1/3 qt. oil consumed after 5.5k miles

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by rocketrob, May 21, 2013.

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  1. rocketrob

    rocketrob Member

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    Here's the story: '07 with 72K. This past oil change interval I drove way more miles than typical. I made 3 round trips between LA and Bay Area, 350 miles each way. One of those trips the Prius was absolutely packed with heavy boxes and gear on a 90+ degree day. If anyone has made the trip on I-5, you would know about the Tejon Pass, aka the Grapevine, aka the car killer. For those that don't know, think long and excessively steep mountain pass. Right, so I've done that three times now.

    With all this driving I didn't have time to get the oil changed right at the 5K interval, so I wound up being ~500 miles over the recommended change mileage.

    Question: Is it alarming that the engine consumed ~1/3 of a quart over 5.5K miles given such taxing operating conditions?

    Probably nothing to be concerned about but wanted to run it by PCers regardless... Thanks!
     
    #1 rocketrob, May 21, 2013
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    are you saying it should have consumed more?
     
    #2 bisco, May 21, 2013
  3. rocketrob

    rocketrob Member

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    i'm asking if it's any surprise that any oil was consumed at all.

    could it be an indication of engine wear? (shocking!):eek:
     
    #3 rocketrob, May 21, 2013
  4. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    no, not at all. and under those conditions, even less. (y)
     
    #4 bisco, May 21, 2013
  5. rocketrob

    rocketrob Member

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    ok cool. Guess I'm ready for the next Cannonball Run...
     
    #5 rocketrob, May 21, 2013
  6. JMD

    JMD 2012 Prius 4 Solar Roof

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    The Grapevine cannot be appreciated until you did the climb and decent. There have been train wrecks on it.



    image.jpg
     
    #6 JMD, May 21, 2013
  7. JMD

    JMD 2012 Prius 4 Solar Roof

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    The Train Wreck 69 cars plus three locomotives. Dynamic brakes failed on the rear locomotive could not stop the train. Pullman applied the emergency brakes which deactivate the dynamic brakes on the 2 working trains thus the train speed up and at the bottom of the mountain on a turn derailed and afterward a petroleum tank explosion


    San Bernardino train disaster - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


    image.jpg
     
    #7 JMD, May 21, 2013
  8. rocketrob

    rocketrob Member

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    woah. off topic, but your info on the rail line thru Tejon caused me to stumble across the Tehachapi Loop. Pretty awesome stuff.

    Anyways, it's not just the Tejon Pass. I-5 is a pain that entire stretch between Santa Clarita (where Route 14 splits off) and Grapevine. It's common to see disabled cars waiting for tows, even the nice new models (that is, if you're of the mind that Mercedes and BMWs are 'nice'). Semis take that stretch niiice and sloow, 20mph in the right lane.
     
    #8 rocketrob, May 22, 2013
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  9. uart

    uart Senior Member

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    Seriously rob, you seem to have an unrealistic expectation that your Prius will never consume any oil. This could cause you to run low on oil at some time in the future if you get too complacent.

    Many people notice that at around 100k miles their Prius starts to use a modest amount of oil. You need to be open to the prospect of getting some oil consumption and perhaps even require topping off between changes as your Prius ages. So don't forget to check the dipstick fairly regularly, even if you think it shouldn't have consumed any.
     
    #9 uart, May 22, 2013
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  10. rocketrob

    rocketrob Member

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    I never said that I was surprised by the oil consumption. I asked if others found it surprising. I knew about the oil consumption because I regularly check the dipstick.

    Semantics aside, I think the Prius handles that tough trip like a champ. My '96 Corolla 1.6L 3speed, on the other hand, is a different story.
     
    #10 rocketrob, May 22, 2013
  11. Britprius

    Britprius Senior Member

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    This amount of oil usage would not be considered excessive by Toyota for a new Prius, so I do think you are overly concerned. However as Uart says the oil should have been checked at leased 5 times in that 5,500 mile period.

