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Maintenance For Your Hybrid Or Non-Hybrid Vehicle
**FULL LEGAL DISCLOSURE**
THE LINKS FOUND HEREIN ARE PAID LINKS AND WE DO GET A SMALL PERCENTAGE WHEN YOU USE OUR LINKS TO PURCHASE PRODUCTS. HOWEVER WE 100% STAND BY THESE PRODUCTS AND OUR DESCRIPTIONS ARE EXACTLY THE EXPERIENCE WE HAVE HAD WITH ALMOST ALL THESE PRODUCTS. WE HAVE TESTED AND USED ALMOST EVERY SINGLE PRODUCT IN HERE WITH THE ECXEPTION OF SOME ISOLATED PRODUCTS OR DUPLICATE PRODUCT OPTIONS.
What can I do to make sure my hybrid car is running at an optimal level?
There are many things you can do to make sure your car is running its best.
Here we will outline maintenance protocols specifically for hybrid cars as well as maintenance protocols for non-hybrid vehicles.
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Hybrid only maintenance protocols.
***For older Prius and Camry models: Make sure you CHANGE YOUR OIL!!! On time, religiously! Synthetic oil only! These cars after many miles can start to get dirty piston rings and this will cause the engine to burn oil and can eventually destroy the engine! We’ve seen so many cars end up like this. There will be a protocol in the oil maintenance and additives (Under "All Vehicle Maintenance Protocols") explaining what you can do to clean an engine that’s been neglected or just has a lot of miles on it, so read that below if you think your car needs it (if it has over 50k miles it does). I recommend doing it to all your cars if you have never done it before it will make the car run smoother, more gas mileage, more power too! ***
Inactivity
1. Hybrid Battery Drain out
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For any hybrid with an Nimh chemistry hybrid battery, i.e. all Priuses, or any other Toyota that’s not plug in, most other hybrids before 2012 that are not lithium, GMC trucks like the Tahoe, Yukon or escalade hybrids, or any other hybrid that’s not lithium, the most important thing young can do is not let it sit for a long time without running.
When these batteries sit idle for long periods of time they discharge slowly until one or more cells die or short out and this will eventually steal voltage or energy from the other cells in the pack since they are all connected together. This is one of the reasons that its so hard to predict how long a used hybrid battery is going to last.
So if you’re not going to use your hybrid for a month or 2, make sure you start it every couple of weeks or so at least to prevent this from happening.
If you need to see the voltage of the hybrid battery there is an app called Dr. Prius that will show you all the voltages as well as the codes on the hybrid battery. The app is free but you will need to buy an obd2 adapter to link the car to the app so you can get the readings.
Here is a link to the OBD2 adapter:
Veepeak OBDCheck BLE Bluetooth OBD II Scanner Auto Diagnostic Scan Tool for iOS & Android, Bluetooth 4.0 Car Check Engine Light Code Reader
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And in case that one is out of stock :
Veepeak OBDCheck BLE+ Bluetooth 4.0 OBD II Scanner Wireless Car Diagnostic Scan Tool Check Engine Code Reader for iOS & Android
2. 12 Volt Battery Drain Out
When your car isn’t used for a while, your 12 volt battery can also lose charge and cause all kinds of problems including a no start condition and or cause the check hybrid system warning lights to come on. If they 12 volt battery is very old or week this can happen in a week or even days. When a car sits for over 1 month there is a high probability that the 12 volt battery will lose enough charge to cause an issue. Therefore we recommend that you disconnect the 12 volt battery if your going to leave it parked inactive for 1 month or longer.
If you think this happened to you, you can verify the state of the 12 volt battery by checking the voltage with a multimeter. If you don’t have one we can recommend this affordable yet effective one from amazon in the link below.
Illustrations on how to use it coming soon. But its easy just put it on the 2nd click or the 1st v option which is d/c voltage and put the red lead on the positive terminal of the 12 volt battery and the black lead on the negative terminal of the battery. This will tell you the voltage the battery is at. If the voltage is below 12 volts the battery may not want to start the car. Below 10 volts the battery WILL NOT start the car.
