Questioni have a 2001 toyota sienna with 70k miles, i have done routine oil changes on my vehical. toyota sent out a notice saying you may have sludge in your vehical so i had it inspected and i do. toyota wont change the motor because i dont have proof of enought oil changes . i was told by a few old timers, i can run kerosene through the motor 1 part oil 3 parts kerosene. have you heard of this , and is there a step by step procedure in which to do this?. i would love some help, 7 grand for a motor is crazy.
AnswerIt's a good faith warranty that is only honored out of good faith in return. You must meet their criteria (Unless you severly bitch to Toyota Corperate's Office).
It is only EVER honored when there IS engine damage present. It doesn't matter if it is blakc from top to bottom, if it has yet to be damaged - it will not be changed. It will only be cleaned as best as possible at your cost - like any other engine. The only way to see if there is oil that has burned itself into sludge from a lack of maintenance, is to pop the valve covers off & look for yourself.
It's a completely owner / operater maintenance issue. Toyota (Corperate) is simply "nice" about many small things. They'll give people a chance. If you change the oil on the 4,500m oil schedule as specified, using the recommended oil weight quality oil & filter, and you change the PCV valve whenever it sticks. You'll never see any oil sludge up. Trust me.
You can use whatever engine flush you want too. I preffer Seafoam the day before an oil change. Tho nothing works better & faster than quality high grade diesel fuel. It is a potent solvent.
For diesel fuel, fill the engine with normal oil until full. Add a quart of diesel fuel ontop of the oil.
Crank the egine & let it do NOTHING but idle for 10 minutes. No more, no less. No revving, no driving. That will destroy the bearings.
Drain the oil, pour another quart of diesel through it to pull any sediment out of the pan.
Finish the refill like normal.
Always use a Mobil1 based oil if possible. Walmart normally sells 5-quart jugs of Mobil1 & Super-Tech (Cheap Mobil1) at good prices. Only use a Denso oil filter, or a large Wix/Purolator oil filter.
5w-30 is *the* recommended oil at any termperature range you're likely to encounter.
5w-20, 10w-30 are both recommended.
Take both your valve covers off (The rear is always in worse shape seal / oil wise because the engines are tilted that way to make space) & take some pictures. :)
About all I can tell you.
But yeah... Seafoam, or Diesel Fuel. I really like Seafoam. It's a good combustion chamber cleaner too if you do it 2ce in a row.
