OEM Dipstick "smells" - Toyota Yaris Forums

inthebuff · 05-07-2011, 09:55 AM

I just purchased a "new to me" 2007 Yaris. It's Toyota Certified, with 40k on the odo. So, it comes with a 100,000 mile powertrain warranty.

I took it for a test drive and everything seems fine. I took it over to my brother, who doesn't have a whole lot of experience with the Yaris, but is an import performance mechanic, and a shop manager at an independent shop. So he's no hack.

He looked the car over and insists the engine is moving more than it should (had me put my hand on it to feel it moving) and pulled the dipstick and insists it smells like gas. I did smell a little bit of spent fuel on it too. It's the plastic dipstick though, so I thought perhaps this was part of the issue, the plastic absorbing more "smells" than a metal one.

So after the test drive Toyota who put their top mechanic on it, he pulled the dipstick and thinks it does not smell like fuel at all. He also said the movement on the engine is normal for the Yaris. I had him speak to my brother directly and they agreed to disagree.

So I've got one Toyota mechanic (with the boss standing next to him) telling me everything is perfect and my brother telling me the engine has worn rings and the original owner never got any oil changes.

It turns out the car was bought and serviced at this Toyota dealer who was able to show me that actually, the original owner was here every 5k miles, getting oil changes and also rotating the tires regularly (which doesn't matter to me since they put new tires on, but shows that she wasn't beating the car up). So based on that and the 100k mile warranty, I ended up buying the car anyway.

But I still have my brother's words in the back of my head making me feel uneasy about the purchase. Could I have bought something with worn rings with so few miles on it?

Is there any reason for the discrepancy between two knowledgable mechanics? To put my mind at ease, I had them show me a new 2010 Yaris on the lot, which now has a metal dipstick incidentally. I started it up and to be honest, it felt as though the engine had just as much movement as mine with 40k on it. I also pulled the dipstick and it ALSO smelled as though there was gas on it. (there was 12 miles on this engine) Not as strong, but it was there.

So... what's going on here? Does the Yaris dipstick just have a faint odor of gas on it? Am I nuts?

Happy Little Pony · 05-07-2011, 11:32 AM

Since nobody here can smell your oil over the internet it's hard to comment on the fuel odor. It's not inconceivable that some fuel might have leaked into the oil, especially if it was sitting around on a dealer's lot, being driven little or not at all. The only real way to be sure is to just change your oil with fresh stuff, run it for a few thousand miles and then send a sample off for oil analysis. The oil analysis would show if the oil was being thinned out by unburnt fuel. As long as the car was running good, I wouldn't worry about it too much.

As far as the engine movement, at idle speed mine looks like it's jumping around, too. As long as you don't feel any excessive vibration in the cabin, I suspect your Yaris is running normal. Post a video on you tube! We can all watch your engine vibrate. It's the sort of thing we do for fun here.

hayden · 05-07-2011, 11:50 AM

The engine on my 07 yaris with about 45k miles is also kind of rattley - I think it's just the car. Compared to more expensive modern cars it would be a cause for concern, but this car is in a bit of a different league. I can feel vibration in my seat and steering wheel at idle with the AC on.

05-07-2011, 09:55 AM	#1
inthebuff Drives: '07 3d yaris Join Date: May 2011 Location: buffalo Posts: 6	OEM Dipstick "smells" I just purchased a "new to me" 2007 Yaris. It's Toyota Certified, with 40k on the odo. So, it comes with a 100,000 mile powertrain warranty. I took it for a test drive and everything seems fine. I took it over to my brother, who doesn't have a whole lot of experience with the Yaris, but is an import performance mechanic, and a shop manager at an independent shop. So he's no hack. He looked the car over and insists the engine is moving more than it should (had me put my hand on it to feel it moving) and pulled the dipstick and insists it smells like gas. I did smell a little bit of spent fuel on it too. It's the plastic dipstick though, so I thought perhaps this was part of the issue, the plastic absorbing more "smells" than a metal one. So after the test drive Toyota who put their top mechanic on it, he pulled the dipstick and thinks it does not smell like fuel at all. He also said the movement on the engine is normal for the Yaris. I had him speak to my brother directly and they agreed to disagree. So I've got one Toyota mechanic (with the boss standing next to him) telling me everything is perfect and my brother telling me the engine has worn rings and the original owner never got any oil changes. It turns out the car was bought and serviced at this Toyota dealer who was able to show me that actually, the original owner was here every 5k miles, getting oil changes and also rotating the tires regularly (which doesn't matter to me since they put new tires on, but shows that she wasn't beating the car up). So based on that and the 100k mile warranty, I ended up buying the car anyway. But I still have my brother's words in the back of my head making me feel uneasy about the purchase. Could I have bought something with worn rings with so few miles on it? Is there any reason for the discrepancy between two knowledgable mechanics? To put my mind at ease, I had them show me a new 2010 Yaris on the lot, which now has a metal dipstick incidentally. I started it up and to be honest, it felt as though the engine had just as much movement as mine with 40k on it. I also pulled the dipstick and it ALSO smelled as though there was gas on it. (there was 12 miles on this engine) Not as strong, but it was there. So... what's going on here? Does the Yaris dipstick just have a faint odor of gas on it? Am I nuts?

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Ultimate yaris part out, aftermarket and OEM	yaris rs	Items for Sale by private party	25	06-20-2011 12:43 PM
2007 OEM dipstick	l3igApple	DIY / Maintenance / Service	5	04-19-2010 11:25 PM
OEM Parts	hatchbackkid82	Items for Sale by private party	30	12-17-2009 10:08 AM
FS: OEM STUFF	darkmoon87	Items for Sale by private party	2	05-29-2009 05:21 AM
FS- OEM Intake, bushings, pulleys	MGargano	Items for Sale by private party	6	05-08-2009 08:38 AM

05-07-2011, 11:32 AM	#2
Happy Little Pony Drives: 2007 Yaris HB Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Tampa, FL Posts: 83	Since nobody here can smell your oil over the internet it's hard to comment on the fuel odor. It's not inconceivable that some fuel might have leaked into the oil, especially if it was sitting around on a dealer's lot, being driven little or not at all. The only real way to be sure is to just change your oil with fresh stuff, run it for a few thousand miles and then send a sample off for oil analysis. The oil analysis would show if the oil was being thinned out by unburnt fuel. As long as the car was running good, I wouldn't worry about it too much. As far as the engine movement, at idle speed mine looks like it's jumping around, too. As long as you don't feel any excessive vibration in the cabin, I suspect your Yaris is running normal. Post a video on you tube! We can all watch your engine vibrate. It's the sort of thing we do for fun here.

05-07-2011, 11:50 AM	#3
hayden Drives: asd Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: dfw Posts: 42	The engine on my 07 yaris with about 45k miles is also kind of rattley - I think it's just the car. Compared to more expensive modern cars it would be a cause for concern, but this car is in a bit of a different league. I can feel vibration in my seat and steering wheel at idle with the AC on.