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Link to Multimeter:
Neoteck Auto Ranging Digital Multimeter AC/DC Voltage Current Ohm Capacitance Frequency Diode Transistor Audible Continuity, Multi Tester with Backlit LCD
If the battery is low, you can try jump starting the car and see if that gets the car going.
!WARNING! be sure to not cross the positive and negative cables from one car to the other because this can cause major damage to one or both of the cars.
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Link to jumper cables:
Or if you don’t have another car to jump yours with and somehow no neighbors to help, or if you just don’t want to risk doing it the wrong way you can buy this jumper box that is “super safe” and will not work if you plug it in wrong. It is a bit more pricey but its safe and it is portable so you can take it with you wherever you go and if there is no one else around to give you a jump you can do it yourself and you can even charge your phone or other device with the usb port!
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Link to super safe jumper box:
​NOCO Boost Plus GB40 1000A UltraSafe Car Battery Jump Starter, 12V Jump Starter Battery Pack, Battery Booster, Jump Box, Portable Charger and Jumper Cables for 6.0L Gasoline and 3.0L Diesel Engines
ALL Links so far:
Link to Multimeter:
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Link to jumper cables:
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Link to super safe jumper box:
3. Humidity Buildup
When a car gets older, the weather stripping starts to wear out and the seems around the body can also crack causing moisture to get in. This happens a lot with the gen 2 prius due to a weak point in the body's seams around the top of the back hatch area, but it can also happen with all cars. If your car is over 10 years old I would recommend adding some moisture absorbing devices every once in a while. And I especially recommend it if it is a hybrid car. With hybrid cars there is a computer inside the hybrid battery, and when there is to much humidity inside the car it can be attracted to the HV ECU harness where it measures all the voltages of the cells inside the battery and will short out the computer causing you to need a costly repair to replace the whole ecu and harness on the battery or in some cases the whole battery.
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The most readily available of such devices is the DampRid. I always recommend the hanging type rather than the bucket type. The reason for this is that in the car the bucket can fall over and spill and the fluid that comes out is not easy to clean up because it doesn't want to absorb into anything. If this happens a vacuum might be the best way to clean it. I usually hang the hanger type bags behind the rear seat headrest on the priuses and on the headrest of the front seats for the cars that don't have a hatch type configuration. Every once in a while it is good to check the powder in the bag to see if it has clumped up together and if it has, break it up with your hands gently as to not break the bag, and trying to lift the bigger solid pieces to the top of the bag and also break them up if possible. This will help the bags to allow the fluid to flow down where it belongs as its getting absorbed by the powder. This will make sure you get the full use from the device.
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Link to the DampRid Hangers:​
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DampRid Fresh Scent Hanging Moisture Absorber, 1 Pound (Pack of 3) - Eliminates Musty Odors for Fresher, Cleaner Air, Ideal for Closet, 14% More Moisture Absorbing Power*- Blue
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DampRid Hanging Bag, Moisture Absorber, 1 box of 3 bag (16 oz. each bag.), Blue
Normal Wear and Tear for Hybrid Cars:
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1. Brake pump Failure
Hybrid cars all have an electronic braking pump to produce brake pedal pressure because in a hybrid car, the engine can and does shut down while driving to save fuel. When this happens there is no vacuum being produced by the engine so a traditional brake booster would not work and the brakes would get very hard and it would be very difficult to stop the car. So hybrids use electric brake pumps to keep constant pressure available at all times to be able to stop the car easily and effectively.
When a hybrid car has many miles or if you use your brakes heavily when driving, this can cause the brake fluid to break down and become dirty through constant heating and use. When this happens the brake fluid is harder to pump through the system and puts more stress on the brake pump. This over time will cause wear and tear on the internal components of the brake pump and eventually the brake pump will begin to fail. You will get signs of this before it fails completely and it usually wont fail suddenly and forever it may have like a “hiccup” and this will be one of the signs. Usually the hiccup will be accompanied by the brake warning lights. If you don’t get it fixed eventually the brake pump will stop working completely and in the case of Toyota hybrids this will be accompanied by an extremely loud and constant BEEPING noise. You cant miss it if it happens. *unless you’re deaf* but the brake light will tell you and the pedal will be very hard to push.
