Dead Prius

Yes, relaiability is about statics, and regardless of my current opinion of Toyotas, there is alot of data and press out there on increasing recalls and decreasing reliability of Toyota and Lexus vehicles, so it is not just my opinion b/c I am "frustrated" as a responder stated!


Fuel was definatiely 87 octane regular. I believe diesel pumps (at least the ones I've used) have different sized pump spout that won't fit into a regular car tank inlet. When I have heard of people putting diesel in, it is b/c it was pumped into a gas can first and then into the car. I def would have noticed the diesel smell anyway.

The dealer thinks it is water in the gas, they are trying an additive overnight and will drop and drain the tank tomorrow if that doesn't work.

I have already contacted the credit card company that I used to purchase the gas and they seem to be onboard with helping me recoup costs if there is any damage to the engine not starting at highway speeds and potential damage this may have caused. If not, a small claims court suit will be pending ASAP.

A

 

UPDATE: Have had the worst experience ever at Fred Anderson Toyota in Raleigh, NC. I strongly recommend not doing business with them if you are in the area. Have had to call Toyota Southeast twice amd started a complaint file over this. I think I will driving to MA to work with Troy Deitrich IF I buy another one...

Anyway, the dealer started working on my car 8 hours after they told they would, after I called them 4 times to check on the status. They put a "dry gas" -type chemical in the tank and this didn't help so they pumped out the tank, swished around some cleaner, pumped that out, and then filled the tank with gas and it has run fine since. $340.00 for this service.

They couldn't find any obvious contaminants so I asked for a sample so I could have it tested. I went to the dealership to pick up the car and they failed to give me sample of the gas from the tank so I ended up having to go back to the dealership (40+ minutes) just to pick up the sample. There were other things that happened and poor customer service that I don't really want to go into right now.

I have since called the owner/manager of the gas station and they had the NC Dept. of Agriculture test the gas in their tank, but it had been refilled at least 3 times so it really isn't an accurate sample. I am also having them test the sample that the car dealership gave me to see if there are any invisible contaminants in the that gas. The guy from the NCDA said sometimes diesel or kerosene gets into the gas.

I'm not convinced that it is bad gas, I think there was a computer glitch or something that got reset without anyone realizing it. Anyway, Toyota won't warranty anything b/c it has diagnosed it as bad gas and they probably won't warranty anything even if it isn't bad gas after testing, so I will be left holding the bill...only thing I did wrong I guess was buy a Toyota and that will cost me $340.00 plus the cost of the car.

A

 

No problems so far, the NCDA guy is coming tomorrow for the gas sample so we should know in a few days about the gas.

I will be going to Toyota of Durham from now on. My GF went there this weekend to get a replacement air filter and cabin air filter and had great service. Also, I was so angry about my car not getting looked at I had AAA lined up to tow it from Fred Anderson to Toyota of Durham at 6 PM, and Luis at the Durham dealer gauranteed it would be looked at by noon the next day if I got it there by close the night before. I wish I had taken it there from the beginning.

Now it also needs an alignment and new tires, I'm not sure how I'll handle that as we have had really good service at Ingold Tires with all our other vehicles.

A

 

No, I'm sorry my last post was confusing. I ALMOST had it towed to T of D b/c I was getting such bad service at Fred Anderson. All the work was done at Fred Anderson and it seems to fine with almost 200 miles on it since they worked on it.

The codes I found on my receipt are: P0A0F; P3190; P3191.

The dealer said there were no fault codes, I am guessing these are codes for the Synergy drive b/c it was run down so low b/c I was cruising at 65 MPH on I40 when the engine wouldn't start so it ran the battery pack down to 0.

Hope this is clear as mud now

A


Oh yeah...it has never been pressure washed that I know of for any reason.

A

 

Update- Had fuel tested- the stupid technicians at Fred Anderson Toyota in Raleigh, NC cross-contaminated the sample and so there is no proof either way that it was a mechanical problem versus a bad fuel problem.

Guess I will need to decide to just eat the $400 as a penalty for buying a Prius or sue somebody...

W

 

Please try not to give me unsolicited advice on who to have a beef with and who not to have a beef with...you have not had to live this nightmare...

The gas station likely did not sell me bad gas, but the technician at Fred Anderson Toyota in Raleigh, NC took away my ability to prove this or anything else... that is the point... There have been no other complaints filed with the NCDA from this station within 2 days before or after my purchase (I doubt that I got the one bad tank of gas out of a 2-5K gal holding tank...), so it is unlikely that it was bad gas anyway. So the dealership fixed something else, either knowingly or unknowingly, and blamed it on bad gas, then they contaminated the sample so that there is no way to prove it either way...I know this sounds like a "conspiracy theory" against me, but the way this dealerhsip has treated me, I wouldn't be surprised....I have caught them in several lies right from the very beginning. (And the service manager is very difficult to work with)

Yes the dealer fixed the car, at $400 to pump 10 gal of fuel out of the tank using the Prius' fuel pump (they told me they did it manually and that is why it cost so much, later they told me it was done using the fuel pump, so somebody's lying...) Also, they didn't follow usual operating procedure for handling gas samples.

I filed complaints with the BBB in Raleigh and filed multiple complaints with Southeast Toyota as I believe the issue here is still with the vehicle and the dealership...not with the gas station...

A

 

Actually, according to the officials at the NCDA who inspected the tank in question, said the the pump pick-up (where fuel is pumped out of the holding tank) is six inches above the bottom of the tank, and there was less than a half of an inch of water in the botom of the tank, which is more than acceptable according to the NCDA inspector. He also said that if they had found any problems with the gas station, it would have been shut down immediately until the issues were resolved. Also, there were no orther complaints issued, which again points to something other than bad gas. The NCDA inspector confirmed that when there is a problem with a fuel supply, it is not one isolated case but multiple complaints all grouped together.

I really wish it was bad gas, it would have been much easier to prove and get the repairs paid for, but I really don't believe it was bad gas...

A

 

Update: Toyota Corporate (not the dealer- Fred Anderson Toyota in Raleigh, NC) has been very kind and has agreed to pay the cost of repairs to my Prius based on the lab test results from the NCDA indicating that bad fuel was not the cause of my engine troubles...still don't know what it was, but it seems to be running fine, so whatever it was they fixed it.

Thank you Toyota for making this headache go away!!

W