It Turns Out, Hybrids Are Really Hard On Engines

[@EngineeringExplained]

**Let's address the common questions!** *1) Does this mean hybrids aren't reliable?* No! Just because something is challenging or problematic, does not mean there aren't solutions to overcome it. Toyota has repeatedly proven hybrids can be insanely reliable, as discussed in the video. Good engineering can overcome real problems. In the car world, it's often thought that "simple = better" but you can have something complex and reliable (Prius), and you can have something simple and unreliable (ahem, you know who they are). There's a lot of fascinating engineering that goes into making these things run reliably. *2) Are the problems overblown?* It depends! As mentioned in the video, it's completely scenario dependent on whether you build up water/fuel dilution over time. Modern hybrids will have algorithms to address this as much as possible - with scheduled longer run times to help boil off water. For long distances, you can get temps high enough, consistently enough, to get rid of water/fuel. Even still, versus non-hybrids, you will see lower average temperatures, and short trips can exacerbate this issue (especially if the engine is turning on/off during these trips). *3) How do older hybrids deal with these problems?* Many ways! One of the easiest solutions to ensuring you don't have too much oil/fuel dilution is a shorter oil drain interval. Changing the oil is a guaranteed way of getting those fluids out. The more frequently you do this, the less of a challenge it is. Modern engines are calling for longer and longer oil drain intervals - the video discusses a product which is designed to handle these longer intervals reliably. *4) What about electric oil pumps; does that help with start/stop?* Sure, in many modern hybrids you have electric oil pumps - this can help provide oil flow prior to re-starting the engine. But not all hybrids have electric oil pumps; plenty (especially older hybrids) have mechanical pumps that only run when the engine is running. When you don't have oil flow, you're reliant on the properties of the oil - what film is left behind, as well as additives (like ZDDP, as discussed) to protect the engine in these scenarios.

[@jbaidley]

Does this go some way to explaining why Hybrids are substantially more likely to catch fire than pure ICE cars?

[@aluisious]

One of the reasons I bought a hybrid is how many miles I drive in heavy traffic, frequently 110 miles a day. Shouldn't have any problems with the engine not being hot enough.

[@BlueSpruce2]

Seems like we have some major hypocrisy here.... 😂. I remember you doing a video defending the efficiency of vehicles with start stop systems and how much the engines are consuming while at idle.

[@pablokelevra2128]

no, what is hard on engines are bean counters. hybrid engines should be dry-sumped with electric oil pumps that keep the oil circulating and at pressure... i mean youve got a minimum 48v charging system with huge batteries... but thats expensive to build so the shift the cost to the consumer with expensive oil and planned obsolescence in engines that fail shortly after warranty...

[@yourcrazybear]

​@@BlueSpruce2No it's not hypocrisy.

[@scott8919]

The amount of hybrids on the market going hundreds of thousands of miles on the original engine is proof automakers have enough measures in place to compensate for the issues raised here.

[@androiduberalles]

Wait you're saying like, the owner never does an oil change?

[@MoMCHa96]

​@@androiduberalles No. He is saying that there are more good sides to hybrids than down sides. So even if there are some issues, in general they are great.

[@aspecreviews]

4:00 I have a 2001 Prius, and when I bought it in 2020, I thought it idled after initial startup for a worrying amount of time. Turns out it just waits until it's completely warmed up (coolant and oil) to go into full operation and be able to shut off and start up at will. It will idle continuously until everything is warmed up to operating temperature, and only then will it shut off.

[@antoniocirino8444]

@@aspecreviews exactly

[@workingguy-OU812]

Agree - yet another video from this channel to be taken with a spoon of salt.

[@Duckferd]

As a engineer who has worked in PCV systems, the first time we saw the condensation/moisture problem from repeated starts was not in PHEVs and hybrids... but actually normal ICE vehicles in dealership lots. During the winter, we noted that some dealers would move cars from one side of the lot to the other side as they clear the lot of snow. Over 30-40 of these 'cycles', they end up with substantial amounts of water in the crankcase, and we had to instruct dealers to leave the vehicles on to fully warm up to prevent this happening. Typically in small amounts this doesn't cause an issue, but as you imagine, problems started to crop up when that much water has accumulated in the engine. This experience was really useful when we got into PHEVs, because we developed two things: a counter to force the engine to turn on after a number of 'cold starts' to force a warmup cycle, and then an algorithm to modify (shorten) the oil change interval minder if the engine is still not given the opportunity to warmup (say if the customer has constant short drives). As a tangentially related topic, moisture in oil is also how some oil catchcan manufacturers mislead, or at least inflate, claims about how well their products work. Today's PCV oil separation systems are basically like science experiments and incredibly efficient under most circumstances, but they do not filter out fuel and water vapour (those go back into the intake to be ingested). So when you see forum posts from oil catchcan manufacturers showing how much fluid they're capturing from new/modern street driven vehicles not subject to high G-loads, chances are that it's mostly water and fuel, and they never put that fluid into an oven to evaporate it and show you the true amount of oil they're actually capturing.

[@EngineeringExplained]

Excellent comment - thanks for sharing your insight! And yes, "lot rot" is certainly a concern for dealer cars that just get shuffled around and never warm up to temperature - probably has to be frustrating from the OE side to try and implement a solution!

[@dougdanzeisen9608]

Thanks Duckferd, I see the algorithm in my '22 insight. The engine runs continuously until warmed up to what seems like normal op temp.

[@MaxPwr176]

@duckferd thanks for the insight! Would you elaborate on why you excluded high G forces?

[@bennyang8049]

Thank you. At least i can rename my oil catch can as fuel&water catch can

[@57WillysCJ]

Funny I learned this from older guys back in the late 1970s. When only drove short distances during the winter moisture would build up, hence why mufflers rotted out faster so once a week you drove a long distance to dry out the engine and of course short times between oil changes. If you didn't there would be foam around your PCV and likely the carburetor. Take a drive of 20-30 miles one way and it would mostly dry out.

[@funlovingJohn]

Toyota Hybrid engines use 3 phase veriable speed water pumps and oil pumps controled by the engine computer. Even though the engine may not be running the water and oil pumps are running while driving. So thats two reasons why Toyota Hybrid taxi's with 600000 are still running strong.

[@aspecreviews]

@@funlovingJohn my 2001 Prius doesn't. The only thing I hear under the hood while my Prius is idling is the inverter coolant pump and if it's on, the HVAC blower.

[@funlovingJohn]

@@aspecreviews The 2018 and up have no rubber belts, and the engine computer controlls everything to do with the engine.

[@MrD1maS]

The oil pump is driven by the chain. So if the engine doesn't run, then the oil pump doesn't run as well.

[@SvenTSchixe]

​@@funlovingJohn 2013 and up

[@Arman-tm1kz]

Nicely said, I'm a Toyota mechanic and we never have had issues described in the video. The only cars that usually do have mayonaise under the oil fill cap is usually on the ICE's and like 0.01% on the Hybrids. Long Live Toyota♥

[@camtoufan3704]

Sum up: this video is a promotion piece for Mobil1.