One way you can prolong the life of your brake pump is to change your brake fluid every 60-100K miles or so. I recommend using a synthetic brake fluid so the pump has the best quality fluid that is more resistant to thermal breakdown and will protect it for a long time.
NOTE**
DO NOT TRY AND DO THE BRAKE SYSTEM BLEEDING YOURSELF ON NEWER PRII (2010 AND UP) UNLESS YOU ARE AN EXPERIENCED TECHNICIAN AND HAVE THE APPROPRIATE COMPUTER PROGRAMS!!!! ON THESE CARS THE BLEEDING PROCEDURE IS VERY LONG AND REQUIRES THE RIGHT COMPUTER PROGRAM TO GUIDE YOU THROUGHOUT THE BLEEDING PROCEDURE. ALSO IF YOU GET ONE STEP WRONG YOU WILL HAVE TO START OVER AND ITS LIKE 16 STEPS LONG.
FOR THE GEN 1 AND 2 PRIUS YOU ONLY NEED A COMPUTER THAT READS AND CLEARS ABS CODES TO CLEAR THE CODES IF THEY POP UP DURING BLEEDING.
If you live in Miami or your willing to travel, you can call or email us and we will gladly recommend a trustworthy shop to do the job for you. If you are too far from Miami, I recommend you take it to the dealer, or a highly certified shop. This is not a job just any mechanic can do, please be advised.
The brake system on a hybrid usually takes a lot of fluid due to the extra pump and large reservoir, so I recommend at least a gallon of fluid so you don’t run out half way.
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There are several synthetic brake fluids available, some are listed here:
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Johnsen's 5034 Premium Synthetic DOT-4 Brake Fluid - 1 Gallon
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6632 Synthetic HD DOT 4 Plus Brake Fluid, 32 fl. oz, 1 Pack
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6432 Synthetic DOT 4 Brake Fluid - 32-Ounce Bottle
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BRAKE FLUID DOT 4 1QT
Hybrid Battery Cooling Fan:
The hybrid battery always has a cooling fan. This fan on some cars gets dirtier than others. Priuses and Camrys I can tell you definitely get dirty. If you are able this is something you can do yourself. Be careful with the gen 2 and 3 prius when pulling off the interior panels to not rip off the glue holding the clip bracket to the interior carpeting on the panel near the back hatch. They are very easy to rip off if you don’t support them correctly.
There are some products I recommend to get these fans near spotless with little effort.
First I use an oxyclean based foaming degreaser spray to soften the dirt on the fan, let it sit for about 30 seconds or so then I blast it off with a high pressure, abrasive brake cleaner spray.
**NOTE!: This brake cleaner is nasty stuff, and it CAN burn your hands if you let it sit on your skin for a few seconds. But it’s what is strong enough to break through even the most caked on dirt and grime. Not every car will need such hard stuff but there is not really a way to know until you get the fan off and see how bad it is.
Here are the links for the 2 products
Kaboom OxiClean Foam-Tastic™ Foaming Bathroom Cleaner, Citrus Scent, Eliminates Soap Scum, Grime and Stains, 19 oz Spray Can
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CRC 05088 Brakleen Non-Chlorinated Brake Parts Cleaner - 14 Wt Oz.
All Vehicle Maintenance Protocols
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Oils and Additives
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Over time all engines build up carbon inside the combustion chamber where the fuel explodes and pushes the piston down to create power. This carbon builds up on the pistons and valves, adding weight as well as an uneven surface on the pistons and valves, requiring more effort to move these parts in the engine and costing you more fuel consumption to go the same distance than it would if they where clean.
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There are various additives you can use to clean the inside of your engines and keep them as clean as possible.
