coverage, they are responsible to cover for repairs out of their own pocket.

    I always carry one too. And over my lifetime, I've needed to use some of this spare oil a number of times when a random irregular (usually a bit tardy) oil check found it somewhat low. Only one of those engines ever progressed to significant oil burning, fortunately that was not out of line with the wear level of the rest of the car too.