[@thorlancaster5641]

15,000 mile oil change intervals are NEGLECT no matter the oil. Carbon build-up destroys the oil, no matter how good it is.

[@lubossoltes321]

which seems to claim water does not evaporate below 100C ...

[@PiOfficial]

@@thorlancaster5641 Nope not true. You can have 30k intervals with the right engines. Trucks are proof of this.

[@FernandoFernandez-vh4xo]

If I wanted a witch-hunt video I’d have searched for Salem

[@reneestaniel3520]

Whahahahahaha!

[@bizmar]

Recent research has shown that Nutella is a bad engine lubricant

[@taffy4801]

The Goober has a nut allergy :(

[@omnimoeish]

I saw that video. Very compelling evidence there.

[@EngineeringExplained]

The more you know! 💫

[@jamestverde]

Source?

[@jwalster9412]

​@@jamestverde Look for 'i replaced my Engine oil with chocolate'

[@trudgemankPhD]

Sounds like a solved problem, but I like being educated about solved problems.

[@danc2014]

Only if you hear the part that said buy Hybrid oil, not just motor oil. I don't recall seeing Hybrid oil at the store but I still have an ICE and look for 10 w 30 .

[@ClickBeetleTV]

​@@danc2014I always take my hybrids to the dealership for this among many reasons.

[@JOutterbridge]

Sometimes they are called Euro spec oils. Either way engineers have found these issues when testing just like they did when direct injection became mainstream. Solutions can always be found. Hybrids are worst in very cold arctic climates because the oil doesnt always get fully warmed up. Especially for short trips of 5 to 15 minutes. Hybrids arent designed for short engine run times with stop/go in very cold weather that never goes obove 0 degrees. Its to be expected really but they dont make engine warmers for every car yet. Eeventually more diesel tech will be on hybrid cars as well to help keep things rolling in tough enviroments. Its a matter of cost and efficiency. Mass productions favors efficiency and economy first before practicalilty.

[@NeoAutodroid]

People have been fearmongering around hybrids since the early 2000s but they have proven their reliability time and time again.

[@ryerob4815]

Yes and no. Do you still see a lot of them on the road. The answer is you see some models of hybrids on the road most of them are junk. I don't even see old hybrid SUVs at all anymore. Did you also notice how every cab company had those earlier Prius' but they all of a sudden weren't on the road as long as they would have other cars. That's because those Prius' had batteries that cost thousands (3-5k I forgot exactly how much) of dollars to replace and they did fail anywhere from 100-150k miles when you should be expecting 250k from a Honda or Toyota product and 200k on anything else that isn't junk.

[@gitghetto]

@@ryerob4815 I still see the prius taxis and old hybrids everywhere. The prius taxis especially.

[@NeoAutodroid]

@@ryerob4815 it's hard to tell which cars are hybrids and which aren't because they've become ubiquitous these days, even hybrid trucks like the Maverick exist now that looks identical to the non hybrid version but as far as the iconic Prius goes I still see plenty of older gens out on the road even in the very conservative area I live there's plenty of Prii out and about between all the pickup trucks. As far as the taxis I'm not near a big city so I don't know. Personally, my gen 3 Prius is way beyond 150k and still has original engine, original traction battery and original transmission. I am a mechanic though and I am very strict when it comes to maintenance. I'm also a very reserved and careful driver so that helps extend the life of the vehicle as well.

[@Courtesyflush52]

@@ryerob4815very rarely do you see a hybrid battery outright fail. Their capacity degrades like an EV, but that doesn’t affect the performance of the vehicle nearly as significantly

[@mikivli]

@@ryerob4815There’s plenty of older hybrid SUVs / others still going they just weren’t as popular as a Prius so you don’t recognize as easily. my gen 1 Prius was kicking till 2022 for its age that’s great. hybrid batteries have a bad misconception due to no education on them. you can change battery cells for $50 each and it could be cheap depending on how many need replacing. I also see plenty of older gen 2 and 3 Prius around. you’re kind of doing exactly what the original comment said 😂

[@tonycallahan4488]

I drive a 2016 Lexus IS300h. When the oil needs to be changed it's hard to believe because it is the same colour it was when it went into the car. I bought it about 10k miles since it's last service and took it for an oil change right away, oil was spotless. Now I have done about 5-6k miles since then and the oil is still ridiculously clean. I have never seen oil this clean in any car. This is because not only is the engine tight but when most of the oil wear typically takes place in a car (low speeds/city, idling), the engine is switched off and in EV mode.

[@wafflesnfalafel1]

That is great, (and I see that to some degree in my wife's subie crosstrek) but my understanding is that it's largely due to oil temps being lower. Oil after even just a week in a turbo car where you see higher oil temps is frequently already getting much darker.

[@martinliehs2513]

A bit off topic, but where I live, I have seen Lexus IS models with 4, 6 and 8 cylinder gas engines. I was not aware that a hybrid was available. May I ask where you purchased the IS 300H?

[@tonycallahan4488]

@@martinliehs2513​​⁠ sure, I bought it in Ireland. I’m not sure if it was available in the US and some other countries. The hybrid IS is called the IS300h, it has a 2.5 litre 4 cylinder. It has a combined power output (engine + electric motor) of 223hp.

[@martinliehs2513]

@tonycallahan4488 thanks. In Canada, Lexus currently offers the ES300H. It is a FWD sedan, but I believe it has the same 2.5l hybrid power train as you have.

[@tonycallahan4488]

@@martinliehs2513ah I see, yes I’m familiar with the ES300h. Although the powertrain is slightly different; same displacement (2.5) but a different engine number. The IS300h up to 2018 has the 2AR-FSE engine whereas the ES300h uses the A25A-FXS. I’m not sure of the differences between them though.

[@BadMuflon]

Taxi driver from Europe here. We use Toyota hybrids a lot. They dont have any issues if maintaned corectly. Personally I drive a diesel Mercedes and I have problems all the time

[@ffhjvbuydb78eb]

mercedes is junk. we have one.

[@aramesh428]

Why do you drive the Mercedes if the Toyota has less problems?

[@BadMuflon]

@@aramesh428 Because I sit in it for 9-10 hours a day and Toyota isnt good for that. It has the plastic interior and the seats are not that good for long hours. The driving position cant be adjusted as in a Mercedes. The ride quality in a Mercedes is also on a different planet then on a Toyota. I can also get better rides while driving a Mercedes, can arange some deals with 5 star hotels, embasys and that type of thing. I cant get that with a Toyota. So its my comfort, comfort of my passangers and more quality work/rides coming my way. But its very demanding to keep it tip top thats for sure

[@Morpheus-pt3wq]

German luxury brands used to be good. Not anymore. Famous "german engineering" got so overly complicated, everything just keeps breaking. And every repair is hella expensive too. VW is also affected.

[@BadMuflon]

@@Morpheus-pt3wq Yeah it really does. Its very demanding to keep it in tip top condition

[@kevinbrown1368]

Love your videos but this one is just a little too connected to an oil company marketing its product. Hybrid engines are known to last a long time. My family owns three hybrids and never seen any signs of water in the oil in any of them. As you point out, oil sticks to surfaces keeping a level of protection in place and this is especially the case for frequent hybrid start/stops. Hybrids are also often managed to turn the engine prior starting to pre-lube it before turning on injectors and ignition systems. Finally, electric oil pumps are increasingly being used which can operate independently of engine rotation. So, Mobil is really highlighting a solution to an already solved problem to try to convince people to buy their oil.

