Engine Oil behaviour

You should keep the discussion about oil in your car in one single thread......instead of asking the same question in different ways in different threads.

 

i'm not sure you can describe it as 'normal', but it does happen. there isn't a lot of discussion regarding gen2 oil burning compared to gen3, that i am aware of. iirc, some people try different engine treatments, or heavier oils.
otherwise, best you can do is top it up more frequently. don't let it go down a quart, try to keep it near full as often as possible so it doesn't get away from you.
worst thing that can happen is low oil pressure, then you wind up with engine damage and burning oil at a higher rate.
another downside to oil burning is pollution

 

According to Toyota (in your owner's manual), using up to 1 liter (1.1 qt) of oil every 600 miles is normal. What your comfort level is your personal business. I am attaching a screen shot of page 325 of my owner's manual where this number came from.

 

That's about what my consumption is. I've found that NAPA Syn Blend is OK, SuperTech Conventional is horrible, SuperTech High Mileage is excellent for minimizing consumption. Those are all I've tried.

 

I slowed down my oil burning 2009 Prius with 171k on it this month by using engine cleaning treatment. Make sure your maintenance was always done according to Toyota specs. ie oil changes done every 5k done on time. Better out come for cleaner engines are synthetic oil versus conventional. Most 2nd Gen Prius start to burning oil around 100k. It's due to oil return ring getting gummed or engine sludge and valve stem seals. It's a known problem with toyota 1NZ-FXE engines. People are trying Marvel mystery oil or toyota clean oil treatment at the end of oil life the last 200 miles as recommended. Then change oil and repeat for the next couple of oil changes. It took me 3x oil changes after 15,000 miles.

SM-J737T1 ?

 

2nd Gen Prius Oil Consumption and Preventative maintenance Suggestion....
https://r.tapatalk.com/shareLink/topic?url=https://priuschat.com/threads/2nd-gen-prius-oil-consumption-and-preventative-maintenance-suggestion.204946/&share_tid=204946&share_fid=1171&share_type=t&link_source=app

2nd Gen Prius Oil Consumption and Preventative maintenance Suggestion....

SM-J737T1 ?

 

Before you start the treatment make sure your engine doesn't have chunks of oil sludge. People who don't change the oil on time is more acceptable to bad sludge build.
A mechanic can check the engine out before starting treatment.
Check out this video.

SM-J737T1 ?

 

Good old Scotty Kilmer.

It is for exactly the reason he says don't do it, that you would want to in the Prius.

As for changing the oil regularly, many people are doing just that, and with expensive full synthetic oil, yet still, they are having oil usage problems. Sometimes excessive. When you get to near the 1.1 qt per 600 mi mark, you haven't got a lot to lose trying an engine flush.

 

And ALL of those cases likely are NOT caused by the exact same thing.

When the mileage gets real high, it likely is a combination of things.
Putting solvents in with the oil might free up stuck rings and at the same time make worn valve guide seals MUCH worse.......and other leaks too.

 

I'd never go to 5k on a Prius for changing oil. Mine was low 3 quarts (nothing on dipstick) after 2k miles lol.

 

It's cheaper to replace 16x valve stem seals than putting on new oil rings. So, if can free up stuck oil rings from an oil treatment and free up sludge. Or find out later the valve stem seal leak that's just a $800 job versus a engine rebuild which is like $4000.

SM-J737T1 ?

 

True,

True again, but the two cars specifically mentioned in this thread are not what I'd call real high mileage (for a Prius) cars,

Given the (relatively) low mileage of the subject cars, I'd say the chances for the former would be better and the risk of the latter less. In any case, the solvents used are oil-based, so it doesn't make it mutually exclusive. The solvents will have lubricating properties as well as cleaning ability.

As I said, if you are burning 1.1 qt per 600 miles, you are looking at replacing the engine or scraping the car anyway, so what have you really got to lose by trying a cleaning regime?

 

Not all of them.
SeaFoam, for instance, contains a fair amount of alcohol......and naptha (white gas).
While the later comes from petroleum, I wouldn't exactly say it qualifies as having "lubricating properties".

Oh.....and if your primary objective is to get the solvent to the rings, that usually can be done more efficiently from the TOP instead of the BOTTOM......and it will be more concentrated when it gets there too.

 

I have found the Super Tech full synthetic to be quite good as well. For the first 4000-4500 miles, no loss of oil at all. As I get closer to 5000 it begins to burn just a small amount of oil. At 226k I’ll take it.