2019 Toyota Rav4 Engine Oil Sludge - Buyer Beware! What To Look Out For.

This 2019 Toyota Rav4 (MXAA52R) with M20A-FKS engine has not been serviced for 3 years and 65000km. According to the owner only the engine oil was topped up as required, this has resulted in extreme sludge build up and possible consequential damage. Engine is also noisy in the top end, possibly just a hydraulic lash adjuster. There are only 3 ways to approach this.
(1)De-sludge the engine, fill with new oil and replace the oil filter and hope for the best.
(2)Dismantle engine and assess the damage that may have occurred and quote repair.
(3) Cut your losses and replace the engine.
Owner has decided to replace the engine.

[@joevignolor4u949]

The owner of this vehicle is known as a "bleeder". They buy a new car and then they bleed it for two or three years and then they dump it onto someone else. Then they buy another new one and start the whole process all over again.

[@markg999]

All to save $80 on a oil change ...not the sharpest bunch.

[@moisesfrias1117]

@@markg999 probably a woman

[@gerardot831]

That sounds to me like the privileged type.

[@limelife7457]

Or a Cheapskate Person AKA Mr/Mrs Scrooge 😂

[@alexb8926]

@@gerardot831 no comment 😂

[@Raj-nh3fc]

One of the best videos on documented no or delayed oil change and sludge formation. Well explained and shown. It is sad to see that the owners can carelessly thrash and mistreat their cars.

[@nunawadingtoyota8134]

Awesome feedback. Thanks for taking the time to watch 😀

[@morpheus3190]

I bought a car like this years ago. Cleaned out the valve covers and rocker arms, cleaned out the oil pan and pick-up. Then ran a quart of engine flush with cheap oil. Did three more oil changes with a quart of engine flush over the next 200 miles. Removed the valve covers and engine oil pan and the sludge was gone. Kept the car for another 50k miles with no issues. Can’t believe that the mechanic didn’t try to flush the engine first.

[@gothicsage955]

That how I feel. If everything else is decent other than the sludge then just clean it out.

[@gothicsage955]

I bet they want to make money off of the engine instead...

[@HouseCallAutoRepair]

YOU were exceptionally lucky. There ARE components that normally COMPLETELY CLOG because of this, rendering permanent damage.

[@TheBigdog868]

Older motors were a lot simpler and a whole lot tougher.

[@Highgear145]

With that amount of sludge build up should've gotten all he can out by hand and then used fresh oil and sludge remover

[@johnchang3807]

3 years !! Wow ... and its still running ? What a Toyota feeling !! I will certainly keep my Toyota rav4 forever . Great educational video thank you !!

[@dannnsss8034]

Might be more economical and easier to just not change oil and get a mechanic every 3 years

[@Yeetus223]

My elderly parents have a 96 rav4. It’s the extra car. It sits for years until someone needs to borrow it. It gets abused and neglected. I just drove it a thousand miles two weeks ago and its going strong.

[@davidroberts6594]

And my RAV4 v6, 280,000 miles and oil still looks new, changed every 3 to 5k miles.

[@gabrielgarza3707]

Still have to change fluids tho to last long.

[@tardeliesmagic]

Just service it every 5,000miles & you won't go wrong!

[@edwelndiobel1567]

Its amazing how new the engine compartment looks. Good lesson that things arent always what they seem at first glance.

[@tonymiller5841]

It just gives me confidence that my RAV4 will serve me well for years to come given that I service it correctly.

[@randyjerrett3385]

👍

[@myopinion7533]

You're better off having more frequent oil changes using store brand oil ( must meet manufacturers recommendations which most do ) then using expensive brands and go longer between oil changes. You'll never have issues no matter which brand you use as long as it's the right oil for your car . I do 5k and use synthetic walmart oil and my car is at 160k miles and still running strong. I bought it brand new 15 years ago and never had an issue with it.

[@johnstuartsmith]

Bargain-brand clean oil is much better than dirty premium-brand oil.

[@John_Ridley]

Agreed, 5000 miles, and just use a rated oil, doesn't matter what brand as long as it's a reasonably major brand and has the right certifications.

[@diycheapdaddy2113]

Agreed👍. make sure with same SAE/ API/specification ....as your manual. A lot of them are made by the same manufacturer. Project Farm and Scotty Kilmer has video on this.

[@a3300000]

The best oil is clean oil.

[@buckaroobonsi555]

I use Mobil-1 Synthetic in the USA or Pennzoil Ultra Platinum. No matter what the recommended oil change interval fromt he OEM I change my oil every 6 months or 5000 miles which ever one comes first. Oil is cheap a Toyota short block + labor is easy $6000 to $7000 USD in the USA. I own one Toyota that had a store brand synthetic oil it's entire life and the oil changed every 5000 miles and it had light varnish inside. None of my vehicles ran on Mobil-1 or Pennzoil Platinum have any varnish at all they look like brand new engines fresh from the assembly line. If I lived in Europe still I would be using Total Quarts, Fuchs Titan, Penrite, Motul, Mobil-1, Shell Helix, ESSO XD3 or the like. It is silly though to justify extended drain intervals because you bought expensive oil. To be honest I do not care much about milage every 6 months get that oil out of that engine and put fresh oil in!

[@PaulPetrulis]

All good info - I loved the video showing how much sludge the engine builds up from neglecting oil changes -

[@nomad90125]

People who pay no attention to the engine they drive also pay no attention to themselves or anyone else for that matter. These people are best avoided. 👍

[@user-tb7rn1il3q]

This includes about 90% of Gen Z and 70% of millennials.

[@danielmota1095]

I like my hard eared $$$ I take pride in maintaining my machines, I had a lawn mower over 25 years put it in the alley in running condition. Just an example.

[@missythedog4558]

@@user-tb7rn1il3q I’m 21 years old this year and I always change the oil in my cars every 6 months/8000km whichever comes first.

[@brianbachinger6357]

Lots of judgements here based on very little but your own biases. Love your enemies as Jesus Christ loved you.