[@Jordan-ql6tm]

Ridiculous

[@ultrastoat3298]

How much money would you turn down bro. Jason getting his bag. He's put in the time.

[@georgemorley1029]

Absolutely.

[@dzonikg]

@audi_fanusik Cars dont rust from water but from salt that is put in winter on roads so they dont get ice

[@LTVoyager]

@@dzonikgSay you didn’t watch the video without saying you didn’t want the video…

[@liljawn826]

I'm a technician and I just bought a new Ford hybrid 2 months ago. I waited extra time so I could get the hybrid package in my Maverick. Ford and Toyota embraced the technology 20 years ago and have a lot of R&D in the segment to work with. They're the only ones I really trust when it comes to a hybrid. If you want to choose a vehicle that is durable and meant to last, look at what taxi companies use. You can't touch an old Prius or Escape hybrid at an auction because the taxi companies will pay top dollar for them. Seeing either with 2 or 300k miles on them on original engines and batteries is not uncommon. The reason is simple. Neither the ICE or the electric drive system is ever fully taxed. The engine comes on and runs at the point its under the least amount of stress, and the batteries are maintained at an optimal charge level almost constantly. This makes for a very durable, efficient drivetrain that will last a very long time.

[@corneliouscook6062]

taxi idea is genious, its also why im justifying a crown vic. basic maintenence and having some mechanical sympathy it will never die

[@Ltdeathsquid]

@@corneliouscook6062 As someone who owns and uses a 2004 CVPI for the last 10 years, that is absolutely the case! It's been my dependable commuter while the nicer truck gets used on the weekends or for longer trips.

[@KnightGravy]

I have a 2013 Prius C, it's been on 3 continents, across the ocean 4 times, and driven through the artic circle. Only things I've had to do since buying it used in 2014: Change oil, coolant, plugs. My 2021 Ram 1500, is not doing as well.

[@cavvvyr7021]

@@KnightGravysweet how much did it cost to transport the vehicle across the ocean

[@Anton-tf9iw]

That's a lot of tech, so a lot could go wrong, irreparable without specialist help.

[@OneCritWunder]

When i was still working for toyota we had a customer who ran a taxi fleet with priuses. Some of these taxis are still being used and are decades old. 840.000km and still running but they came to us multiple times a year for check ups and services. Those cars look spotless and idk how he does it since they're taxis and all. Incredible but i really loved that guy.

[@patrickvanderwyden191]

I have 168,000 miles on my Prius plug-in Hybrid. No problems at all. The "starting" is done with the electric motor, not with a starter. The Atkinson Cycle keeps the stresses on the pistons to a minimum.

[@singular9]

And yet toyota hybrids are THE MOST reliable vehicles in toyota's fleet of options. I know people who have 15+ year old toyota hybrids that have 300k miles on them, no battery replacements, and basic oil changes every 10k miles. Zero issues.

[@garyandtricia1]

But how many miles on the ICE engine?

[@micker9830]

@@garyandtricia1 What he is saying, is that you can go 300K miles in total and the ice engine will be fine, with all the starting and stopping, it's a 100% complete non issue.

[@raifparker3990]

​@@garyandtricia1Most of them are running on the original ICE. I worked at Toyota for quite a bit, routinely see older hybrids with well over 300k and all original

[@yootoobvyooer]

How many 15 year old hybrids on road? It's far less than gasoline powered even adjusting for numbers. Even with perfectly fine engine, dead battery means throw away due to high repair cost and only 1 year warranty.

[@garyandtricia1]

@@raifparker3990 missed the point, the ice isn't running the entire 300k is it? Probably under 100k on the ice.

[@aspecreviews]

Hybrids do not *cold start* their engines every time. My 2001 Prius waits until it's COMPLETELY warmed up to shut off initially. Ironically, that helps the engine stay off longer and under heavier throttle scenarios.

[@EngineeringExplained]

Yep, as discussed in the video!

[@adamkernohan]

..not all

[@carholic-sz3qv]

yeah ive seen some teardown video of the earlier prius and it literaly had like a kind of hot water storage or a heating system for the engine for it to stay longer in operation.

[@cooperp6429]

By completely warmed up, you must mean more or less warmed up. However it's kind of nice that the Prius has a small container for "warm" engine coolant, which is insulated, and when turn off your car, the coolant gets pumped into, so that it doesn't completely cool down. :)

[@nicmainville9954]

@@adamkernohanmind expanding on your "not all" comment or are you just being a contrarian?

[@butchroberts8719]

Please stop. I’ve had 3 Prius, starting in 2005 and put about 400,000 miles total between them. Not one failure. 7500 mile oil changes. Zero problems. Zero. 52-55 mpg. Awesomely efficient and reliable cars.

[@RickJohnson]

For cold or idle starts, Toyota addresses the first concern by spinning up the engine to about 1000 RPM w/ the hybrid motor-generator closer to the engine (MG1) before introducing fuel and spark. This, along w/ anti-drainback valves in the filters, helps generate oil pressure more quickly. They've also tried various methods of pre-warming or quickly warming the engine, from hot coolant stored in a thermos (2nd gen) to routing coolant through a radiator in the exhaust stream (3rd-gen), though arguably, both of those strategies were more for emissions than wear.

[@matthewbeasley7765]

Pretty much every hybrid does that. It's wild doing a compression check on a hybrid. You disconnect the injectors and "start" the car. It spins away at 1000RPM while you compression check.

[@PJWey]

@@matthewbeasley7765running all the time, magic!

[@garrettmillard525]

This almost certainly reduces the wear on the engine considerably in comparison to an ICE. An ICE is forced to immediately begin combustion to sustain itself. And it must run richer (least efficiently), and under higher load (because friction is greatest). This inefficient, significant load happens when parts are coldest - before thermal expansion creates clearances that the engine is designed to operate under. And internal temperature differences are greatest as well. There is no doubt that the hybrid system is actually dramatically LESS susceptible to engine wear upon "cold" start, for all the reasons you list. It's the ICE cars that stop their engine every time the vehicle stops moving that this video should be about.

[@DoRu42]

Toyota also fires up 1 cylinder first, then the 2nd, 3rd and finally 4th cylinder so it's a smoother transition to running and not felt by the occupants and greatly reduces wear too. Not a fan of this video since it speaks more towards ICE than most hybrids. And if there were hybrids which caused these problems they should have been called out instead of lumping all together.

[@johnredd214]

This guy is talking about problematic issues that don't really seem to affect there's most hybrids, so therefore this is all incorrectThis guy is talking about problematic issues that don't really seem to affect most hybrids, so therefore this is all incorrect. .

[@MTI250]

Toyota hybrids mitigate some of the startup oiling issues by using the motor generator (MG1) to spin up the engine to the idle rpm before adding fuel and spark. While you still have the problem of cold oil, at least you don't have the rich fuel mixture dissolving the oil film from the cylinder walls.

