1. Attachments are working again! Check out this thread for more details and to report any other bugs.

Lucas Gas Treatment?

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Fuel Economy' started by Taxi/Limo, Jan 29, 2017.

  1. MilkyWay

    MilkyWay Active Member

    Joined:
    Feb 20, 2013
    819
    357
    23
    Location:
    MI
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    II
    I used Lucas as well as Blue Devil Fuel Cleaner.

    Blue Devil actually magically fixed a bad oil leak on an 02 Honda Civic pretty much instantly...So I consider them to be top of the line. I also think 99% of these potions don't do anything. But seen Blue Devil actually work before my eyes.

    BTW - My 2011 Prius had very poor gas mileage (35-36) and after spark plugs/PCV valve it is still crap --- 39.5ish but we'll see if I get any improvement. I switched to 0W20 Mobil One "Advanced Fuel Economy" the other day and just recently did the Lucas and Blue Devil.

    Blue Devil

    Lucas individual tiny bottles each fill up: Lucas Upper Cylinder Lubricant and Injector Cleaner, 5.25 FL OZ - Walmart.com

    This is most likely money down the drain but I'm under 40mpg so worth a shot.
     
  2. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 1, 2016
    11,251
    15,476
    0
    Location:
    Bay Area, California
    Vehicle:
    2019 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Plus
    Have you opened up the intake manifold and investigated it and the EGR system? Checked the brake systems to see if there is a dragging one (usually a rear one)?
     
    Mendel Leisk likes this.
  3. CoastRider

    CoastRider Active Member

    Joined:
    May 25, 2017
    305
    397
    0
    Location:
    Off into the sunset...
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    My new tires caused my mpg to decrease by 5. Maybe I need some tire air treatment. :LOL:
    (Ok, that wasn't funny.)

    On a serious note, my car always seems to run better and get a little higher mpg (displayed) when I fill up at Chevron (with Techron). But then again, all those hamburgers are giving me crazy dreams...

     
    #43 CoastRider, Jul 16, 2017
    Last edited: Jul 16, 2017
    MilkyWay likes this.
  4. MilkyWay

    MilkyWay Active Member

    Joined:
    Feb 20, 2013
    819
    357
    23
    Location:
    MI
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    II
    We did clean the front egr pipe but didn't get into ripping tons of parts off...just the front easy to access one.

    As far as brakes dragging. I got them done at Belle Tire and not sure I can drop the car off and say "hey can you check for brakes dragging". I don't really work on my own cars.

    I got the 2011 with 184,500 miles and I am pretty sure the dash said somewhere between 35-37 when I got it...And I put the tires on and it has slowly climbed to just under 40mpg...But I credit most of that to the completely shot spark plugs.
     
  5. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 1, 2016
    11,251
    15,476
    0
    Location:
    Bay Area, California
    Vehicle:
    2019 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Plus
    Not working on a high mileage car can get pricey :(.

    What did the egr pipe look like when you cleaned it? If a lot of carving deposits, there will be similar levels in both the egr system and intake manifold.

    Good luck (y).
     
  6. MilkyWay

    MilkyWay Active Member

    Joined:
    Feb 20, 2013
    819
    357
    23
    Location:
    MI
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    II
    Do you mean not working on it period or not working on it personally? I personally do not work on cars, can't stand it, don't have the tools, don't have the knowledge, and no idea what I'm doing...I will do very simple 1 7mm bolt stuff and even that turns into a nightmare! If I change a battery I'm scraping my knuckles all over the place and drawing blood. Me and fixing cars do not go together!

    But, I do "work on cars", just not myself...I acquired the vehicle at dirt cheap price and could have drove it as-is...But, as preventative maintainance I had mechanic change spark plugs, PCV, oil, clean EGR, all brakes/rotors, and new Michelins, rain-X wipers, air/cabin filters, weathertech mats, and some potions in the gas tank (lucas/blue devil)....Put a little over $1000 in work...Only thing that I didn't do (which I have a free coupon for) is check the 12V....My mechanic says the 12V has nothing to do with gas mileage but I've read on this forum people saying it does???

    Here are some pics:

    (first post: New to me 2011 Prius why is it getting 35-37MPG!!! | PriusChat).

    They had carbon build up but they weren't totally clogged...The spark plugs looked bad.
     
    CoastRider likes this.
  7. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 1, 2016
    11,251
    15,476
    0
    Location:
    Bay Area, California
    Vehicle:
    2019 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Plus
    Sounds like you're a flipper, so probably not interested in keeping your new Prius for too long.

    If it were my Prius, I would pull off the intake manifold and egr cooler / valve. With the pics you have (as well as some oil consumption), there will be deposits in each piece, which affects fuel economy. The easier of the two is the intake manifold, so start there and clean the small ports that are the returns from the egr circuit.

    Hope that helps(y).
     
    MilkyWay likes this.
  8. MelonPrius

    MelonPrius Senior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 13, 2017
    809
    504
    0
    Location:
    Las Vegas
    Vehicle:
    2014 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    I know that this thread is about Lucas, but I read from other board members that Techron was on sale at Costco. So I checked it out this weekend, and yes, it's available at a great price. 6 bottles (16 oz) at $11, reduced from ~$20. That comes out to $1.83 a 16 oz bottle.

    I was buying the same thing at Walmart at $4.47 for a 12 oz bottle, which prorates to nearly $6 for 16 oz. That's a substantial discount at Costco.
     
  9. MilkyWay

    MilkyWay Active Member

    Joined:
    Feb 20, 2013
    819
    357
    23
    Location:
    MI
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    II
    Well, after using quite a few bottles of Lucas I can conclude that it is worthless...Zero impact on fuel economy.
     
  10. MelonPrius

    MelonPrius Senior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 13, 2017
    809
    504
    0
    Location:
    Las Vegas
    Vehicle:
    2014 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    I've been following your low mpg saga with interest. In your case, it probably means that your poor mpg was not a result of dirty injectors.
     
  11. harrysprius

    harrysprius Active Member

    Joined:
    May 23, 2017
    277
    126
    0
    Location:
    Nashville, TN
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    V
    Thanks for the heads up.
     
  12. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 1, 2016
    11,251
    15,476
    0
    Location:
    Bay Area, California
    Vehicle:
    2019 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Plus
    I have used (and continue to) BG Products EPR and MOA along with 44k.

    Here's some info from a local rep I have been getting more info on:

    [POLL] Excessive Oil Usage

    Hope it helps(y).