2010 oil leak ...

[Hershey]

Make sure to clean in the back of the cupped area and the bottom of the entire gasket as well as you can . Then recheck the gasket and the surroundings in 100+ miles . Keep us updated on your findings . Thanks again .

[Hershey]

Found a 2007 YARIS sedan with about 35,000 miles that has the oily residue in the same area . Checked the left back corner of valve cover gasket for leaking and top of valve cover for spilled oil from oil change(s) and none to be found . So , most likely the head cylinder gasket . Think that's 12 so far . Years 2007 , 2008 , and 2010 . Haven't seen any '09s on lots to check on .

[wooverstone8]

I'm getting the oil changed on my Yaris soon. I'll have my mechanic take a look in that area. I'm kinda curious now.

[Hershey]

Earler we visited the friend that has the 2010 3 door . Checked on the oil leak and found plenty of fresh oil that ended up on fingertips of both hands . It has been a month or more since I checked it . The TOYOTA dealer that had the two 2010 5 door CERTIFIED Yaris with the oil leak were sold . Feel for those that bought them , at least they'll have the 7 year / 100,000 mile warranty . These are the cars that I showed the oil leaks to the sales people and the service manager . Money rules .

[auxmike]

I've since cleaned that area with a good shot of CRC brake parts cleaner and followed it with a water rinse from the garden hose, low pressure , of course!
It's spotlessly clean now. I've yet to spot any dampness/oil at all....

[Hershey]

That's good . Hope it remains that way .

[Hershey]

Checked our friends 2010 3 door and gathered plenty of fresh oil on my fingertips . Showed it to the wife . He doesn't plan to do anything about it . Afraid it might get messed up worse than it is .

[Hershey]

Our 2010 still leaks as well .

[Hershey]

Here's a pic taken earlier today . Car has 15,950 miles and there's about 3,600 miles on the O.C.. Will take antoher pic when it's due for O.C. in about 1,300 mis. or a month . Won't be cleaning it until the upcoming O.C. to see how much more oil gathers down the backside of the engine .

[yaris2010RS]

every time i see this thread has a new post i think oh god..... lol, i do find it to be a very interesting thread and concerning.

that oil leak still looks odd, i have never seen an engine with what appears to be a quite significant leak but so controlled. what kind of driving do u mostly do? (city or highway) has the 08 leaked at all again? i want to say double check all the hoses on the engine (PCV valve type hoses). i cannnot fathem how a HG leak would do that kind of oil patterning

[Hershey]

No hoses are leaking . It's a steady leak coming from the #1 cylinder of the head gasket as described so many times before . The '08 no longer leaks with the new head cylinder gasket .

[cabinfevrr]

Originally Posted by Hershey

could starting both cars out with synthetic motor oil at 1,500 miles be the culprit ? . Just seems odd that both have the same leak and are a few years apart . Can't think of any other reason .

^^ this.

A couple years ago, I decided I didn't want to be a car salesman anymore, and I quit my Job at Toyota. We always told people to NOT use synthetic oil until after your first maintenance service (your 4th scheduled oil change) - the engine has to be broken in on conventional oil. I'm not a scientist, or an engineer, but that is what we were instructed to tell people, when delivering the vehicle...any toyota vehicle for that matter. I have seen warranties ripped up because people put synthetic oil in after 5000.

the thing with breaking in on synthetic, is that we know the clearances that can be achieved with synthetics are closer than available with conventional oil. we told people that if you used synthetic oil too soon, your metal/metal areas would wear more than with convetional as conventional is more restrictive. i wouldn't be surprised if you start burning oil too.

for what it's worth, I have a 2008 Yaris RS model 5 door liftback (salesman had to have the most expensive yaris (: ), and after 70,000 kilometers, i have no oil leak where you indicated. I've stayed with conventional oil since day one, and although may be proven to be more restrictive, I change my oil every 8000 kilometers, I have no leaks.

You obviously bought your car new, did your salesman not mention synthetics when your vehicle was delivered? Regardless, it's in your owners' manual.

bottom line, after talking with a lot of toyota mechanics over the years, your car is designed to run on conventional oil. sure, it may work with synthetic, but you could probably also use auto transmission fluid or power steering fluid as oil too.

[Hershey]

Friends 2010 3 door with same oil leak has used nothing but conventional 5w-30 done at the TOYOTA service center where he bought it new . There's almost 60,000 miles on it .

[Happy Little Pony]

Your head gasket can't tell if you're using synthetic oil. The difference between a modern conventional oil and a synthetic isn't very large. The main advantages of a synthetic are that it pumps easier in extremely cold temperatures, it doesn't break down with high heat, and it has a more robust additive pack so it can stay in longer. None of these things will affect the head gasket.

The cause of your problem is surely something much more basic, like the head bolts didn't get torqued enough or the head gasket is defective.

Also, I really don't think synthetic is going to hurt the longevity of your engine. At worst, it's no better than conventional and you've wasted money paying more for it. It's just oil. A much more highly engineered and expensive oil, but still just motor oil. It's not magic engine juice.