[@kennethtalbott2233]

absolutely, but they will have all the designer gear etc etc.

[@int53185]

It's a miracle this thing still runs. I abide by the old rule of 3,000 miles or 5,000 km oil changes. I recently changed my valve cover gasket on my 2014 RAV4. It was super clean inside. Oil is cheap compared to a new engine.

[@musguelha14]

You're just wasting oil though. Modern oils can do twice that with zero issues.

[@user-tb7rn1il3q]

@@musguelha14 The car will break in half from rust long before the engine wears out with 15km oil changes.

[@crabbcake]

well actually its not cheaper. The consumer is is ripped off no matter what ! 4changes /year = 500.00x10 = 5000.00 bucks then all the other 'junk' is 3-4k. so 9k = the value anyway... do the min maint and it saves 4k .. so you've really lost that money not saved it.

[@safiwakeely4603]

You can safely do 5K miles or 7K kms

[@punker4Real]

@@user-tb7rn1il3q if it's one of the AFM engines from GM you gotta do it every 4k miles.. my engine oil goes in clean and comes out clean it has 110k miles on it :)

[@dtom1145]

What a shame. An almost new vehicle ruined by the owner because they wanted to save a few bucks or were too lazy to get it serviced. Thanks for a great video.

[@marketingmajor8126]

Or perhaps a woman driver who didn't know oil was supposed to be changed. We've gotten more than a few of those at the repair shop I work at.

[@xcofcd]

A really clean engine without at least brown deposits everywhere is very very rare these days. I changed oil on a golf that looked like this. The guy had just bought it. It came back with a blown rod bearing a few weeks later. In the end this is a ticking timebomb. Every fresh oil or engine flush could break loose and plug oil channels...its good you document this. If cars break the people often think the last mechanic working on it messed something up...

[@maxgermasi3302]

Nice video Darrek! Very informative and interesting to watch despite feeling so sorry for that poor engine. I'm also surprised that the engine didn't seize up, quality build I guess! Thanks for sharing!

[@nunawadingtoyota8134]

Hi Max Great engines. We don't often see such neglect.

[@munkhjinn]

Thanks for build of japans

[@jjk2one]

@@munkhjinn Not anymore! Always triple check why you 2020 camry was not in a recall when many others were very sneaky

[@pbaker7160]

First thing I do when I look at a used car...open the fill cap and look inside with a flash light. I've seen cars with 150k miles that look brand new inside. I've also seen cars with 20k miles that look like the engine in this video.

[@markg999]

Exactly what I do also. Chris Fix I think taught me that one.

[@sideshow1297]

I did the sludge look on a Corolla I checked out for my son. I put the fill cap back on and simply said "this one's not for us." Best move I ever made on a used car. Toyota has statistically been best for me, but just because it's a Toyota doesn't mean you don't have a look. Thanks for posting this!

[@srb1182]

As a fellow mechanic, I'll say these super high oil service intervals are a real killer of motors. Especially with how hard customers beat there cars

[@nunawadingtoyota8134]

That’s why manufacturer specifies additional maintenance of 6months 7.500km for vehicles that are operated under severe conditions

[@lukek1949]

Amen! New cars tend to come with water thin oils (often 0w16 or 0w20). They use the thin oils because lubrication has to get to all those intricate parts. So don’t overlook maintenance regular maintenance. Personally, I’d do it more often than the manufacturer recommends. I’d go 6 months or 8000 km (5000 mi). You could go a little longer with a super high quality oil like Amsoil signature series or Pennzoil ultra platinum. But even then, I’d change it around 8 or 9 months. If you’re buying, run far from a car like this!

[@lotsofthisandthat9791]

Toyota junk Go MOPAR!

[@turbodog99]

Then why are my 200,000 mile vehicles, with 10,000 mile oil change drain intervals, clean as a whistle on the inside of the engine and running like they were when they were brand new?

[@lyssword]

@@turbodog99 because this car has not changed oil in 50k km or roughly 30,000 miles

[@libaaxalee]

I am glad I change oil and simply maintenance on my cars, I believe it was the sole reason my Honda Civic got to 300K+ and engine was still in a wonderful shape with no leaks, just two gear on manual transmission started to slip and I traded it.

[@leolammas7940]

A timely wake up call to inexperienced owners. I have great admiration for that engine it deserves another chance

[@marcus.H]

They aren't inexperienced. They are deliberately negligent. It takes no experience to bring it back in for regular servicing, at least annually They probably thought it would be cheaper and more convenient to skip the servicing

[@coveyking]

BG engine restoration kit

[@ih302]

It's toast.

[@jaygold4467]

@@ih302 Not. It's got plenty of life left with a good cleaning.

[@bukster1]

I own a 2018 RAV and have seen many sludge buildup videos before. I wouldn't have thought it was possible to get the engine into this state in only a few years. Clearly it is.

[@MiteyMOofyearsAgo]

Been there, done that. Thank you. First thing I do. take off oil fill cap. 1st time I didn't I got stung! I was lucky, found an engine w/ 2k miles for 6oo usd. My neighbor was a Certified mechanic. I already owned an engine lift.

[@urassisdragon]

I have seen this with 3 engines I have had in 20 years. The first one I did an oil change and added a quart of diesel and revved it to 2-3k for about 30 mins… then changed oil and did the same thing.. then changed a 3rd time and out all oil in it. The second car I didn’t do anything and it blew up about 30 mins after leaving my shop. The last one I put diesel and marvel oil in and did the same thing as first car. The diesel oil cleaned the engines spectacularly and the first car has been running for more than 12 years since I cleaned the sludge out. The other car has been about 8 years running on original engines. The 1st and 2nd were Honda accords and the last was a Mazda 3.

[@timetryp422]

I tried that and it smoked so bad, I thought someone would call the fire department. How do you get away with that without someone freaking out?

[@urassisdragon]

I don’t remember it smoking but depends on the design of the engine of course since diesel isn’t as viscous as oil…. Why I don’t rev it very high.

