Contaminated Fuel

Good day to you all!

Firstly, let me tell you all how helpful that this form has been in both deciding eight months ago to buy a Prius in the first place, and what to expect after the sale. This has been an invaluable resource in making the Prius experience overwhelmingly positive.

I am faced now, however, with a problem which your collective expertise will no doubt be of great value. I bought a tank of gas contaminated with water. The gas station admitted it and is footing the bill for the replacement of the gas tank unit in the Prius. Now this is all done, and the car runs fine again, however, I had the "check engine" light come on twice.

The first time, I immediately took it back to the dealership (Alexandria Toyota in Virginia -- VERY nice people and very helpful as well!) They kept it overnight and declared it to be "related to the gas cap." They reset the light and the gas cap and sent me on my merry way -- no charge, by the way.

Two days later, whilst commuting, the light came on again. Research about such things here on the PriusChat site seem to indicate that what they were telling me was indeed the likely culprit. However, with my Prius (my baby, I admit!) about to go in the shop again, is there any advice about such things which may be of value?

I do NOT know the engine codes which were generated in the process, so I can't be of any help in providing any solid quantifyiable diagnostic facts from which you can base a judgment. (Unless they are on the original repair receipt -- and I am not sure I'd know what to look for anyhow.) Just hoping that the collective experience of this auspicious group may be able to guide me to a final resolution.

In closing, I am not a car geek. I always have a close personal relationship with vehicles I own. (No, not that close!) But this Prius is just about the coolest, nicest, most reliable car I have ever had the pleasure of owning. It has always exceeded my expectation at every turn. Well worth the price paid, and damned if it's not still fun to drive after eight months of trouble free operation. If I hadn't introduced the contaminated fuel into the tank, it would no doubt still be purring like the proverbial kitten.

Thanks again to you all! 'Preciate your help!

Warm Regards,

Dan Wolfe

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(galaxee @ Jul 24 2006, 10:26 PM) [snapback]291757[/snapback]</div>

Strangely enough, I was at the gas station just as the driver of the bulk fuel truck discovered that HIS gas was contaminated. They rushed around telling everyone to stop using regular grade gas, but it was too late for some of us.

Should also note that this was a Navy Exchange gas station near the Pentagon supplied by Citgo. They have already called me and told me that the reimbursement was approved and apologised for the delay. I was like -- "What delay?" lol... I consider their response to have been stellar.

Good suggestion about asking for the codes. I will do that. I am still trying to get in touch with my service advisor who, in spite of not fixing it the first and second times, has been really good about working with me on it all. Matter of fact, he just called and set up the service appointment for tomorrow, so hopefully, I'll have more info then.

On a related note, what is the consensus -- or IS there one -- on the best Prius mechanic in Northern Virginia? I've seen a few posts, but nothing specific. Is there anyone out there who knows the definitive expert in NoVa? Curious...

Surely will miss my Prius while it's in the shop. Driving anything else is completely unsatisfying.

Unless they put me in a Porche.

Dan

 

Here's a quick update. The fine people at Alexandria Toyota took my Prius in the shop today as planned to see if they can locate the source of the "check engine" light. I took your advice and asked them to retrieve the engine codes, and he had the ones from the original service call: P0441 and P0446.

By the way, they gave me a free loaner car and also are installing the front end mask for me as well. These folks are at the very least exhibiting terrific customer service. I'm impressed, frankly, compared to the dealership from which I bought the car in the first place.

Dan

 

Picking up the Prius this morning. They called Saturday to come pick it up when I was about 70 miles out of town with the loaner, so I waited until this morning to go get it. Wish me luck....

Dan

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Dan-Wolfe @ Jul 31 2006, 08:16 AM) [snapback]295003[/snapback]</div>

I got it. They found the charcoal canister leaking and replaced it. No charge. I was shocked. They also installed the front hood mask. Also at no charge. Now if the check engine light remains off, this will be the end of the contaiminated fuel incident.

Alexandria Toyota surely did what they could to make the inconvenience of coming back worthwhile. I can honestly say that these folks really took care of me and took care of the car. I am delighted with the work they did, and even though it took them a couple of tries, they made it right.

See Sean Martin at Alexandria Toyota if you're in Northern Virginia. Tell him you got a recommendation from the PriusChat web site.

Dan

P.S. Got a check over the weekend which reimbursed the cost of everything. This has been relatively painless! <Furiously knocking on wood!>