[@annunakian8054]

Not an engineer or a hybrid-owner, but drove a manual Civic thru deep flood waters twice. Almost stalled out twice. Had to downshift to make it thru. But each time, I made sure to keep driving for a few hours afterward to boil off any water. Also ran Sea Foam thru. I'd like to think that doing that helped. Car is still running like a champ other than a bad catalytic, 240k miles.

[@butchroberts8719]

We’ve had 3 Prius since1995. Put well over 150,000 miles on each with ZERO problems. Super reliability and economy. People can be hard on engines.

[@dickslocum]

Son in law is on the third battery pack in his first gen Prius. Engine still strong. It will probably out last the body as he is on the Island of Okinawa.

[@kpmmsupervision1297]

Damn! Wow I have a Prius 2019, hopefully it will last as long as yours!

[@chuckwalla2967]

So you're saying this hybrid specific engine oil is an unnecessary marketing gimmick?

[@davidbrayshaw3529]

My brother in law has an '07 with 120,000 miles of daily stop start commute on the clock. The thing looks and runs like new and he has done nothing but routine maintenance to the vehicle in all that time. What's more, it still get's exactly the same fuel economy as the it did when it was brand new.

[@EPeltzer]

With just regular scheduled maintenance virtually any car on the market should go 150k. Is that supposed to be impressive? Let's talk at 300.

[@mlw19mlw91]

1:40 @1:40 Electric oil pumps are already a thing. So the parts can get lubrication before they start moving. Most of the issues raised in this video can be mitigated already. Edit: Cars that come with them aren't as common as I thought. So it's not an issue that is mitigated often. Also I first learned about cars with electric oil pumps when I heard of a rare car with an auxiliary electric oil pump. Had no idea they'd make cars with only an electric oil pump. But at least if it were a hybrid, you could have the engine turn off if the oil pump died and still be a le to drive to safety with no engine damage.

[@N0Xa880iUL]

Excellent point.

[@dzonikg]

And when oil pump dies ,your engine die.Happen to me this summer on BMW X5

[@keim3548]

False. the electric oil pump is for the transaxle, not the engine.

[@thisisdumbwhatthe]

Yeah, this really comes off as FUD by oil companies. Real shame to see this channel be sabotaged by BS like this. Up there with seeing Mythbusters peeps shilling for Shell.

[@rogergeyer9851]

If it's an HEV you're only going a mile or so without the engine. If it's a PHEV then you might get home or to the mechanic, depending on the battery's state of charge.

[@StormsparkPegasus]

Hybrids (at least the Prius), have electric oil pumps. These pumps are run before the engine is started, and generally while driving even if the engine is off. This almost completely avoids dry starts. I have not (yet) seen a non-hybrid that has an electric oil pump like this. Not saying they don't exist, I just haven't seen one.

[@Haploanddogs]

Basically all large diesel engines have electric oil pumps for the same reason.

[@coryfogle5353]

I know for a fact the 2005-11Prius's oil pump is mechanical. Fuel and coolant oumps on the other hand are electric.

[@Avetho]

@@coryfogle5353 I think another comment mentioned the 2012 or 2013 and up are all electric oil pumps, so you're right that older Prius models have mechanical oil pumps.

[@Defianthuman]

@@coryfogle5353 Yeah gen two which is actually 04-09 is belt driven off the crank. It would be cool to mod mine to have an electric pump.

[@1DwtEaUn]

@@Defianthuman The engine compartment is just a bit cramped, still looking for a good spot to mount a dual filter remote oil relocation housing

[@Ben-lb6xf]

I have 2 Toyota hybrids, one with 286k miles and the other with 302k miles. They work pretty well I think.

[@TheBDD1970]

Wow that is impressive. A friend had a Lexus hybrid and after 12 years the battery was shot and it cost 10k to replace it.

[@Ben-lb6xf]

​@TheBDD1970 I'd have to imagine that's a dealer price and probably for an SUV. If you're willing to get your hands dirty you can do it for half or less. Also climate makes a significant difference. Hotter climates kill them faster. I live in Michigan which is fairly friendly to the battery longevity. I expect my 2008 highlander would benefit a battery replacement but is working ok, the 2010 prius seems to do fine so far. My brother had a 2008 prius in 2017 with 400k before the transmission lost MG#2. Never had the fluid change, manual doesn't call it for it. Unfortunately, Toyota techs follow a script and had him first replace the battery, then the battery computer and it still failed to fix it. A tech with a youtube channel helped him troubleshoot it correctly, he had a used trans installed and the ICE head gasket started failing at 496k. They are quite reliable but are a bit more complicated to troubleshoot effectively.

[@phoenixrising7623]

You lucky dog

[@ThunderBird80085]

I'm pretty sure that the main reason my maverick gets lower mileage in the winter by a significant margin is that the engine almost never turns off. Pretty sure they made it such that it keeps itself warm enough to prevent excessive moisture accumulation.

[@needles_balloon]

The engine also gets cooled much faster when running the heater!

[@haihengh]

most hybrid do that to keep the engine operation temperature, also if you turn on your heat, which is coming from coolants, the engine will keep the engine running to warm up the coolant, hence never got turn off

[@zacksstuff]

I think that's more for cabin heat, my 3rd gen Prius will do the same time. You could test by turning the heat off (once fully warmed up) and seeing if the engine will stop.

[@guard13007]

And this is why hybrids work best in spring and autumn. When too hot, more power is needed to run AC and batteries are less efficient. When too cold, the engine needs to operate more to keep itself and you warm enough, and while the battery is more efficient, a cold battery can't deliver enough power, and at freezing temperature also wears out faster - so it's important to keep the battery warmer too! Ironically, most batteries are happiest at temperatures that humans are happiest at, which is why my hybrid's battery temperature management is just a fan to bring air from the cabin to the battery - because any temperature range you've set in the cabin is within its comfortable operating limits. It's cheaper and your battery is always as comfortable as you are, so you intuitively know how your vehicle is feeling based on how you feel even if you're not the kind of person to ever think about this.

[@JoshWalker1]

Another big reason that applies to all cars: lower temps increase charge density and can improve efficiency, which is good, but lower temp air is also denser to drive through, so drag is higher. The former is is first degree effect, but the latter is a second degree effect.

[@Wordfishtrombone]

My 2013 hybrid is nearing 200k miles. It’s wild to know how much engineering went into making it last!

[@ElMistroFeroz]

And don't forget how much $$ and time in regular maintenance intervals. These hybrids don't maintain themselves you know.

[@MaxPwr176]

Ultimately- a low mileage car that spent it's life on short trips, has had a harder life than one with significantly more "highway" miles

[@林振华-t4v]

Yes, but lot less wear and tear on the chassis. Which the only thing you cant really replace.

[@DeltaSierra426]

Yep, and so pure ICE vehicles have this same problem or actually worse when they aren't reaching nominal operating temps and can't cook off moisture in the oil as at least most hybrids have electric oil and water pumps to pre-lube the engine and even warm up those fluids from the electric motors.