    John (Britprius)
     
    #11 Britprius, May 22, 2013
  12. uart

    uart Senior Member

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    No problems Rob, that's the way to do it. (y)

    Over the various cars I've owned I've noticed that oil consumption is often slightly greater at freeway speed when the engine is working hard, compared with around town driving where oil consumption is often less apparent. Depending on the age and mileage, anything less than one full quart over 5000 miles is not particularly seriuous. One third of a quart is pretty close to nothing. :)

    BTW. I've got about 112k miles on my 2005 Prius, and the consumption is pretty consistent at around half a quart per 5000 miles.
     
    #12 uart, May 22, 2013
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  13. Britprius

    Britprius Senior Member

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    Uart do you use the UK or US quart in Australia.

    John (Britprius)
     
    #13 Britprius, May 22, 2013
  14. rocketrob

    rocketrob Member

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    re: uart

    Thanks for your data points! Naturally, oil consumption can vary depending on driving conditions. I, too, notice that oil consumption slightly increases with freeway driving, particularly on older, high-mileage engines.

    Case in point, the Corolla I mentioned earlier can burn ~1qt over 1k miles if driven hard on the freeway. (its 3speed transmission requires high revs to go more than 65 mph) but in city driving consumption is reduced to something more like 1qt over 2k - 3k miles.

    Up until this point, I can say with certainty that my Prius has now not shown any signs of oil consumption. Oil was at the top of the dipstick and essentially clear at every 5K mile oil interval. Then again, I don't typically travel long distances at freeway speeds (not to mention that dang Grapevine! ugh :) )

    Thanks for the good discussion.
     
    #14 rocketrob, May 22, 2013
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  15. uart

    uart Senior Member

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    Hi John. We're strictly metric here, so km and litres etc. :)

    On these forums however I often use quarts (US) in place of litres. This is just because most of the participants here are from the US, so I figure it's easier for them. The conversion is close enough to 1:1 for discussions like this, where super precise quantities aren't required. I think the exact conversion is 0.94625L per US quart.
     
    #15 uart, May 22, 2013
  16. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    in the 70's, i had a '66 mercedes that used more oil than gas! i used to keep a case in the trunk and would have to stop and top it up on trips.:p
     
    #16 bisco, May 22, 2013
  17. CBarr31

    CBarr31 Active Member

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    Rob,

    I have been seeing more and more posts about Gen II Prii burning oil and the need to watch it every 1,000 miles or so. My Ema burns about a quart every 1,500 miles or there about. Then again she has 337K on her engine that is almost all highway miles.

    I can confirm that high RPM's and steep climbs do significantly increase the Burn in Ema. I used to climb big hills on cruise and just let the little engine whine up to over 4,000 RPM. Now I turn the cruise off and try and keep the RPM's under 4,000 (scanguage). It seems to help some.

    I personally have not had any luck with engine "treatments" but some have. If you want to look into that I recommend this thread - 2008 Prius - burning oil at 135,000 miles | PriusChat

    Avi seems to have had some luck with seafoam in lower mileage engines. I have tried several things and have concluded my engine is just pretty much worn out, lol. Of course after 337K miles I can't really complain.

    Happy driving,
    Chris
     
    #17 CBarr31, May 22, 2013
  18. Winston

    Winston Member

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    I have 115k miles on my car and burn 1 qt per 5000 miles.
     
    #18 Winston, May 22, 2013
  19. boppo

    boppo Active Member

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    I guess thing have changed since they made my 88 Camry, I have 275,000 miles on it and change the oil every 5k and Betsy don't burn a drop. I guess I will have to start checking my Prius dip stick.
     
    #19 boppo, May 22, 2013
  20. Bucky35

    Bucky35 Junior Member

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    that is very low oil consumption.... no worries there

    Something most people don't consider is that oil also functions as a coolant as well as it's primary purpose as a lubricant.
    Therefore, as the oil level drops below the full level the oil starts to run at a higher temperature. The lower the level the higher the oil temperature. The higher the oil temperature runs the faster it vaporizes (burns)

    So as others have said, check your oil more often, and add oil when necessary.
     
    #20 Bucky35, May 22, 2013
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