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Engine Cleaning Protocol
(Read the whole thing first to see all the things you can do at the same time to get the most out of the cleaning event)
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The first thing you should do is run (almost) all of the fuel out of your car and put in a high quality premium fuel like Chevron or Shell because they have additives that clean the valves and pistons. BEFORE you fill the tank add some Lucas complete fuel system cleaner and upper cylinder lubricant (we usually include this free of charge for our customers with the purchase of a hybrid battery). Read the instructions so you know how much to add. The small (5.25 oz) is fine to put all into any small car, even though the prius has a 12 gallon tank and the bottle says 16 gallon. The older Camry hybrids have 17 gallon tanks and the newer ones have a 13 gallon tank. The bigger trucks like Tahoe and Escalade hybrids have 26 gallon tanks so they might need a bit more to be effective. Non hybrid cars and trucks may have different size gas tanks so check with google to see what is the capacity of your gas tank.
When you have this mix in your car, drive normally for 5 or 10 miles then it would be very helpful to get on an open road or highway and (safely) put the accelerator to the floor several times with resting in between ( normal driving) to loosen the carbon and then the high revving will force it all out the exhaust pipe. By the time you get to a half a tank you will begin to feel the difference in the cars performance.
When you run that tank out, fill the next tank with premium fuel only and run it out. When that tank is run out then refill with premium fuel but adding the fuel system cleaner first. Ideally Id say to add the Lucas Fuel system cleaner EVERY OTHER fill up 3x at least for cars with over 150k miles, 2x at least for cars with over 100k miles, and at least 1x for cars with over 50k miles.
(Again, read on before starting so you can add all the additives you can before starting the procedure)
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Link to Lucas Fuel system cleaner in different sizes:
Lucas 10020 Fuel Treatment - 5.25 oz. (12)
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Lucas Oil 10003 Fuel Treatment - 1 Quart
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Lucas LUC10013 10013 Fuel Treatment - 1 Gallon
Oil Additives That Will Help Clean Your Engine
(And How To)
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The best additive you can add to your engine to help clean it is Seafoam. This will help clean the carbon off the pistons. For cars that are burning oil I usually use Mystery oil to loosen the piston rings that may be stuck due to the carbon buildup, but that will be later in the article because i also add this to the fuel in small amounts for that situation. You don't want to add more than one additive at a time to the oil or fuel since we don't know how they will react together.
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Seafoam
Add Seafoam to the engine oil in your car. I Recommend doing this 1000 Miles before you plan to change the oil. You can do this at the same time that your running the Lucas Fuel System cleaner.
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SeaFoam SF-16 Motor Treatment 16 oz. Can (3)
Mystery Oil
Another additive that you can add to your engine to unstick stuck piston rings that can be causing oil burn is Mystery oil. You can also add it to your fuel to have a top and bottom cleaning and unsticking effect for your piston rings. (again remember to not mix additives in the gas tank or engine oil, use them one at a time)​. So you can use the mystery oil in the engine and fuel first if your burning oil, and then after, you can do the sea foam. Or you can do the sea foam and lucas first followed by the mystery oil. I recommend doing the sea foam first and lucas for non oil burning cars and vice versa for oil burning cars.
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How to use:
On the instructions it will tell you how to, remove a quart of engine oil and replace it with 1 qt of mystery oil. You can also take a few oz of it and add it to the fuel as well.
If you don't want to get underneath the car and remove the drain plug there is a little hack i will share with you.
In the world of boating there is a pump that is used to suck the oil out of the engine since it can be very difficult or impossible to put a drain pan under a boat or jetski engine. This pump has a hose that can be inserted in the oil dipstick hole and be sucked out that way without having to get under the car and potentially spilling oil on the floor or on yourself.
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Link to the oil extraction pump:
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LainKeen 6.5L Pneumatic/Manual Oil Fluid Extractor Pump Tools Kit,Oil Change Vacuum Pump Extractor for Automotive/Boats Oil Transfer with Pump Tank Remover & 4 Tubes and A Brake Bleeding Hose
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FOUR UNCLES 6.5L Fluid Extractor - Pneumatic/Manual Vacumm Oil Extractor with Pump Tank Remover & 4 Tubes for Engine Oil Change and a Bleeding Hose with Universal Adpater for Brake Bleeding
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Marvel MM13R Mystery Oil - 32 oz.