[@Cougracer67]

Still somewhat true, but nothing like back in the days of carburetors. Modern fuel injection does not wash down the cylinders with liquid gasoline like a carb did with the choke on. On short trips the choke may not have fully opened so raw gas was getting past the rings into the oil, resulting in upper cylinder wear (causing the common ridge at the top of the cylinder) and oil diluted with gas causing bearing wear.

[@garrettmillard525]

Facts. And the hybrid with a relatively smaller engine will still be by far the smarter choice for a short trip car. This same issue plagues ICE engines that are too large to let themselves fully warm up.

[@Enforcer_WJDE]

@@garrettmillard525 Yeah, i drove an i30N back then and the engine just warmed up on my commute, but not so much in winter. Now i drive an teeny weeny i20 with a 1L motor and it is warm immediately.

[@CarlSmith-bs4qx]

The typical clickbait. Yes Hybrids are really bad on engines. This is confirmed by many Prius units covering 500k plus miles, yawn...

[@maximac1515]

Well, hybrid vehicles are in sell for about 20 years and are more popular than ever. I think that problems mentioned in this video were already solved by car manufacturers some time ago. Also generally I don't hear about hybrid vehicles breaking more often than gasoline only vehicles

[@albert15986]

It's more of a click bait video to steer the pot in favor of EVs.. it's been well documented that 20yrs old Prius 2 has been able to get well over 300-500k miles with minimal engine failure.

[@MrErichuizer]

Compared to cars that my parents-in-law and friends drive (ice), our maintenance costs (hybrid) is roughly halve... Draw your own conclusion.

[@Frank00]

I thought the same thing, im sure this is happening but on a small scale.

[@ego4551]

@@albert15986 Aaaahhhh, Oil companies sponsoring videos to steer people to EVs which don't need their products. Completely makes sense

[@sf7234]

Putting a sandwich over your tailpipe helps absorb the unwanted mayo

[@TurboHappyCar]

Forbidden mayo...

[@johndaniels651]

🤣🤣🤣 Do you recommend ham or turkey? Rye or wheat?

[@3ToeCo]

Reduce, reuse, recycle

[@AndrewSowerby]

There is no such thing as unwanted mayo

[@351cleavland]

Is that an innuendo

[@Icalurable]

Buy Mobil 1 oil, got it.

[@thehawkc]

😂 Truth

[@LibsRDumbarses]

You don't?

[@notroll1279]

No... if you stick around until the end, he says "buy the oil that has the right specs for your hybrid". I don't own a hybrid - but if I did, I'd look if any other oils have passed the hybrid specific tests he mentions. I used Mobile 1 for my traditional ICE car for many years, but since they've gone up in price pretty sharply, I look which cheaper oils with the same viscosity match the right GM standard and even the stricter Mercedes standards for oil and buy that.

[@Maleniabom]

Some of the most reliable vehicles Toyota makes are hybrids

[@GenghisKhanrad]

My dad has a Prius with over 350K miles and still going strong. He also has a Tundra, because life is about balance.

[@jamescreekmore3855]

Exactly one Tesla and one supercharged corvette! 😂 balance

[@Argedis]

I like your dad. I have a Mazda 3 and a Tacoma, completely polar opposite vehicles and I love them for it.

[@JanGoh-jb5ge]

My grandfather had a car for city driving, a big truck with a camper, and an SUV for hunting. It's honestly kinda foolish to have a single vehicle for everything if you can avoid it. Even a cheap used compact car for city driving will save you money and wear on your truck. It's absurd to see huge lifted pickups doing grocery runs with an empty bed. :/

[@garyandtricia1]

How many miles on the ICE as opposed to the elec?

[@GenghisKhanrad]

@@garyandtricia1 Hard to tell but I know my Corolla Cross Hybrid I just got shows me the percentage of driving that was EV only. That usually sits around 65-70% when I turn the car off. Mine is the new 5th gen hybrid system, so it's probably more than his. I'd assume his would be around 50%, so 175-200K maybe?

[@Cotterpin_Doozer]

6:40 Who else wanted to see a demonstration of making mayonnaise with engine oil, water and eggs/protein mixture?

[@mrN3w7]

AYE!

[@neil1997]

Paging Garage 54 😂

[@rowmacg]

I just bought my first hybrid a 2024 Maverick, what a wonderful truck! I have been averaging about 45mpg per tank of fuel!!! That’s actually 3mpg better than the 42mpg EPA rating for city driving. I realized pretty quickly that it’s probably not good to start driving down the road in electric mode, and then the engine turn on under load while being cold from sitting overnight. Now I turn the gas engine on, and let it run for a minute before driving. I also put the truck in sport mode for the first 5 minutes or so, until the engine warms up. In sport mode the truck will not go into electric mode, once the engine is warmed up, I switch it over to eco mode to maximize electric driving. I have periodically checked the oil cap for that milky condensation, but it’s always very clean, so this method seems to be working well. I have been using Valvoline hybrid vehicle motor oil, to help suspend any condensation that could develop from hybrid operating conditions. Thank you for all your informative videos!!!

[@johndaniels651]

That's good to check the cap for gunk, because if you get mayonnaise in your engine, you'll need to put a dry, ham sandwich under the valve cover, to absorb it.

[@rowmacg]

@@johndaniels651 Yes, I really prefer turkey on focaccia instead.

[@contessa.adella]

1:40 You’re quoting this 90% of wear on start up! You admit the high wear rate only applies to cold start and initial warm up. If the engine has only been off for a minute, the bearing surfaces are adequately oiled and the oil pump will get fresh oil where needed in under three seconds; the warm engine will also have optimal component fit unlike a true cold start. You imply a periodic drop in oil temp to 70 C will stop evaporation of moisture, it won’t, especially since the fluids are being sloshed and squirted around and the vapour is expelled through the crankcase breather to the air intake. If all you said was a genuine issue, your typical multi-drop van engine used around town would be dead in under five years (or 150K miles)…which doesn’t happen when maintained.

[@TheHsan22]

Most non-hybrids now have stop-start, so most problems identified apply to normal gas engines as well

[@davidbrayshaw3529]

The same problems occur in vehicles that only do short trips.

[@swdev245]

That's the first thing I switch off when I start my car

[@orly87]

Without the hybrid system the temperature is probably higher since it has to do all the work

[@danielwylie-eggert2041]

1:53 "For a cold engine start-up" seems hyper critical here as the engine doesn't shut off until it is up to temp and 90% of the startups there after or on a warm engine

[@Gekkoid]

exactly what i was thinking. it seems very out of character for him to miss something like that

[@carnonPL]

he talked about it later (2:05 and 2:23 and some later, you get the idea)

[@mb-3faze]

In a hybrid, you have a perfectly good battery, so why not a) heat the oil to operating temperature and b) pre-presurise to oil circuit with an electric oil pump? Is that thinking too hard for ice engineers? No, of course not, they WANT your engine to wear out.

[@carnonPL]

@@mb-3faze Want your engine to wear out.... just after warranty.

[@mb-3faze]

@@carnonPL so true! Friend had a prius. Got it fully serviced. Just after the warranty expired suddenly there was an oil leak in the engine that required the whole engine to be removed at considerable cost.

