Hi there. The speedometer on my '08 just reached 30K mi. and the Maint. Req'd light came on. I called the dealer's Service Dept. and was told that the only maintenance it needs is a tire rotation (?) Bought the car in July and it looked to have new tires (Uniroyal Tiger Paw Touring which from what I've read on this site don't appear to be stock) and am not due for an oil change for a few thousand more miles. Suggestions? And how do I get the "Maint. Req'd" light to turn off? Thank you all for any advice you can provide on this.
No those tires are not stock. When you replace them you should get a LRR tire(there's plenty of info about there here). Your car needs an oil change every 5k. mi. To rest the main.t light you basically just hold the km/mph button at the same time you push the power button to power up the car. Just be sure not to let go of each button until the reset completes.
the om has instructions for shutting off the lite. i think you need an oil change, air and cabin filter at 30k. check your maint. schedule.
Thank you. The oil was changed at 28K so according to the sticker on the window, it's good for another 3K. As for the tires, I've been averaging just over 45 mpg, mostly highway driving, so that seems about normal? The OM was missing from the GC when I bought the car, and a new one was ordered by the dealership that has yet to arrive. I DL'd the online OM and could find nothing in there pertaining to the MR light. Will try that method of turning it off... thanks!!!
It's best to use the maintenance required light to remind you of oil changes. They're more important than tire rotations, and rotation every 5k is probably more than necessary. The "Uniroyal Tiger Paw Touring" tires are good. I've got a Consumer Reports article (a bit dated from Nov 2009) that rates them as roughly on par with the "Goodyear Assurance Fuelmax" as far as rolling resistance goes. So definitely an LRR tire.
Since you are just relying on the sticker for when the oil was changed, I would recommend checking the oil yourself to see the level (Overfilled is BAD) and how dirty it is. Also I only rotate tires about every 10,000 miles. Dealer would love to have you do it every 5,000, but that's not really necessary. From Page 131 in my Owner's Manual. I have the page corner bent over in mine to bookmark it because after 120,000 I do all my own oil changes. To reset the MAINT REQD: 1. Press the “POWER” switch to the “OFF” mode with the odometer reading shown. (For details, see “Odometer and two trip meters” on page 123.) 2. Press the “POWER” switch twice to select the “IG−ON” mode while holding down the trip meter reset button. Hold down the button for at least 5 seconds. The odometer indicates “000000” and the light goes off. If the system fails to reset, the light will remain flashing.
Agree with Zedhomme. I rotate the tires on every other oil change, don't make a special trip to the dealer just for that. The dealer apparently forgot to clear the maintenance light at the last oil change (probably because it wasn't on yet). I don't think it's in the OM, use his steps. (And on the alternate oil changes, I do it myself, otherwise they gradually bring the oil level up a bit too high on each change, which may or may not be a problem, depending on how anal retentive you are). 45 mpg could be quite reasonable, depending on weather, length of commute, and driving style. Highway vs. city doesn't mean so much for the Prius. Rotating the tires doesn't affect mpg's, just the life of the tire. Properly inflated tires will affect the mpg's though. I keep the tires about 10% over the sticker plate recommendation of 35 front/33 rear. So I'm about 39/37 PSI. Most tires are rated for 44 PSI, there's whole threads talking about this. But basically higher pressure (but not over the tire rating) is better for longer tire life and better mpg's, but give a harder ride and might have more slippage on rough roads. Under-inflated tires (below 25 PSI) are dangerous, more prone to blow-outs on a pothole and definitely reduce mpg's. So Toyota says a happy medium is 35/33. Hypermilers often go 42/40 or even more.
Even when I have the dealer change the oil I check the level before I drive away. Overfilling the oil can cause big problems with fouling plugs, Mass Air Flow Meter, and throttle body. Something to really avoid.
Thanks, but my 2011 Prius IV doesn't have a "trip meter reset button" in the middile of the display panel. How do I get rid of the OIL MAINTENANCE REQUIRED display? Thanks.
Here is a little more detail. I have a 2013 now, but 2011 should be same. Reset the MAINT REQD system by the following procedure: 1. Press the “POWER” switch to the “OFF” mode with the odometer reading shown. (For details, see “Odometer and two trip meters” on page 123.) 2. Press the “POWER” switch twice to select the “IG−ON” mode while holding down the trip meter reset button. Hold down the button for at least 5 seconds. The odometer indicates “000000” and the light goes off. If the system fails to reset, the light will remain flashing. Trip meter reset button—Resets the two trip meters to zero, and also change the meter display. push and release the "Trip" button. The meter display changes in the order from the odometer to trip meter A to trip meter B, then back to the odometer each time you push. To reset the trip meter A to zero, display the meter A reading, then push and hold the button until the meter is set to zero. The same process can be applied for resetting the trip meter B.
I have a 2011 Prius Two. I just reset mine about one week ago. Here is how to do it: POWER UP CAR SET TO TRIP A TURN POWER OFF HOLD KM BUTTON IN WITH CAR OFF TURN POWER ON AND START WHILE HOLDING KM BUTTON IN