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Marvel Mystery Oil CD 2 MM12R - 16 oz., RED
Engine Hyperlubricants
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MotorKote
Motorkote is a hyper lubricant. It binds to the metal at the molecular level and reduces friction between the metal components thus increasing the efficiency of the machine much more than conventional oils. This fluid can be added to many parts of the vehicle, including:
Engine
Transmission
Transaxle
Differential
Power steering
And many more uses stated on the bottle.
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When you put this into your engine or transmission you will feel the difference.
The car will accelerate much smoother and with more ease in acceleration. The whole car will feel much smoother as your driving.
This fluid doesnt take much to do its job, only 2-4 oz per qt of oil so 1 bottle can potentially do several cars.
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I recommend adding this after doing the complete maintenance protocol stated here for the best results. I also recommend adding some Seafoam 100 - 200 miles before the next oil change to help eliminate when the MotorKote will loosen, before you change the oil.
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Link to MotorKote
Motorkote MK-HL32-06 Heavy Duty Hyper Lubricant Engine Treatment, 32-Ounce, Single, Black
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(Editors Choice*)​
The oil weight your car requires should be on the oil cap. If its not, check with google. DO NOT use a thicker oil than what it says. If the car is running on a thicker oil, DO NOT try and change the oil back to original, this may cause the engine to rattle a lot which can cause damage to the engine. If your engine is burning oil and has not gotten better with these tips i recommend using an oil stabilizer listed below,
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For 2010 - 2015 Toyota Prius, 2007–2025 Toyota Camry hybrid:
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Mobil 1-123837 Extended Performance High Mileage 0W-20; 5QT, Gray
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Mobil 1-123837 Extended Performance High Mileage 0W-20; 5QT, Gray (Pack of 2)
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Mobil 1 Advanced Fuel Economy Full Synthetic Motor Oil 0W-20, 5 Quart
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For 2001 - 2009 Toyota Prius:
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Mobil 1-123840 Extended Performance High Mileage 5W-20; 5QT, Gray
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​Mobil 1 Advanced Full Synthetic Motor Oil SAE 5W-20 - Ensuring Unparalleled Engine Performance, Protection, and Cleanliness For 10,000 Miles While Also Helping To Extend Engine Life, 5 Quart
Lucas Oil Stabilizer:
If your car is burning oil and the things listed here didn't help, you can use an oil stabilizer to bind to the oil and allow it to cover more area and seal the gaps where the oil is burning through. This should only be used as a last resort and only enough for it to do what you need. Try to not use alot of it if you can because it is very thick. I Prefer to use regular weight oil and this stabilizer than just going to a thicker weight oil off the bat because if you still have some of the smaller oil molecules in there it should get into the tight spaces and the stabilizer should take care of the looser spaces. This can be used in engines, Manual transmissions only (not automatic or any other type of shift assist transmission), transfer cases, or differentials.
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Lucas Oil 10001 Heavy Duty Oil Stabilizer - 1 Quart
Oil Filters and windshield wipers
Oil Filter for 2001 – 2009 Toyota Prius:
WIX 51394XP XP Oil Filter
Oil Filter for 2010 – 2015 Toyota Prius:
Wix 57064 Oil Filter
Oil Filter for 2007 – 2011 Toyota Camry Hybrid
WIX (57145XP) XP Oil Filter
Windshield Wipers for 2010 - 2015 Toyota Prius
AUTOBOO 26"+19" Windshield Wipers with 16" Rear Wiper Blade Sets Replacement for 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Toyota Prius -Original Factory Quality (Pack of 3)
Windshield Wipers for 2004 - 2009 Toyota Prius
AUTOBOO 26"+18" Windshield Wipers with 16" Rear Wiper Blade Replacement for toyota prius 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 -Original Factory Quality (Pack of 3)