[@b0bsaget007]

I am a mechanical engineering student, and I drive a 2019 Ford Fusion Hybrid. My main commute is 85 miles in each direction, with about 90% of those miles being pure highway, so I have no real concern about the oil getting hot enough to mitigate the water and fuel dilution problems. That being said, now I want to get some gauge to show me the oil and coolant temperatures for my shorter drives just to observe for myself how they change for my specific situations.

[@N0Xa880iUL]

Interesting

[@matthewbeasley7765]

In many fords the instrument cluster can be set to display parameters. Hold the odometer select button when you turn the key on. If the display changes your car is one of Ford cars that does. Cycle through for something labeled "OILT" or similar and it will tell you the temperature. I've had a couple of Ford Escape Hybrids. The temps are not an issue. If the engine starts cooling down, it will startup long before the temp gets to where condensation would be a problem.

[@Toyeboy89]

That's a long drive

[@thespectator5259]

My man... Your telling me that your full two way commute to school and back is 170 miles? Man, I hope you scheduled your classes in such a way that you only have to do such 2 days a week max (or even 1 day if some of your classes are online.) And here I thought I had it rough with my 1 hour commute to Uni.

[@bikeman123]

85 mile commute. Thats nuts.

[@runalongnowhoney]

This video has provided insight as to how to sell oil.

[@augustpendergast4478]

My 2007 Hybrid Camry just rolled over 300,000 miles so I’d call that pretty damn reliable.

[@dillzilla4454]

I've seen them get over a million quite often at my time working at greentec

[@abhinrsv]

Is yours a mild hybrid, strong hybrid, or plug-in hybrid? :)

[@augustpendergast4478]

@@abhinrsv mild hybrid

[@mattbrown1724]

My brother has a 2008 Prius with over 430,000 miles on it, and he pulls a trailer with two snowmobiles in North Dakota winter. His car just won't die!

[@andrasbiro3007]

That actually helps, high load keeps the engine running, and warms it up faster.

[@imunknownsource8696]

😮😮😮 that's crazy.... I Didn't know Prius got bigger torque like diesel truck.....

[@NeoAutodroid]

No way, I own a Prius and I can't imagine towing anything with it, you'd run the engine under too much load and where would you even attach a hitch?

[@mattbrown1724]

@@NeoAutodroid I was surprised, too. It's a hilarious sight to see a Prius with a trailer 🤣. They can tow more than you think!

[@lanceres5spd]

That CVT must love him

[@Assassin1959]

I just traded my 2012 Prius for a new 2024 Prius. My wife loved the car, so I got her another one. 99K miles and got $8K for trade. You can't go wrong with a Prius.

[@ersim2187]

As long as you like sending your money to Japan...I guess most people have forgotten about WW2. But not me .

[@dillzilla4454]

just a warning about those new ones (assuming its the PHEV prime) i would highly recommend driving on engine at least once every 2 weeks. it is often easy to go a full month without using the engine. This causes many engine problems with both the primes and all other PHEVs. What usually happens is people don't use the engine enough and the head gaskets start drying up. You also want to do the same thing with the battery too. Usually not really an issue if its a daily driver but if you don't drive the cars for weeks at a time the battery will start getting voltage variation codes which will eventually make a replacement battery necessary.

[@funkycat9629]

​@@ersim2187 in what f*cking way does someone liking a car have to do with ww2.

[@maikelnait4495]

Strangest comment I’ve read in a long time. I shouldn’t buy american cars because you killed american indians? Got it.

[@FrankJones-ne2qo]

​@funkycat9629 some people haven't forgotten about the Civil War you know down south jap cars are some of my favorite have to look over some people

[@fleghel]

You already explained things in the comment section… I know. Fire is bad for engines too, and so are explosions… yet the engines are specifically engineered to deal very efficiently with both them issues.

[@saadalikhan4147]

My man has been hypnotized by Mobil 1 :( while all the challenges mentioned make Sense but they are not as major as explained. Besides that engineers also have taken these things into consideration while designing the engines.

[@HAHA.GoodMeme]

I'd be hypnotized by that massive mobil1 check too.

[@georgeburns7251]

@@HAHA.GoodMeme me too

[@strangeclouds7]

The video has nothing to do with mobile one and at the end of the video he admits hybrids can still be very reliable

[@jaydunbar7538]

The fact that it was taken into consideration is the point, this is payed advertising for mobile one bragging about how good they did making oil to help hybrids last longer, so as you said the engineers took it into consideration

[@strangeclouds7]

@@jaydunbar7538 Was mobile 1 featured in the video, yes. Did it in anyway affect the message of the video? No.

[@Wishitwerecolder]

6:20 Mayonnaise Explained

[@EngineeringExplained]

13 years of making KZbin videos, all building to this moment.

[@Sekir80]

@@EngineeringExplained I would like your comment, but it has exactly 13 likes and don't wanna ruin the numbers.

[@sogerc1]

@@EngineeringExplained I'm gonna have to insist you rename the channel.

[@ky314]

I definitely learned something new today. Thank you!

[@jlo13800]

Typical sucky 4 tard stroke POS that everything cars is obseesed with. i can stop and start my sled motor many times and it wont harm it. Whats up with these cars with all these issues.

[@aaronbritt2025]

Mobil 1 sponsoring this video and having you feature their oil, when other oils might perform as well or better kinda gives me the Icks. I look to your channel for unbiased engineering reviews.

[@EngineeringExplained]

Just FYI, Mobil 1 isn't the only company that develops/sells a motor oil specific to hybrids. It's an understood challenge with understood solutions. I have a ton of oil related videos on my channel, and they've repeatedly lent their expertise to help answer the common questions. That said, I completely get the skepticism - I try to keep anything sponsored fact based, rather than subjective, so you don't really have to question my intent. We're all here to learn!

[@fujinshu]

Exactly, I do respect actually working engineers such as this guy, but when a company such as (Exxon)Mobil, whose main revenue stream is selling oil, is sponsoring a video that focuses on the negatives of hybrid vehicles (even though constructive criticism against their failings is totally valid), how can I trust him to cover the topic impartially when Mobil has every excuse to have hybrids and other BEVs be insanely harshly criticized so that gas vehicles are still sold, and thus are dependent on oil (ideally (Exxon)Mobil's) to function?

[@janvanruth3485]

unbiased on the internet? good luck with that one...

[@1DwtEaUn]

@@fujinshu I am sure GM will for a while, keep producing engines that burn more oil than gas after they reach 30k miles

[@AddyEspresso]

@@EngineeringExplained I agree

[@riceburner4747]

Being a 71yr old senior, you are one intelligent guy. I learn so much from your videos. I own a gen4 prius, dont drive it much but diligently change my oil every 6mos/5,000 miles. It DOES get a lot of highway driving. I see confrontational videos on leting ICE's go 10,000-15,000 miles to save money & time. (Amsoil is one). Thank you for your knowledge. 👍🇺🇸

[@Redhawk24]

But do the benefits of a hybrid out weigh the negatives? Electric motors reduce the strain on the engine.

