Oil burn haunts - Toyota Vitz 2011 (KSP130)

[Noobdriver]

So a couple of months back, I purchased a Toyota Vitz 2011 (KSP130, 1KR-FE) driven about 133k kilometers, and ever since I've driven about 5k. After the first 2-3 weeks of purchase, I discovered a few problems like the Engine Mount was gone, the Shock Absorbers, and a few more things as suggested by the service center I visited for a full service of the car (I'm a noob, my first car, I just wanted something reliable and decent looking to go from A to B). Before you mention whether I got the car inspected before purchase, yes, I did when I bought it from a massive "car house" situated in Malabe (I know you can guess it) and they have an in-house car inspection service from a well-known car service center (the one that was on Baseline road and now re-branded). The car sales guys told me that I could only get it inspected by them as they do not allow cars to leave the premises.

I was naive enough to trust the company and get the inspection, which showed no faults. Biggest mistake of my life that cost me a lot of money to get fixed.

So after all the repairs, I was finally happy that I didn't have to visit service stations anymore and all that (I got the car repaired and serviced at the famous service center that starts with an "S" and ends with a "G" (St__l__g). They did an engine tune-up as well (they told me an engine tune-up is good for the car and my car-savvy friend also recommended doing so when he came with me on a drive in my car) so I did it as well during my first service.

So here comes the fun part, just about the start of December, I was planning a few trips (work holidays, yay), and right before driving to one, I decided to get a car wash and get the crucial components inspected to ensure everything was good. This is about 3000km since my last service at the previously mentioned place. All components were good except the engine oil. It had fallen significantly below the two dots on the stick you use to measure the engine oil level (my apologies, idk what it is called). It was literally only on the tip. I still didn't understand the severity of the issue at the time, and even the vehicle shop guy said it is fine to drive on a trip, just go to your service center after your trip and check what happened.

I drove about 100 kilometers and then immediately went to the service center that my first service and they checked for oil leaks - which were none as they suggested and they told me that it was due to engine oil burn and they topped up 1.5L of 15w40 (Toyota) engine oil. Fast forward about 900 kilometers later, I think I've burnt at least a liter of engine oil now. I went into the service center for another weird sound that I thought would be good to get checked, long story short, not a problem, the sound was caused by a car wash and the water had gone into the break or something. But I decided to get the engine oil checked as well, and they saw the difference. Then the service manager comes and asks me how many kilometers since the last service, and I tell him about 4000. Then he tells me you were supposed to be here on 3000 kilometers because the engine oil was sludged. I was surprised as I had never communicated about such an issue and the service book had told me to return at 5,000 kilometers since service (It has only been about 3 months since service). 

The funny thing is he was the same service manager who did the oil top-up for me when I went there about 1,000 kilometers before.

Now they told me I have to get a service immediately and I have made a booking to do so, and I will be visiting them within the next few days for the service.

They told me if, after the service, this issue is not sorted, I might have to go for an engine overhaul or engine replacement depending on my risk appetite and budget. I am not sure what to do in this scenario. Your advice would be highly appreciated in this!

Any advice is highly appreciated on how I can go about this stuff, as I do not want to sell the car as all the guys ask me to. If someone sold me a faulty product, it feels unethical to me if I forward that faulty product to someone else just because I get saved from the expenses. This car means a lot to me, it is my first ever car and I want to keep this car for at least 3-5 years.
 

Edited January 17 by Noobdriver

[tiv]

Take pics of the Bore, Pistons, old rings and the big end bearings. Get them to inspect the head (Visual or via testing gear)

By meaning overhaul - clarify with them which path they intend to take

1. Replace rings, refit (No pitting on pistons, perfect Bore) - This is the shortest path one could take

2. Replace Rings Pistons Refit (Perfect Bore)

3. Replace Rings, Re Sleeve Refit Standard  ( Scored bore)

4. Replace Rings Re-Bore, Big Pistons Refit (+1 size) ( What I would do)

in Addition to these check - Big end + other Bearings, Valves, Valve Guides,  Timing gear

Another notorious thing on these engines are the engine mounts. Replace whatever you can

 

Since you love the car and want to do a thorough job( which I immensely respect) I suggest you go full 360 on the engine repair.

Get them to inspect the Water Pump, Oil Pump, Replace all seals (Probably included in the overhaul kit that they use)

+New Coolant, new plugs, if finances permit CVT oil as well. Get the radiator and starter motor serviced as well.

Check / replace alternator bearings, AC Compressor bearings if needed. 