[@jaygunter3828]

I was just thinking it would be interesting to see this engine after running some Marvel a couple of times for a few hundred miles and changing the filter each time.

[@charleshorseman55]

People spend ungodly amounts of money on fuel additives and engine cleaners. Plain 'ol diesel works very well!

[@chuckwalla2967]

@@timetryp422 Move to a bad neighborhood. Nobody will give a shit.

[@GlennLaycock]

Kia and Hyundai did the same thing - they had just "regular oil for up to one year" but 12,000km or more. Now for my car they specifically said "very important" 7500k and/or 6 month quality synthetic - never listen to anyone that says you can go further or use lesser oil.

[@johnfranklin5277]

I have 338.000 miles on my 94 Trans Am I bought new. 3000 mile oil changes. I have never looked at the oil cap. Its original to the car, so I went out and took it off, it looks absolutely clean, and looking down inside the engine all I saw was clean metal. Castrol GTX 10 30 is all thats been used, no synthetic. Engine runs great, sounds perfectly healthy! Uses no oil between changes.

[@timbur2711]

Synthetic oil is the devil right?

[@marketplatz7500]

👍

[@occckid123]

I never checked my oil level before and I have 420k miles

[@picklerix6162]

You have to really ignore maintenance to see sludge build up like that.

[@yaxo11]

castrol gtx is synthetic oil, at least in europe is. i change oil every 15k km or 2 years. i have 2006 rav4 no issues @ 392k km

[@AVOWIRENEWS]

It's great to see people sharing important information about car maintenance and awareness! Engine oil sludge can indeed be a concern for any vehicle owner, and the Toyota Rav4 is a popular choice for many. It's always helpful to know what to look out for to keep your car running smoothly. Regular maintenance and staying informed can make a huge difference in the longevity and performance of your vehicle. Keep up with staying informed and proactive about car care! 🚗💡🔧

[@frankv64]

A little brake kleen will clear that up

[@maxsd32]

My dad has a 2019 rav4 le and that thing is still going strong with 175k miles on it. He drives Uber and does oil changes every 5k. That goes to show if you don't neglect the car it will take care of you.

[@user-tb7rn1il3q]

Does it still have the original electric water pump? 175k is a lot of miles for commercial use.

[@andywiggens1069]

@@user-tb7rn1il3q That is crazy miles in 4 years...Who the hell buys a 40 thousand dollar car to drive drunks and rude people around for little to no money

[@user-tb7rn1il3q]

@@andywiggens1069 I only paid 25k out the door for my RAV4 LE AWD. That being said driving for a car share is a waist of money and time. It’s only meant to share the ride for a place you are going anyway. It wasn’t supposed to be a taxi service like it’s morphed into.

[@user-tb7rn1il3q]

@@andywiggens1069 The market has gone back to normal for many brands, but not Yotas. The public has found out how superior they are. The dealer near me has rows of Equinoxes for 5k off before negotiating.

[@andywiggens1069]

@@user-tb7rn1il3q I'm 62 and can't tell you how many vehicles I have had, The only vehicle I would buy today is a yoda, my wife is a honda fan which is a decent cat but it ain't no yoda.

[@MySpace662]

It's always good to change the oil yourself, you have the confidence that your car is well taken care off.

[@Alpha_7227]

These days you almost have to with servicing being once a year for vehicles

[@MySpace662]

@@Alpha_7227 I agree.

[@davidac76]

I've changed my own oil for the past 30 years. Always done right and on time. My current work vehicle has 900,000km on the clock and runs like the day I took delivery of it from the dealer.

[@MySpace662]

@@davidac76 Very good

[@swd6430]

yeah its easy to change oil but the problem is how am i supposed to lift the car?

[@leosheppard8517]

Awesome tube channel mate!! I appreciate your tips and tricks. I hope Toyota have realised the benefits of information like yours. Looking forward to becoming a Guest at your dealership.

[@nunawadingtoyota8134]

Fantastic. Feedback like this will certainly help our channel. Thank you for the kind comment. Look forward to your visit.

[@chuckwalters4759]

Great top view camera shot! First time i'd seen anyone do it this way. Great idea!

[@reelman4299]

Sad to see a new car treated like this. I bought a used 1979 Celica Gt in 1987 to drive back and forth to work. The original owner had done 3 or 4 oil changes in 8 years. Surprisingly the car ran pretty good. The 20R engine was a beast. A trusted old mechanic told me what to do to clear some of the sludge. I drained the oil, changed the oil filter, added 2 quarts cheap oil and 3 quarts of transmission fluid. I drove it around for a couple of hours, not revving the engine. Drained the oil and was amazed at the chunks of sludge that came out. I did this once more in a month. I ran cheap oil in the car for the next 3 years. I was told that ATF had high levels of detergents. In 1990 I traded it in for a new Isuzu pickup.

[@johnfranklin5277]

My 1st brand new car was a 79 Toyota celica!!! 5speed manual, factory AC. I loved that car!!!

[@Dansk55]

My 95 Celica refused to die!! 300k miles no major issues. Only need AC refill

[@timetryp422]

I saw a used Toyota that was used for deliveries and they never changed the oil. It actually clogged the oil filter, which expanded and burst, dumping sludge all over the street. I'd never seen that happen before or since.

[@Tiberius_I]

I was a fleet mechanic for 30 years and I say DO NOT DO THIS. Running the engine with any amount of solvent in the oil is doing more harm than good and is counter-productive, just changing the oil 3 or 4 times in a row with 50 to 100 miles in between, will get the engine nearly as clean inside without potentially damaging rings and bearings in the process.