[@EngineeringExplained]

Good question! I think the result of much lower cylinder pressures really helps, these typically aren't engines that are pushing the limits. Again, most wear comes from start-ups, so the electric assist is helpful in that the engine runs less, but a good question as to whether that's enough to offset start-up wear.

[@Redhawk24]

@@EngineeringExplainedagree. There are many other benefits to hybrids as well. Keep up the good work!

[@jmk9065]

​@@EngineeringExplainedAlso they tend to work at a near fixed operating point, keeping the revs/load near the optimal efficiency island on the BSFC map, so the engine is less exposed to varying demand, apart from the entire start/stop cycle of course

[@jaisingh-do2sw]

Does this also apply to 12v or 48v Mild Hybrids ?

[@jaisingh-do2sw]

@@EngineeringExplained does this also apply to 12 v/48 v mild hybrid technology?

[@ArnoldsDesign]

I've been a fan of hybrid systems since I learned diesel locomotives are hybrid. I'm glad to see Toyota moving in this direction, especially the Camry.

[@mattbrown1724]

@ArnoldsDesign Although, locomotives use diesel engines to power generators that power electric motors to power the wheels. The Diesel engine never directly powers the wheels, like is the case with a hybrid.

[@ArnoldsDesign]

@@mattbrown1724 Yes, that imo is how a hybrid system should be set up. Those trains can move a ton of cargo about 500 miles on one gallon of fuel. It's unreal.

[@shaider1982]

​@@ArnoldsDesign then, it's techniclly not a hybrid but a electric drive. Apart from locomotives, mines have those house-sized dump trucks that have a diesel engine powering four electric motors mated to each wheel.

[@lilietto1]

@@mattbrown1724 it depends on the hybrid. Hybrids like nissan epower use the engine like a generator.

[@thoso1973]

@@lilietto1 Yep. Toyota hybrids ICE isn't directly connected to the wheels; it works as a generator for the electric motor that always drives the wheels. Ingenious solution, also improves the performance of Toyota's eCVT as it only connects to the electric motor/generator.

[@TheKiltedGerman]

I wonder what Mobile 1's aim here is given how many and how long hybrids have been running reliably on the road. Missing the forest for the trees video.

[@jamesphillips2285]

Many automakers are pushing hybrids instead of full EVs. So Hybrids are expected to be a growing market.

[@Argedis]

@@jamesphillips2285 Tell that to GM/Ford/Kia who tried rushing the EV market. Hybrids have always been the answer and Toyota has been on top of that segment.

[@TheBeatenPaths]

I saw the forest.....perfectly.

[@peteranderson037]

To sell their brand of oil, obviously.

[@jamesphillips2285]

@@Argedis Toyota was the early entrant into the EV market. Their RAV4 EV was sued out of existence after Chevron bought up the NiMH battery patents. I believe the Tesla roadster used an overly complicated battery pack, with hundreds of commodity 18650 Li-ion batteries, as a patent work-around.

[@TEB64]

Thanks!

[@sethmeaseles3301]

I was worried that there was going to be some anti hybrid propaganda, but you're a top notch creator and you actually talk about how the problems are dealt with. Hybrids have been statistically more reliable than ice only counterparts including even the same model. The hate for start stop features are completely unfounded especially for Toyota because they assure you your starter will last 384k starts before it'll throw a code. They're great vehicles that end up saving you money on the back end.

[@michaelbujaki2462]

"Stops and starts are really hard on the starter, the starter will wear out!" Yeah, it turns out that engineers already knew that, and installed a bigger starter to compensate.

[@67daltonknox]

The original hybrid, the Prius, is one of the longest lasting vehicles on the road. There are plenty of Prius taxis with over 500,000 miles on their original drivetrain.

[@keim3548]

How would you know they have the original drivetrain?

[@limbeboy7]

​@@keim3548 my ford energi is almost 300k miles. That's the proof 🤡

[@vadskar64]

⁠​⁠@@keim3548 because it doesn’t make $$ sense to replace the drivetrain on old Prius. It costs more than the car itself

[@bikeman123]

That doesn't mean it's not done. It would afterall be way cheaper than buying a new car.

[@nordicpride9708]

@@keim3548There are several taxi companies that have done white paper studies know it all! If you want proof pay for the white paper data. The Prius e-CVT has gone over a million miles. If you don’t want to believe me keep on being a bone head with your head buried in the sand

[@davids9960]

Toyota is a clear leader in hybrids. The oil they recommend is 0W-16 in the 2024 cars. The manual states that 0W-20 may be used, but at the next oil change go back to 0W-16. Toyota has branded oil with formulation specific to their engines.

[@pall5114]

Is it true Toyota oil is specifically formulated for their engines, where is this information would love to read about it? I believe it is made by Mobil.

[@DanielOrtegoUSA]

This guy has a talent for taking an otherwise boring topic and making it interesting. His communication skills are excellent. ✌️

[@Mr-pn2eh]

I still love hybrids Toyota hybrid engines are designed to warm up quickly.

[@romanc.5074]

Yeah, they do.

[@A-BYTE94]

hybrids are the biggest garbage. Either full electric or full combustion engine

[@SoulTouchMusic93]

Mine does really quick. I kid you not, a kilometer down the road the coolant it's up already. It's nuts. And it won't even use much petrol power when first started. It just keeps it at a high iddle and moves on electric in the first 30 seconds. Unless the battery is hot, that's when it basically has to use petrol to move until the battery cools off.

[@PFinkoloTL87]

@@SoulTouchMusic93 Well mine, albeit it warms up quickly - but it still needs a few kms, the fuel consumption during the 'quick warm-up phase' is horrific. Horrific! I understand this is the way it's supposed to be, but it is so bad, that for a short trip, the avg. fuel consumption is not better than that of a 15-20 year old similar size ICE engine. After that fuel economy rapidly gets better and elevates to typical levels common for hybrids.

[@PJWey]

Good For You I love steam engines and electric drivetrains

[@Patrick94GSR]

I don't care what any manufacturer says, I will NEVER, EVER let my engines go 15,000 miles on a single oil fill. I just got a brand new 2024 RAV4 Hybrid for my wife, and I'm not even using the regular Toyota 10K mile OCI's. I've settled on 5K OCI's with Mobil1 AFE 0w-16.

[@gravemind6536]

15k would be okay if it was just constant motorway miles and nothing else but realistically with mixed use you should be changing somewhere between 5000 miles or 10000 miles of course depending on how high stress miles they are. I do mine every 8-9k miles as I do very little city mileage and my car doesn't do many short trips so mileage is fairly low stress, my interval like yours is 10k or 1 year. I always do it slightly early.

[@longislanderNY]

I have a 2012 prius with 145k on it, i change my oil every 5K miles, the engine consumes nothing in between oil changes and the oil is still clean when I drain it for an oil change. I buy mobil 1 hybrid oil from walmart and do the changes myself. I also will not go the 10K toyota recommends.

[@Patrick94GSR]

@ I haven’t seen the “hybrid” M1 oil. I just put M1 0w-16 in our RAV, but then also ordered 2 cases of Toyota 0w-16 for the next couple of oil changes. Apparently the Toyota oil is made by M1 but has about 10x as much molybdenum as regular M1. Found it online for a great price, only a few cents more per quart than M1 from Walmart.

