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

What a little maintenance can do.....

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by joeslawn, Nov 9, 2017.

  1. joeslawn

    joeslawn Junior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 19, 2017
    21
    10
    0
    Location:
    IA
    Vehicle:
    2005 Prius
    Model:
    II
    Bought a 05 Prius 3 weeks ago. 226,800 miles on it then. Toyota records indicate no maintenance has been done since 120K. Today it has 229,600 miles on it. Started off getting 38-39MPG on 500 mile trips... just got home today from another trip of 200 miles and it got 47MPG.

    What's been done since I bought the car:
    Before 38-39MPG 500 mile trip:
    New tires and inflated to 50PSI (sidewall 44, Cooper CS5)
    1 bottle of Techron Fuel System Cleaner

    Today, right before 200 mile trip:
    New spark plugs
    New PCV valve
    New engine air filter
    New cabin air filter
    Oil change to Mobil 1 Synthetic and 0-30 oil along with 4oz of Marvel (Thought I'd picked up 5-30, oh well)
    MAF sensor cleaning
    Carburetor cleaner down carburetor throat
    Messed with headlight leveling sensor and turned on red triangle for my trouble....

    After 200 mile trip, MFD said 46.8MPG and fuel tank calculation said 47.1MPG, filled up at same gas pump before and after.

    Over the last 2500 miles it used approx. 1/2 quart of oil. Hoping that I've put a stop to that as well with the PCV valve replacement and the switch to synthetic.

    Other work done:
    ABS light was on for wheel speed sensor, replaced that

    Now it has the Red Triangle for the headlight leveling system... part on order, headlights work better with red triangle on than they did before I messed with the thing... so once it's fixed I'll have normal headlights again.

    Future maintenance jobs include headlight cleaning, windshield replacement, coolant changes, transmission oil changes, and engine belt changes.

    Thanks to all of the posts here it has made this car very easy to work on.

    I was afraid my Hybrid battery was shot because it wasn't hitting the numbers I wanted to see but after today's 47MPG run I think the car is practically as normal as it can be at this mileage. Have no idea if the battery has ever been replaced.

    Elevations for 500 mile trip, 1 way:
    Start altitude: 419 metres
    End altitude: 255 metres
    Maximum altitude: 431 metres
    Minimum altitude: 236 metres
    Distance: 391.2 km
    Total ascent: 2001 metres
    Total descent: 2165 metres
    Maximum gradient ascending: 16% at 218.5 km
    Maximum gradient descending: 18% at 218.2 km


    Elevations for 200 mile trip, 1 way:
    Start altitude: 374 metres
    End altitude: 316 metres
    Maximum altitude: 460 metres
    Minimum altitude: 297 metres
    Distance: 147.1 km
    Total ascent: 886 metres
    Total descent: 944 metres
    Maximum gradient ascending: 12% at 98.5 km
    Maximum gradient descending: 10% at 98.3 km

    From the elevations the 500 mile trip should get less than 47MPG but not as low as 38-39MPG.
     
    #1 joeslawn, Nov 9, 2017
  2. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 17, 2010
    54,673
    38,214
    80
    Location:
    Greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Touring
    Are you sure triangle is from headlight levelling? Shooting carb cleaner directly into throttle body and/or the MAF cleaning might be factors.

    Also, just for giggles, try lowering tire pressures say at least 10 psi, see if there's any difference, for a tank or two. It'll be easier on the suspension/bearings, improve traction maybe, smoother.
     
    #2 Mendel Leisk, Nov 9, 2017
  3. dolj

    dolj Senior Member

    Joined:
    May 14, 2012
    7,487
    3,763
    0
    Location:
    Wellington, New Zealand
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    If fuel economy is important to you, those Coopers tire will not be doing you any favors.
     
    #3 dolj, Nov 9, 2017
  4. Prodigyplace

    Prodigyplace Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 1, 2016
    11,696
    11,317
    0
    Location:
    Central Virginia
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    You should also consider a Hybrid Automotive Ptologe battery conditioning system to extend the life of your Hybtid traction battery. @jeff652 is an active member here.
     
    #4 Prodigyplace, Nov 9, 2017
    Raytheeagle likes this.
  5. joeslawn

    joeslawn Junior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 19, 2017
    21
    10
    0
    Location:
    IA
    Vehicle:
    2005 Prius
    Model:
    II
    Yes... red triangle and headlight symbol came on the day before briefly so I knew it needed investigation.

    Right. I got tires for a very good price from a Cooper dealer that's what I went with. Next set of tires will be a higher MPG tire.
     
    #5 joeslawn, Nov 9, 2017
    Mendel Leisk likes this.
(You must log in or sign up to post here.)