Lastly don't rely entirely on the garage people. They too can cut corners any moment, 

Since you are doing a proper rebuild, replace whatever possible.

Give up on the 136,000 km mileage figure, unless someone abused the car badly there is no way that an engine overhaul would be needed at that mileage. There are cars nearing 400,000km and still not burning oil (15w40)

So expect the worst  replace everything that you can afford to. Mileage is just a figure if you take care of the car.

Edited June 5 by tiv

[Noobdriver]

7 hours ago, tiv said:

Take pics of the Bore, Pistons, old rings and the big end bearings. Get them to inspect the head (Visual or via testing gear)

By meaning overhaul - clarify with them which path they intend to take

1. Replace rings, refit (No pitting on pistons, perfect Bore) - This is the shortest path one could take

2. Replace Rings Pistons Refit (Perfect Bore)

3. Replace Rings, Re Sleeve Refit Standard  ( Scored bore)

4. Replace Rings Re-Bore, Big Pistons Refit (+1 size) ( What I would do)

in Addition to these check - Big end + other Bearings, Valves, Valve Guides,  Timing gear

Another notorious thing on these engines are the engine mounts. Replace whatever you can

 

Since you love the car and want to do a thorough job( which I immensely respect) I suggest you go full 360 on the engine repair.

Get them to inspect the Water Pump, Oil Pump, Replace all seals (Probably included in the overhaul kit that they use)

+New Coolant, new plugs, if finances permit CVT oil as well. Get the radiator and starter motor serviced as well.

Check / replace alternator bearings, AC Compressor bearings if needed. 

Lastly don't rely entirely on the garage people. They too can cut corners any moment, 

Since you are doing a proper rebuild, replace whatever possible.

Give up on the 136,000 km mileage figure, unless someone abused the car badly there is no way that an engine overhaul would be needed at that mileage. There are cars nearing 400,000km and still not burning oil (15w40)

So expect the worst  replace everything that you can afford to. Mileage is just a figure if you take care of the car.

Hey,

Thank you for the valuable advice. I recently got the gel mount replaced at Sterling. I have already informed Hybrid Hub to ensure that the other mounts are in good shape at the same time, Hybrid Hub assured me that they will be doing a thorough inspection of the entire car and let me know what needs attention and I could decide based on the cost.

The Water Pump needs replacing and they have my go-ahead to replace it. All the seals will be replaced, and all the rings too will be replaced (I'm not entirely sure what they mean by "all" rings, I believe it is the piston rings only?). I saw the mechanics today, who were re-assembling my engine, and that's what they told me.

Plugs were recently changed, during the engine tune-up at Sterling, should they be changed again?

I will ask them about the "radiator and starter motor," thank you for pointing this out. I believe they're including an "engine tune-up" as well, which I think should cover all of this. My apologies, I'm not very knowledgeable, but I will make sure I highlight these and the CVT oil, which I believe was replaced recently too, but I have to double-check.

I agree about the mileage, however, I use my car's odometer to track events such as service or repairs, and I don't necessarily believe that the mileage is accurate.

[Noobdriver]

Update on 5th June 2024:

I visited earlier today and got the following updates:

• Ordered parts from abroad have arrived.
• They should be able to complete the assembly of the engine today and will work on fitting the engine and the components on the car tomorrow.
• Massive carbon build-up was identified on the Valves and was cleaned out (not replaced).
• The pistons did not require replacing and were cleaned up due to excessive sludge and carbon build-up after being told there was no sludge.

[Izza]

Hey @tiv,

On 6/5/2024 at 5:06 AM, tiv said:

Take pics of the Bore, Pistons, old rings and the big end bearings. Get them to inspect the head (Visual or via testing gear)

By meaning overhaul - clarify with them which path they intend to take

1. Replace rings, refit (No pitting on pistons, perfect Bore) - This is the shortest path one could take

2. Replace Rings Pistons Refit (Perfect Bore)

3. Replace Rings, Re Sleeve Refit Standard  ( Scored bore)

4. Replace Rings Re-Bore, Big Pistons Refit (+1 size) ( What I would do)

Just for my knowledge, what is the reason you would go for re-bore and larger pistons (even if a re-bore is not needed)? To gain additional power?

Edited June 6 by Izza
grammar

[Noobdriver]

22 minutes ago, Izza said:

Hey @tiv,

Just for my knowledge, what is the reason you would go for re-bore and larger pistons (even if a re-bore is not needed)? To gain additional power?