[@ghp0518]

With a case this bad, I would drop the oil, put in some diesel instead of oil (which is a good solvent) , let it soak, drop it, flush it one more time with diesel shortly crank the engine (without fuel or spark) to move things, add some fresh engine oil with some engine flush, run the engine for a bit with low load, then drop the oil + flush mix and put the final oil

[@rickb296]

This video is a testament to how incredibly well built and over-engineered Toyota cars are. Any other manufacturer with an engine suffering this level of neglect would have thrown valves, a con-rod or had severe ring blow-by (blue exhaust smoke). Not this Toyota. Perfect cylinder compression and clean spark plugs. It still runs, albeit with a "top end noise" as you say. Good luck with the engine swap and be sure to give the owner a slap upside the head. I'd be very curious to see the condition of the cylinder walls. The block might be reusable.

[@moffatk7948]

Unbelievable car service neglect. How other people would grossly neglect such an expensive vehicle is beyond my imagination.

[@michaelmillican5592]

Privileged people. Some rich people just don't care. They will buy another car just for something to do. Maybe they didn't like the color anymore 😂😂😂😂!

[@ChicagoRob2]

In general, people are mostly stupid.

[@furio5415]

@@michaelmillican5592 or they dont know. do better bro, jealously isn't the answer always.

[@michaelmillican5592]

@@furio5415 they don't know how to change their oil? Or that you have to have it done? You expect me to believe that? Come on, you and they have to do better. Really.

[@langhamp8912]

@@michaelmillican5592 No, it's usually well-educated people from countries that don't have a car culture. They have the money to buy a car but since their parents didn't own cars then all the little things that goes to maintain a car they don't do.

[@matthewstorm5188]

If this was mine, I would first remove as much sludge as possible from under the valve cover and inside the oil pan. Just doing this would probably remove 80-90% of the sludge inside the engine. Then, do some short oil change intervals to remove much of the rest. After doing these two things, it would probably be quite safe to do an engine flush to finish things off. Also, if lifter tick continues, it may be necessary to remove and clean or possibly replace the lifters.

[@reubenmorris487]

Um...not safe. If the oil barely drained, how well did it flow through the engine clearances??

[@HobbyOrganist]

Yeah you can remove the sludge but the DAMAGE is already done! that sludge probably added about the equiv of 100,000 miles of normal wear on the bearings and everything. Every mile that drove that way was probaby equal to 5 miles of normal wear

[@EnwardJim]

I wouldn't trust a flush on a car like that, even after a clean down. Using 20% marvel mystery oil on each of those short changes would be a lot smoother cleaning process with fewer risks.

[@andybub45]

In an older engine, yes. But this engine has a very advanced oiling system. There is no saving this engine.

[@Agus-by9uk]

I Will put a half off clean diesel and run the engine for half an hour then drain it, replace oil filter

[@wayneschenk5512]

Some owners are hopeless.

[@shawn576]

Cool video. Even cooler comments. Quite a few people are saying sludge can be cleaned by putting a mix of diesel and oil, idling it for a while to get it flowing, and repeat this flush a few times. I've never done that before but I'll try to keep that in mind if I ever find myself facing something weird like this. I wonder what the oil filter looked like.

[@vincentrobinette1507]

I can promise you, the bypass valve on the filter was opening!

[@murphine969]

I dated a girl once who asked me to look at her car because it was “Driving strange”. I didn’t know a lot about vehicles back then but knew enough to ask her how often she changed the oil. She responded with “Change the oil to what?” I knew she had that car at least 2 years and had no idea it was possible for a vehicle to survive that long without changing the oil…didn’t really know it was possible for someone not to know the oil needed to be changed either though. 2012 Sonata…well built engines.

[@tomr6955]

What? Most women are like this, well at least my age and younger

[@bigwatt5520]

Sir very well documented and the little fact of either 5k or 6months in changing oil is key.

[@robjohnson8522]

The compression is good becasue the pistion rings are full of sludge making a great seal to the cylinder wall! :)

[@marosrokyta8292]

No.... Carbon seals, sludge not

[@robjohnson8522]

@@marosrokyta8292 It was a joke. Note the smiley face. :)

[@slowery43]

amazing how little you kow yet how quickly you show it

[@robjohnson8522]

@@slowery43 At least I am smart enough to know what ":)" means {sigh}

[@MrSupernova111]

The amount of abuse a car engine can take is amazing! Thanks for the video!

[@zacharyayaga6661]

You mean toyota engines

[@philhenderson3516]

@@zacharyayaga6661 BMW B58, Toyota 1UR/2UR, Nissan VQ/VK, Hyundai/Kia Lambda/Tau V6/V8, Mazda Skyactiv I4-I6. All of them great engines!

[@DagudLFE]

Toyota has the best engines

[@tardeliesmagic]

I've seen cars history with 7 or so service stamps at 14,000miles each one & they've been great...yes it a Toyota, but you gotta use a good engine flush so often which only a handful of owners did tell me.

[@suddenimpact7537]

Just proves how tough Toyota engines are, imagine if you changed the oil every 3000 miles.

[@Athiril]

Never taken my car in for service since I bought it (2nd hand). I don’t wait for a specific interval, as soon as it starts looking darker or dirty at all it’ll get a change whether interval is up or not usually with. Chemical treatment before changing. Only use full synthetic. Transmission has been flushed twice with new fluid too.

[@user-gg9kk4oe6u]

I purchased a 2004 Highlander (in 2017) with only 75k miles. Took to shop for timing belt, valve cover gasket, etc. They took pictures of the valve train, cover, pan and sump which looked like this, even worse as it was also chunky and hard packed. Likely the previous owner used very cheap oil combined with consistently short trips. Mechanic's advice was clear, "Get rid of this car..." As some of the comments suggest, I felt I had nothing to loose at that point. Ended up trying the suggestions which generally recommend the following: Change oil and filter, including adding quart degreaser (kerosene, diesel, trans fluid, Seafoam, motor flush). Run/drive briefly. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. (Lots of trips to the oil recycling dump.) Since then I started using high quality synthetic oil without fail at every 5k miles/6 months (Toyota spec). I also still run the (Motor Medic) motor flush (5 minutes only) just before each oil change hoping to continue flushing out any remaining gel. So fortunate that at 170k miles it still runs quiet, smoothly and burns no oil. In this case, glad to have tried something which has worked so far.

