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Check Engine (Oil pressure) light came on and won't go off

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by woody23, Mar 29, 2024.

  1. woody23

    woody23 Junior Member

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    My 2010 has about 195k miles and I just got the oil changed a few weeks ago so I was very surprised when I started it this morning and the engine was rattling/knocking. (It burns 1-1.5 quarts per oil change but had recently slowed down after some BG 44K.)

    I turned the car off and checked the oil and it was in between the 2 dots. I put about 1/2 quart in and restarted the car and the knocking/rattling went away. So this is an oil pressure thing but the engine light won't go away. Car safe to drive?
     
  2. ColoradoBoo

    ColoradoBoo Senior Member

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    I wouldn't risk driving it until I was able to get the engine scanned to find out what that check engine light is wanting to tell!! Hopefully something easy and cheap to fix!!
    Keep us posted!
     
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  3. BiomedO1

    BiomedO1 Senior Member

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    We're all just guessing, until you get the codes off the ECU.

    My guess would be clogged fuel injectors. That BG44 loosened some junk in your fuel system and is now clogging your injectors. Also check your coolant levels, the 2010's are known to blow head-gaskets. Pull the spark plugs, see if they're "wet", and smells of antifreeze. If you stick a bore scope down there, any piston top that looks like it's been steam clean would confirm leaking head gasket. This would also explain why the car was sluggish, contaminated air/fuel mixture in your combustion chamber. This is only a guess, based on the limited information you've supplied.

    Good Luck....
     
    #3 BiomedO1, Mar 29, 2024
    Last edited: Mar 29, 2024
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  4. woody23

    woody23 Junior Member

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    Thanks guys. Coolant levels are all normal. I plan on changing the spark plugs in a month or two. I'll try to get a scope and look down there.

    I just drove it lightly down the road and turned it off and then restarted the car a couple times..... the check engine light cleared by itself.

    I'm wondering if the dealership filled it low on oil because I've been monitoring the oil loss for the last 70k+ miles and it burns oil in the middle and at the end of the 5k interval. I've never had it burn oil after a fresh oil change.
     
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  5. BiomedO1

    BiomedO1 Senior Member

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    Some dealerships pay their mechanics by the job, so there's an incentive to rush things. Best to do things like that by yourself, to ensure it's done right. If that issue was temporary, you may have gotten some contaminated fuel into your tank. Like water in your gas, they separate as the car sits overnight, remixes as the car gets moving. I've seen that a lot at low traffic gas stations.
     
    #5 BiomedO1, Mar 29, 2024
    Last edited: Mar 29, 2024
  6. Danno5060

    Danno5060 Member

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    Read the codes from the OBD2 port. Maybe you're fighting a totally different issue sort of thing, like they forgot to plug in the MAF sensor when checking the air filter.
     
  7. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    Could be head gasket letting go.
    Ever cleaned the EGR system and intake manifold?
    Is the engine coolant level stable in the reservoir?
     
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  8. Tombukt2

    Tombukt2 Senior Member

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    Initially when this starts your coolant level won't be creeping very much and you won't see anything then all of a sudden the bottle will be 2 in down from the full mark then the next few days it'll be almost empty that sort of thing what you want to do right now is just open the top to the bottle where you add the coolant and don't screw it all the way down drive it around and do some stops and restarts without any pressure in the system and see if everything changes like it doesn't rattle because there's no pressure pushing the coolant past the head gasket because you have the cap loose
     
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  9. ASRDogman

    ASRDogman Senior Member

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    Park on level ground. Wait 1-2 minutes after the engine stops.
    Pull the dip stick, wipe it off with a clean rag, put it back in, all the way.
    Pull it out and check where it is on the dip stick. If it's not at the top mark, add
    oil until it is. 0w20.
    Was it a toyota dealership? If not, they may not have used the correct weight oil.
    Or correct oil. If you haven't been using synthetic oil, the sensor "may" be clogged.

    Did they change the filter? And used a Toyota filter? That filter may be clogged.

    Or if you have haven't been using synthetic oil, it could be clogging up the ports.

    Or, the engine was just low on oil...
     
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  10. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    The title says "Check Engine (Oil pressure) light", which makes me want more information, 'cause those aren't the same light. The first post says "engine light", and I assume the OP means the check-engine light, the yellow one with an engine shape.

    Low oil pressure in this car doesn't give you the check-engine light, it gives you the warning triangle and words on the MID:

    [​IMG]

    If the yellow check-engine light is on, I'd go with the low oil being a separate issue, and just go ahead and read the trouble codes to learn why the yellow check-engine light is on.
     

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  11. woody23

    woody23 Junior Member

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    Yes, all that was completely cleaned about 2 years ago.

    Engine coolant level is stable.

    Last year when the car was slightly low on the dipstick, just below full dot, nothing unusual happened. This year, it will knock most of time on startup and then normalize. If I park the car at an incline, it seems more likely to knock on startup.

    Last year if oil was between the two dots, nothing. This year..... well today was the first day that's happened in a while and I got the rattling and check engine light...... and the oil change was 3 weeks ago from Toyota dealership.
     
  12. woody23

    woody23 Junior Member

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    It's the yellow/orange one that says check below it:

    [​IMG]
     
  13. woody23

    woody23 Junior Member

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    I only get it changed at the dealership. I was charged for a filter on the invoice so I assume they did. I've always used the 0w20 oil.
     
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  14. woody23

    woody23 Junior Member

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    I should do this even though it seems resolved for now? The light is off and the car is driving normal, no knock right now. I've got the oil topped off, dipstick is normal.
     
  15. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    Right, that one just means something about the engine needs checking, and there are trouble codes to tell you what. The only way to find out what it's telling you about is to retrieve the trouble codes, so that's what you do.

    If there are no lights right now and nothing seems to be misbehaving, maybe there isn't much for you to do, unless it starts misbehaving in some way again.
     
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  16. ASRDogman

    ASRDogman Senior Member

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    Okay, perhaps I miss read what you wrote? You were talking about the oil...
    You need a code reader to find out what the code is so you know where to look.

    Do not delete the code! Find out what it is first. It may be missfires.
    And if so, you'll need to know which of the 4 cylinders you're having an issue with.
    You may have the beginings of a failing head gasket. You won't notice the coolant
    getting low because it a very little amount, at first. And this is the time to replace it.
    Before it caused other more exensive issues...

     
    #16 ASRDogman, Mar 29, 2024
    Last edited: Mar 29, 2024
  17. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    At maybe 150~170k miles? That’s late to be doing it.