I'm curious to know the same too, and I wonder if the companies here would even be able to do it properly. I'd shit my pants if my engine required re-boring lol

[Noobdriver]

Update on 7th June 2024:

I visited Hybrid Hub and the engine here are the updates:

• The engine is fully assembled.
• All the parts have been put back together in the car.
• @tiv I had a chat with the mechanics, and they took the "1. Replace rings, refit (No pitting on pistons, perfect Bore)" path. They also replaced the CVT oil. All seals were replaced with the head gasket, the water pump is getting replaced, and new coolant is being added (was running on water or something for testing), 
• Forgot to specify specifically about alternator bearings, AC compressor bearings, radiator, and starter motor.
• They've promised to do their "30-point" inspection on top of going through a detailed review of all components that might need work - The mount looks like it needs to be replaced and there's an issue on the shock mount as well it seems, which I recently replaced, weird, but they promised to give me more context tomorrow (8th June).

[Noobdriver]

Update on 8th June 2024:

• I got my baby back today and seems to run fine.
• The total damage was 361,000 LKR (50k VAT, ugh!!!).

What was done:

• Rings were replaced.
• The engine was fully cleaned up.
• The general overhaul kit.
• Spark plugs were replaced.
• CVT oil was replaced.

Post-overhaul maintenance schedule:

• 1000 km after overhaul: Engine oil change, filter change.
  • Apart from the above, the brakes seem to have an issue which requires it to be repaired.
  • Engine Coolant is recommended to be replaced after the 1,000 km since it was not changed during the overhaul.
  • Shock mounts need replacing. 🥲
• 2000 km after overhaul: Car check-up will decide if anything needs to be done.

Overall, the experience wasn't too bad, apart from the typical Sri Lankan stuff where you keep visiting the workshop to ensure the work is being done. If I had not visited today, I wouldn't have been able to collect the car today (the car was fully done, their testing was complete and they only had their 30-point inspection checklist to be performed).

 

[Noobdriver]

Thank you @iRage, @tiv, and everyone here for the advice! Much appreciated!

I will keep updating the progress on the post-overhaul maintenance, etc.

Edited June 8 by Noobdriver

[iRage]

I hope everything starts looking up for the car. 
Does the general overhaul kit include all the gaskets and oil seals ? As a general rule of thumb, when ever the engine or transmission is out, try to replace those hard-to-get-to oil seals and stuff. Especially in old cars. Because when those parts need replacing they usually end up being a case of spending/paying-for a day of two worth of labor just to replace a 1000LKR part.

[Noobdriver]

1 hour ago, iRage said:

I hope everything starts looking up for the car. 
Does the general overhaul kit include all the gaskets and oil seals ? As a general rule of thumb, when ever the engine or transmission is out, try to replace those hard-to-get-to oil seals and stuff. Especially in old cars. Because when those parts need replacing they usually end up being a case of spending/paying-for a day of two worth of labor just to replace a 1000LKR part.

Yes, all the seals were replaced and the gasket too.

I've driven about 60 km since I got the car back (they drove about 70 before handing me the car), and so far, it's smooth.

I'm maintaining around 50 km/h at very low RPMs.

Edited June 9 by Noobdriver

[Noobdriver]

Thanks for the valuable advice @tiv @iRage.

@tiv If my engine can run without issues for 100,000 kilometers, more than enough for me. I don't go out much, I would at most drive 10,000 km a year and a significant chunk of it would be road trips/traveling during breaks. I only drive about 300-500 km a month for my actual chores since work is not that far from my house and I work from home and go to the office twice a week (hybrid). I don't mind another overhaul after a decade, lmao. I plan to keep the car for as long as possible (at least 5 years) and never want to sell it if I upgrade the car in the future and be able to keep my current as well (first car love).

I've driven roughly 200 kilometers now and went to Bentota last night. Here is how I went, please correct me if I'm doing something that could be improved or wrong:

• Gently touch the throttle and bring it up to 50 km/h, maintain for 2-3 minutes.
• Release the throttle entirely till it brakes automatically to about 30 km/h (a good 15 seconds).
• Slowly throttle back up to 50 km/h and maintain for 2-3 minutes.
• Release the throttle entirely till it brakes automatically to about 30 km/h
• Slightly throttle a little more to 50 km/h and repeat.
• Also, when there were signal lights ahead, I just left the throttle to let it come to a stop on its own and brake towards the end.

Also, I was surprised to see that over the 200 km, I drove yesterday, my fuel economy was 22 kmpl for the trip, I've never seen this number before. The most I have ever gotten was 15 kmpl on the highway at 80-90 kmph 

[Noobdriver]

Update time!