[@iwantequinox]

Your highlander has 1mzfe engine? Still strong?

[@user-gg9kk4oe6u]

@@iwantequinox The engine is 3MZ-FE, V6 3.3 L. Yes, over 170k miles, running fine w/o issue. Just changed oil, might be using 1/3 quart per 5000 mile change interval, but that may be about normal for that mileage.

[@willg.5168]

👍🏽

[@Tbird761]

It really depends on the design of the valve covers. Engines models that place oil baffles below the filler cap (this is common) will look sort of like this even when maintenance has been good. The main red flag here is the color of that stuff. The more it looks like a chocolate milkshake the scarier it is for concerns about a failure of a seal somewhere that is allowing coolant and oil to mix. SOME of that however can happen just due to cars used only for short trips. You have to try to figure out what the car's story likely is from all the clues.

[@kwacz]

HOLY CRAP!!!!! WOW!!!! and people don't seem to think its necessary to change the oil in their car when the light comes on.

[@MrLordingit]

I bought a brand new van a few years ago. I took it for an oil change 12 months after buying and garage said it didn't need it, as it hadn't reached the oil change mileage. I insisted on having it done for the very reason shown in your video.

[@grungysquash1]

Yea if it was me I'd give it a few flushes and fresh oil. Compression is OK so the only issue is the top end - no way would I be throwing in a new engine at that stage.

[@JohnDiMartino]

There’s nothing wrong with the top end that noise was the GDI fuel pump and it’s normal. The noise isolator was off of it so it was louder than normal. That engine would have run a lot longer if desludged. I wonder if it was the low oil level light that came on not the low oil pressure light, the 2 are very different lol. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with the engine,just neglected,would probably run another 100 k miles w 5 k oil changes. Toyota USA gives 2 oil changes with the car one at 10 and one At 20k miles. They do this to get ppl out of warranty without engine replacement even if they never change the oil again it’ll go to 60 k miles from an oil change at 20 k .

[@nunawadingtoyota8134]

Thanks for the comment. Definitely not a fuel pump noise. We were so keen on giving this engine a thorough clean and re-evaluating. Customer's mind was made up to replace the engine. Whether or not that happened in the end we don't know as the vehicle was towed away to another workshop.

[@maungmaung4037]

If I am owner give proper engine flush and new oil with mmo check oil consumption. If eat alot engine still noisy will resale after one oil change with engine flush

[@Fishsticks187]

I agree that the customer might as well try and get their money's worth out of the current engine, but there's way more going on than the top end. The drilled passages in the crankshaft are vital to lubricate the rod bearings, and they're small enough that I doubt they've even been getting sludge to keep them moving, let alone actual oil. That thing will spin a bearing before too long. If you look on the filler cap at the beginning of the video, you can already see gold colored metal flecks in the oil which is a telltale sign.

[@chiefdenis]

Exactly what I'd do, the head rattle sounded like bad cam adjuster to me, a couple 5k oil changes with full flush should keep that engine going another 60k kms

[@MikeyG003]

Do your oil every 5k miles folks, simple and cheap maintenance that'll keep your engine running for a long time without issues

[@Tyrial7]

No, just follow the recommended service interval which is 15,000 kilometres. The problem here is that the stupid owner never changed the oil in 64,000km, which would ruin any engine.

[@MikeyG003]

@@Tyrial7 do your research. It’s a lot better for your car to do the oil sooner than the recommended amount, gonna have issues later with excessive oil burn etc.

[@geoffbell166]

@@Tyrial7 No,oil is cheap,long service intervals are B's

[@keithnewton8981]

No you do not do 5k oil change unless your car is only doingv5k a year around town . Toyota uses a fully synthetic oil 0w -16 oil younshould not be using anything else in the engine It 10'000 mile or 12 months which ever comes sooner. It essential you do not exceed the mileage or time. The 12 months can go 1 month over and max 800 miles over . But thats the max. There no need to do every 5k this is a waste of product it an environmental issue. I do not know how a car can be in this mess in 3 years . Not servicing a car will mean there is no warrenty on the car . Part of the manufacturer agreement to maintaining a warrenty is you havevthe car serviced at the dealer according to there schedule. If an Ower cannot be bothered you walk away

[@Tyrial7]

@@geoffbell166 15000 kilometres is not a long service interval, quite normal normal now in fact.

[@shawnsevering1480]

Nice job on the video, showing the lack of maintenance, Toyota is the best brands out there

[@shawnsevering1480]

As a mechanic myself , I always tell people. You take care of your car !! Your car will take care of you!!!

[@michaelconnors5339]

I had a vw golf come into work at similar km to this (65k) still had the 1000km basic check service on the windshield, had engine lights on, but the customer only came in because the brakes were making a bad noise (pads worn out and on metal) nothing was said about a service just fix the brake noise, just wow...

[@Stoff1]

That's nothing much for some European OCIs of up to 37500 miles.

[@Brian_L_5168]

It's sad to see how this owner treated their car, their house probably doesn't look any better. Excellent work showing how important regular oil change is !

[@runningkirkwa2934]

Imagine what their body looks like,

[@hooligancharly]

Great to see a professional at work. And an amateur owning a car

[@nunawadingtoyota8134]

Thanks 🙂

[@foggymtnbreakdown]

I really enjoyed this video. Thank you for taking the time to make it and post it. Nice music too.

[@nunawadingtoyota8134]

Great!😊 Thanks for watching and leaving a comment.

[@bobdole870]

I do this on every used vehicle I look at. You never know how well someone took care of it until you look inside the engine.

[@av40229]

I think this just shows the durability of the engine to be neglected the way it has and still runs.

[@SkippyTheRedKangaroo]

I purchased my 2021 Yaris from this dealership. No regrets whatsoever. I'm amazed that anyone would not bother to do the required maintenance. It's so cheap and they'll even lend you a car for the time that the service is being done.

[@nunawadingtoyota8134]

Thank you for watching and leaving a positive comment. Thank you for your businesses 😀

[@edpowell5754]

Very good discribtion of WHY people should keep up with maintiance of their vehicle. You did good Pal.

[@nunawadingtoyota8134]

Thanks🙂

[@jeffcarello7446]

This engine looks like a good candidate for a BG Dynamic Clean! It may even take two BG services as bad as that sludge problem is. 😊👍

[@BrianNC81]

Or hot shots secret stiction eliminator

[@picklerix6162]

I have never seen sludge that bad but I’m not a mechanic. I have a relative who told me that she had never changed the oil in her car. Her brother-in-law finally changed her oil and he said it was very thick and dirty.

[@USMC-pt7rw]

It has definitely been neglected on the part of the oil change at either the dealership or what ever vendor has been taken to, this RAV4 sounds like it has a DIESEL ENGINE, yet the sludge for such low miles it’s huge, hope the owner can fix it, and learns to do it yourself, that way he can make sure his oil and filter are changed, good luck sir.

[@nunawadingtoyota8134]

Problem is owner never presented car for service.

[@videomaniac108]

I have a 2019 Nissan 370Z that is hitting 57K miles, whose oil and filter have been changed every 3K miles. The result is that the valvetrain area looks so clean that you could eat off of it and the oil level, after 3K miles, on the dipstick doesn't budge from the level it was set to after an oil change.

[@ron4274]

EXCELLENT VIDEO!!! Exactly the sort of detail I was looking for to educate others on this subject...well done! As a piece of constructive feedback, I feel it would be helpful to insert some text (around the 2:40 mark) warning of the potential risks associated with using a pressure washer to clean the engine and engine bay area if care is not taken. And if I may add a personal concern: Some hybrid vehicles may have a higher risk of oil fouling & dilution where the gasoline engine only operates for a small portion of each drive and fails to reach ideal operating temperature on a regular basis.

[@nunawadingtoyota8134]

Thanks😊 You make a valid point. Didn't even consider this to be an issue as we do so may engine washes. Comments on here suggest engine washes are a big No! Connectors and sensors and computers in the engine bay are well protected against water ingress. Care needs to be taken around fuse boxes

[@marcs2652]

Ron, you are exactly correct on the hybrid issue. I'm religious about changing my tundra and wife's highlander hybrid oil every 5k - 6k miles with oem filters. My valve train is shiny silver where her's is dark and gritty.

[@ron4274]

@@marcs2652 Interesting, and definitely something to be aware of when owning a hybrid. P.S. - My '06 Tundra is pretty much the same.

[@martiedoherty5765]

It is also amazing what lazy, cheap ,scumbags some owners are. They live to pass on dying vehicles to others. Pure parasites.

[@adriankiraly5172]

I can't believe that people spend the big bucks on purchasing a nice vehicle and refuse to pay $210 for a capped price service. I'd hate to think how much a new engine and labour cost would be. Very sad....

[@nunawadingtoyota8134]

You have to wonder what the thought process was here.

[@NunamedDragon]

People treat vehicles as white goods nowadays. Fewer and fewer people even know how to perform maintenance items other than filling up fuel. Sadly

[@ilikepremios.amanofunofhyb4751]

Not even $210 but $50

[@CollinMac96]

More like 40$ change your own oil if you’re able to

[@motleydude73]

@@CollinMac96 If you want to keep your 5 year warranty valid just an oil change won't cut it. Needs a full inspection as per Toyota guidelines. Once warranty runs out yea sure do what you want.

[@paulausems9015]

Wow. I had no real idea that the time interval was that critically important. Will be changing my ways. And my oil.

[@mitchhedberg4415]

Once a year is fine. (for low miles) One guy tested much older unused but open oil and it was still fine.

[@riceburner4747]

I bet MOST used vehicles are LIKE this. MOST Toyota dealers would use an engine flush, install new oil/filter & sell at an excellent conditioned RAV4 & sell it "AS IS". 🙄😡. I DO give you alot of credit for your thorough analysis/tear down. I OWN a 2019 Prius from new, change MY oil @ 8046 kms or 6mos.whichever comes first. Wasting money/oil? NOT ME. I owned a used 97 Camry that I changed every 4,828 km & oil on dipstick was STILL clean for 1,609 kms on it! Had 400,262 km on it and would STILL have if it had not rusted out. I live in the rust belt.

[@2003evodave]

I’ve bought several vehicles just like this for very cheap due to being diagnosed needing a new engine even though the compression was good. I warm up the engine, dump the oil and filter, add the cheapest required oil and oil filter, do normal driving for about 10 minutes. If the dumped oil is still looking bad but getting better you can skip the oil filter change to every other time and increase the time between changes. Just keep repeating as necessary the process of oil and filter changes plus increasing the time between changes eventually to hours and then days as long as you see progress. I rarely use an engine flush additive on newer vehicles which have very small oil passages being worried too much sludge will be dislodged too fast clogging up and causing catastrophic failure plus new oils have plenty of detergent additives already in them. If the oil is looking better after several oil changes and after pulling the valve cover you find sludge in many corners and tight places you can choose to use an engine flush additive then. On the very worst vehicle (a small truck with 137,000 miles) I worked on,,,,the owner bought new and believed you didn’t ever have to change engine oil and that as long as it had oil all was good, you just add as needed. This was the worst case I’ve ever seen. The oil was as thick as hot grease. So I added diesel fuel instead of engine oil to it, ran it for a minute before dumping it, had to repeat the process twice before using standard engine oil flushes. Even as bad as it was it came out successfully and sold it with a warranty having no call back. This method has worked effectively for me on many different vehicles,,,only down side it is time consuming. Lastly use your best judgement on which methods and cleaning/flushing fluids would be proper for your situation and vehicle design. There is not only one way to get the job done.