Hit the 1,000 km mark on Friday, 21st of June, 2024 since the overhaul.

I took my car for service yesterday, 22nd June 2024 and they did the following:

• Engine oil change - Toyota 5w30
• Oil filter change
• There was an issue with the front brake pistons, so they cleaned them up and changed the brake oil (since cleaning the brake piston drains the old brake oil).
• I informed Hybrid Hub about the "shock mounts" requiring to be replaced as suggested by Hybrid Hub during the vehicle check-up after the overhaul.
  • I confirmed this from a trusted wheel alignment center employee before I dropped the car in for service.
  • Hybrid Hub suggested that this repair doesn't need to be done and I could do this repair at the next service (after 2,500 km).
  • However, the moment I took it down to the road, there was a series of explosive "tak-tak" sounds every time I went through not very smooth roads as explained by the wheel alignment guy, who told me that the shock mounts were completely gone and needed immediate attention.
  • I still drove to the wheel alignment place and asked him to re-check and see if what they were telling was the truth and he re-checked (they raised the car) and re-confirmed that this needs immediate attention or could result in camber damage.
  • I will drop the car again tomorrow (Monday, 24th June) at Hybrid Hub to get them to sort this for once.
• Another problem I have is that when I'm driving during rain, there is a water leak or something near my accelerator/brake pedal that leaks a couple of drops of water. Curious to know what the problem is as I've told Hybrid Hub multiple times to check this issue and report back.

 

[RusT]

13 hours ago, Noobdriver said:

Update time!

Hit the 1,000 km mark on Friday, 21st of June, 2024 since the overhaul.

I took my car for service yesterday, 22nd June 2024 and they did the following:

• Engine oil change - Toyota 5w30
• Oil filter change
• There was an issue with the front brake pistons, so they cleaned them up and changed the brake oil (since cleaning the brake piston drains the old brake oil).
• I informed Hybrid Hub about the "shock mounts" requiring to be replaced as suggested by Hybrid Hub during the vehicle check-up after the overhaul.
  • I confirmed this from a trusted wheel alignment center employee before I dropped the car in for service.
  • Hybrid Hub suggested that this repair doesn't need to be done and I could do this repair at the next service (after 2,500 km).
  • However, the moment I took it down to the road, there was a series of explosive "tak-tak" sounds every time I went through not very smooth roads as explained by the wheel alignment guy, who told me that the shock mounts were completely gone and needed immediate attention.
  • I still drove to the wheel alignment place and asked him to re-check and see if what they were telling was the truth and he re-checked (they raised the car) and re-confirmed that this needs immediate attention or could result in camber damage.
  • I will drop the car again tomorrow (Monday, 24th June) at Hybrid Hub to get them to sort this for once.
• Another problem I have is that when I'm driving during rain, there is a water leak or something near my accelerator/brake pedal that leaks a couple of drops of water. Curious to know what the problem is as I've told Hybrid Hub multiple times 

Regarding the water leak, check if any AC lines are blocked as well (drain hose I think it's called). I know you have mentioned it's only during rain but better to check.

Also did you do any windscreen related repairs recently? That's also a common problem for water leaks.

In the meantime, check your boot for any collected water, that's another common issue, where hatchback tail light clusters leaking water and that water gets under the carpets (not related to your water droplets leaking but safe to check)

 

 

[Noobdriver]

1 minute ago, RusT said:

Regarding the water leak, check if any AC lines are blocked as well (drain hose I think it's called). I know you have mentioned it's only during rain but better to check.

Also did you do any windscreen related repairs recently? That's also a common problem for water leaks.

In the meantime, check your boot for any collected water, that's another common issue, where hatchback tail light clusters leaking water and that water gets under the carpets (not related to your water droplets leaking but safe to check)

 

 

Hi, thank you for this. I have not done any windscreen-related repairs except for a polish. Either way, I dropped the car in today for a few things:

Update - 24/June/2024.

• Dropped the car in to check the water leak (they too suspect an AC line block).
• There is also a very loud noise audible when going through a rough damaged road as previously mentioned and the technicians believe it might be a steering rack issue and not the shock mount but they're going to investigate this.

[Noobdriver]

Forgot to update this,

@RusT The water leak was some piece/cover that had come off and, that fixed it. They tried explaining and I couldn't understand honestly. But the issue is 100% sorted now, been over a month.

Also, they did a rack-end overhaul to fix the 'tak-tak' sounds. It is much better now, still, the steering mounts need to be replaced, and they suggested deferring it (I don't understand why).