[@rafaelacosta5724]

You don't have to use the engine flush additive as instructed in the bottle. You can control the "potency" by using 5mL doses instead of the 500mL doses it typically instructs to add, run the engine for 5 min and then, replace the oil. By reducing the potency, you reduce the risk of damage greatly. In fact, I use 5-25mL doses in 5mL increments while driving the car normally. After the 25mL, I recommend replacing the oil and repeat if the drained oil looks dark. If it doesn't look dark, there was no sludge that the additive could've removed. Therefore, there's no need ro repeat the process.

[@volt8684]

My dad a garage owner and engineer did what you said. Diesel instead of oil for short period degreases worst crap. I ve used it too and never damaged an engine. I only do 8k mile changes or once a year. 300 k miles on one. Never had an engine fail - yet

[@chriskappert1365]

It seems when you tell people they drive the most reliable car in the world , they get sloppy ........... Why should I worry , its a Toyota man !!!!

[@Buc_Stops_Here]

I have never ever seen an engine be this abused and still run like this one does. This person is very lucky if a lot of oil changes clean it out and there is no damage. At the very least they probably have cut the life of this engine a specific percentage. My car I sold a few years ago was a 2006 Saab 0-3 with about 200,000 miles on it. The engine is fine and now the second owner is maintaining it with oil changes every 5000 miles. It now has 245,000 miles on it. This I doubt will make it to 200,000 miles.

[@JohnHill-qo3hb]

Makes me want to check my oil cap now, although my 2011 (it's Dec 2023 now) RAV gets serviced in accordance with the window sticker.

[@sub_second_life3174]

I had a friend who thought cars just ran on gas and yearly inspections 😂 He didn’t change oil for an entire year once. Some people just have no clue in life

[@ec6843]

I mean that's the recommended time interval for modern engines if you don't hit the distance mark first.

[@jdmguy44]

Nothing wrong with going a year between an oil change depending on distance. Both my cars get yearly servicing but are only doing 3-4k miles per year or less sometimes.

[@NoName-tz5ji]

I’ve bought many abused cars like this,I just changed the oil and went. They really clean themselves up with several early oil changes.

[@vitalityfox]

The problem isn’t the sludge buildup. The problem is that there is a ton of damage done to this engine.

[@lanky-x782]

My brother in law did the same thing to his vehicle. No oil changes. Just kept adding oil when it got low for 2 years until the timing chain guide failed and ended up on top of the cylinder head. Some people should not have drivers licenses and resigned to a bus pass.

[@ottopartz1]

Saw a Volvo years ago that the owner ignored lights on the dash and got it up to 60+k before it grenaded itself. Oh the sounds it made when we tried to start it, lol. Plus we found a big inspection hole in the block with part of a con rod in it, so that was the end of our inspection. The young guy that had us tow it up the block to our shop was incredulous with our service manager because the car was only 3 years old and it "shouldn't be having problems like this". He had it towed to the dealership and from what we heard they denied any warranty coverage.

[@David-yy7lb]

Fill the crank case with diesel fuel and run the engine for awhile and it will dissolve the sludge

[@elihernandez330]

Just not pure diesel. Dilute it with 20w-50 so it has some viscosity and let it high idle for at least an hour. Preferably 2.

[@onlycodered]

I don't understand how someone with a 2019 model year vehicle can claim they did not know they had to change the oil. You have to make a conscious decision every time you start your car up to ignore the bright warning message on your dash saying maintenance is required.

[@marosrokyta8292]

But it was serviced due plan -15 000 km... But for some vehicles it is long interval.

[@andrewjones3586]

@@marosrokyta8292 no it wasnt - the sticker said next service due at 15,000 (which is the first service after the 1,000km dealer inspection) so its never had a proper service

[@nunawadingtoyota8134]

Correct

[@kerrybarnes7289]

I can understand. these idiots make life decisions all the time.

[@InternacionalBoxing]

I own a 2019 Rav4 Adventure, i change the oil every 3K miles, at 40K miles i changed the original Toyotire open country's they lasted 3 years! 🤯 it currently has 65K miles and i will be changing the transmission fluid very soon, only 2 issues i had were the low pressure Fuel pump recall and currently the key not being detected forcing me to manually open my car. That's it 💯

[@cogentdynamics]

Wow, I didn’t know this could happen with modern oil. Cars from the 60’s would look like that when I got them as a youngster.

[@John_Ridley]

Don't buy a car where they've religiously followed Toyota's maintenance schedule. 10,000 mile oil changes are BS. Change at 5000. Don't care if it's synthetic or not.

[@sreenathmallu]

I agree with whatever is said about need for timely maintenance. Compression is good, engine is running and some oil did drain out. If it were me I would put quality synthetic oil and do couple short interval oil changes and gradually increase oil change interval. You would be surprised how clean the engine would get without tearing it down and cleaning it after few oil changes.😊

[@kenj.8897]

Wrong , it's toast, you can't clean that

[@sc3ku]

If he is going to replace the engine anyway, why not try a couple of treatments of a motor flush? If it blows up…we’ll he was going to get a new engine in the first place. Maybe he gets lucky and it cleans enough that he gets more mileage (now that oil pan and valve cover, and hopefully valve train area, are scraped clean))

[@andywiggens1069]

I would never buy a used car from you

[@chiefdenis]

Exactly what I'd do, short interval oil changes can work wonders for abused engines

[@013forlive]

@@chiefdenis This case is extreme, its too far gone imo. But it does work indeed.

[@exittech1282]

it doesnt mean the engine is bad. clean and hope 😍 engine needs some love

[@davidr.wilson8194]

When you started removing the cylinder head and the music started playing,It sounds like the artist stold the guitar part from TLC -No Scrubs

[@georgetirebiter6437]

The key to engine failure is lack of maintenance, and since only 25 percent of people do regular maintenance, only 25 percent of used cars are worth a tinker’s damn.

[@williamC8227]

If the plugs look good the compression is good and there's no obvious sign of engine damage just use the BG total engine restoration kit that will dissolve all that sludge and flush it out should be good to go.

[@andypreston1524]

Nice idea, but check the pick-up strainer in case chunks of dislodged sludge end up restricting it............

[@maungmaung4037]

Yeah I agree it still mild slug state not harden or bake carbon deposit yet pretty much easy to save .

[@KianJorry]

I shared a house with this guy one time who done nothing to his car. The front brake pads wore down to the metal so he use to pull on the hand brake to stop. Didnt use the bake pedal unless it was an emergency stop!

[@muniz1977]

I do my oil changes all the time and never let exceed 5,000 miles and always using the best filter and synthetic oil available. My cars run like new.

[@babaganoosh555]

If there's no bottom end knock then a BG restoration is worth a try. We've saved an engine that was worse than this and it cleaned up a treat!

[@timothykeith1367]

I've heard good things about that product

[@lejoshmont2093]

I was thinking the same thing

[@ahmadghosheh3104]

My 03 Camry had oil changes every 5000 miles by the first owner, the second owner did 7500 miles changes, it had 281000 miles on it when I bought it. There was no sludge when I did the valve cover gasket.. But, I noticed the oil getting dirty quickly. I ran BG in it for a while then put fresh oil and filter, it was a surprise the new oil stayed a lot cleaner for longer time than it used to. Something got cleaned well.

[@Moondoggy1941]

Where do you get the BG products?

[@babaganoosh555]

@@Moondoggy1941 I'm in Australia and it's only available to workshops, they won't sell to the public

[@mousegouse]

Excellent video!!! I especially loved how you explained in simple terms how the Oil change interval is determined. There are a lot of people who change their oil every 3 months regardless. That IMO, is a waste of time and money. The owner of this car did the opposite, 3 years without a Oil change is madness. Surprised the engine didn't blow up.

[@nunawadingtoyota8134]

Thanks for watching and for taking the time to leave an awesome comment 😀

[@dennisyoung4631]

Changing on a schedule makes sense when you don’t drive much, e.g. 60-200 miles a month most months. I was advised to do so every 4 to 6 months. I currently do not have a car, as I cannot afford the operating costs. If I was able to get one, I’d drive “that” much as a rule…

[@mousegouse]

@@dennisyoung4631 The recommended for this car is 15000 klm or 1 yr, whichever comes sooner. If you drive a lot and reached 15000 klm in one month, would your method of sticking to 4-6 months be any good for the engine? No, you would have exceeded the manufacturer's recommendations. So it really depends on milage and driving conditions. Not just a set interval. Hope that makes it clearer.

[@dennisyoung4631]

@@mousegouse no, I spoke of when one drove very little, e.g. a few hundred miles with a 6 month period. This would be someone who either does not work (retired/disabled) or who does not need to drive much (such as a job I had many years ago, where the round trip took ten minutes total when driven slowly and covered a few miles at the most.) Otherwise, you’re right. Most people think more or less in terms of distance, as far as I can tell.

[@mousegouse]

@@dennisyoung4631 Yes, that type of driving was also addressed in the video. He showed a chart that recommended a 6 month interval for the type of driving you described.

[@diegopalomino1200]

2014 Toyota Avalon and 2008 Nissan Frontier. Oil change every 5000 miles using Mobil 1 full synthetic, no problems so far.

[@MrJet30]

dang i almost cried when i seen this, I been thinking about buying a used rav4 maybe a 2017 year with low miles, i will definitely be looking out for this. My current car 24 year old neon i change the oil every 3k on the dot. 137,000 miles and no sludge at all

[@4vepvik781]

The opening video showing a sludged up RAV4 2019 is quite simply shocking.

[@jesses1589]

These are vey good engines from Toyota. I've got one in my 19' Camry hybrid, it runs strong. I would have changed the oil and ran it if I got that vehicle on the cheap. That would have never happened if I were the one to own it from new. Those engines do make some noise up top, its normal for them.

[@chucktaylor4958]

And the motor still operates? Amazing.

[@sclark1701]

Since the engine is being replaced anyway, I wonder what would happen if you removed this engine and simply pressure washed the sludge out of the valve train, oil galleys, and the sump before drying thoroughly and adding new oil. It would not be a proper fix by any means, but I would be curious to see if you could salvage the engine for a while longer without any significant disassembly.

[@karkule5919]

Compression is very good, I would flush it out and see how long it lasts before replacing engine.

[@jeremypilot1015]

It's a Toyota, spray the top and lower end down with brake cleaner and wiper all that sludge out drop in fresh oil run it 1000 miles with some marvel mystery oil, change out the oil and put in fresh with some STP engine treatment with Zinc and she'll be good as new.

[@500sixtyfour]

PCV would be a major inspection point for me

[@user-wh9mo5bz6h]

In Europe, maintenance every year / 15000 km. Means oil change and new oil lfilter. It's a miracle it's still working.

[@s.m.whiteII]

My dealer tries to argue with me when I call for an appointment (2018 Camry) every 5,000 miles for the 0w-16 oil change. “You aren’t due for service, it hasn’t been 10,000 miles?!”. They now just say, “what time do you want to come in?”😂😂

[@randyjerrett3385]

I don’t get it! Why does Toyota do this to there vehicles ? !!!!!!

[@slowery43]

your dealer should argue with you and your "0-16W oil"

[@mrt2734]

The customer of this Toyota doesn't need any vehicle, get a bicycle.

[@mikeforeman6274]

Valves were sealing the rings are good pressure wash the engine off and fill it with synthetic so it won’t have sludge next time. You can pull tubes and test the oil if it’s synthetic and just top it off the oil is never changed in military vehicles here.

[@johnfranklin5277]

Thats because the government can afford new engines...

[@ralph5476]

I ran a high detergent diesel oil in a motorbike to clear a sprag starter clutch that regularly clogged up. This not only cleared the gear, but the rings also. It started, idled and ran more smoothly afterwards. I would recommend this way to anyone with this problem. It worked for me.

[@Kevin-kn2ni]

2005, 2.4L Camry. I bought it in 2017, with 55k. It now has 209k. I have a full synthetic oil change at 3k miles. No problems.