[@r5LgxTbQ]

idk if I believe that, hybrids aren't particularly known for engine failure. in fact the Prius is known for making it hundreds of thousands of miles with no major issues. Maybe it's "hard on" the engine in a way that doesn't contribute to typical engine failure scenarios

[@Core3DTech]

My 17 and 19 year old Prius engines would argue otherwise. They're doing just fine

[@ephgee1554]

I used to work at Walmart Auto Care Center, and we had many prius's with over 300k, some with 350k, and still chugging along. Some were better maintained than others, but all still sounded fairly good compared to other cars with 300k. On an unrelated note, we had a Ford Explorer with 300k miles that had probably 12 quarts of oil in a poor v6

[@Drewcardello]

Damm! I fill my explorer v6 with 5 quarts

[@strangeclouds7]

How was the explorer still running? Sounds like they tried to do an oil change but forgot to drain the original oil haha

[@johndaniels651]

This is a wild guess, but I'm betting the Explorer was on a new, SECOND owner.

[@vvevvevvvv]

11:56 300-400k miles is not much.Older Priuses and hybrid Corollas (also Auris) used as taxis have like 450-600k miles on them with the factory battery! Here in Poland a lot of Priuses are also converted to run LPG, which is 2x cheaper per liter than a regular gas.

[@ManuelFresh100]

The key to making these cars last is to drive them a lot. It keeps the battery healthy. If you have a long commute to work everything, hybrid is the way to go.

[@josephn944]

@@ManuelFresh100especially if you are frequently in traffic. The benefits of hybrid are maximized if you have to slow down / speed up frequently during your commute

[@DrivingInFocus]

Piston rings are the no.1 source of wear, this has been reduced on modern engines with thinner rings, crankshaft offset from bore, better oil and pump designs. Start/stop is on most new vehicles because of emissions and fuel consumption.

[@1DwtEaUn]

don't forget low pressure ringsets

[@4af]

Toyotas entire engine line up in 1975 was capable of 600,000 miles running conventional oil.

[@isaacrcason]

This is also a good opportunity to talk about the importance of replacing your PCV valve on regular intervals, because they can get clogged up and allow the crankcase to build pressure, which can cause other issues. PCV valves are super cheap.

[@philipsadler6716]

I think this is what I"m experiencing with excessive oil consumption.

[@larry4fire]

This video illustrates why the propulsion architecture of the Chevy Volt was such a brilliant idea. It operated as a pure EV for the first 40 miles or so before converting to a hybrid. The pure EV range was enough to satisfy 80-90% of the average driver’s trips, so no frequent ICE cold start’s incurring the problems you describe. If driven beyond the pure EV range, the ICE is fired up to turn a generator to develop the average electrical power necessary for propulsion. So on long trips the ICE tends to operate in a steady state fashion. In stop and go traffic the ICE does shut off frequently but the vehicle launches in EV mode before restarted the ICE smoothly and quietly with one of its two motor/generators. It’s important to note that in hybrid mode, once started the ICE is on most of the time and therefore warmed up and well lubricated.

[@jamesengland7461]

Meh- sort of. Volt was based on the Cruze, but when it was introduced, after the Prius, it actually cost MORE than buying a Prius AND a Cruze! There are claims that it actually cost GM DOUBLE the retail price to build each car. So... maybe there are less expensive solutions.

[@g.tucker8682]

The wife and I love our Volt. It charges overnight on 110v. We never plug in to a chargepoint, too much trouble. Just gas it up and go. We get phenomenal mileage. No trouble yet in six years. The one quibble I have is cargo capacity and the liftover rear hatch. Not bad, but was used to the Prius before I got sideswiped/totalled.

[@johndaniels651]

I guess they had to kill the volt because it cost GM 3 times what they could sell it for. Probably better to buy the Cruise diesel with a manual trans for a 1/3 the price! GM killed both. Now everything they make is a gas guzzler or garbage or both.

[@rharp8061]

You're missing the point of it being wildly inefficient as a hybrid car. It averaged roughly the same mpg as a gas camry/corolla. Far Far less than a prius. The prius prime of the same time was a worse "electric" car but better hybrid. Current prime equals volts battery only range with better cold weather operating parameters and better hybrid efficiency.

[@larry4fire]

@@rharp8061 You are correct about the so so mileage, but the Voltec driving experience is in my opinion, nicer with smooth power delivery without frequent ICE stop/starts. I can, and have, taken my Voltec all the way to 100 mph on electricity only. It also has excellent EV like highway passing performance, even in 40 MPG hybrid mode. Finally, I think it’s hard on the engine and environment to do frequent stop/starts as this video points out.

[@davidholmes3323]

Taxi drivers in Australia just love the hybrid Camry. They always talk about how reliable they are over a long time. 3 to 4 hundred thousand KM and over examples all around Australia are still going strong. Seems like Toyota has nailed it.

[@terrywhite6269]

Hybrid owner here. You briefly touched on the role of pressure in your video. In reality, water like all fluids, has a pressure-temperature phase diagram, so the picture is a little more complicated than what you have presented. Most of what you discussed about the properties of water vs temperature applies to water at one atmosphere. The pressures inside the combustion chamber vary all over the place, so that needs to be taken into account as well. A lot of the water exits the system in the exhaust gasses but just how much was not discussed either.

[@michaelbujaki2462]

Mechanical Engineering Student here: The reason that hybrids are particularly susceptible to water in the oil is because, at any given point, one of the cylinders has stopped with a compressed fuel air mixture inside the engine. This will cause the water to condense onto the piston. The pressure in the piston will force the condensed water out of the combustion chamber and into the crankcase. The crankcase is usually kept at around atmospheric pressure.

[@markbartlett6287]

I've used Mobil 1 exclusively for decades, but never knew they had a special formula for hybrid. Still, my '05 Prius went for 257k miles and when the hybrid battery finally died after 14 years, the ICE engine was still running as smooth and quiet as new. I'm definitely going to start using hybrid oil in my '13 Avalon hybrid though. (148k trouble-free miles so far!) Great video!

[@hadtopicausername]

I remember on my old aircooled VW Beetle, if I did lots of short trips during winter, a certain amount of very mayonnaise like sludge would form on the inside of the oil filler cap. It would disappear after a long drive.

[@johnkeepin7527]

Decades ago, I had one of those, and I seem to remember that the oil used then was 20W50!

[@argentum2519]

Respectfully, hybrids are our best option moving forward; not EVs, not turbocharged ICE.

[@slumy8195]

agreed

[@elitechampion]

If an EV has to be written off after a minor nick to the bottom/minor crash then yes, they are a huge waste of resources. Looks like a hybrid/plug in hybrid that is more robust is the way to go.

[@rp9674]

Band-aids, plug-in hybrids peaked with the third gen Chevy Volts & 2014 BMW I3 rex. Hybrids are just gas cars

[@michalsvihla1403]

@@elitechampion Sounds like a Tesla problem, not an EV problem.

[@teucer4]

@@rp9674hybrids are for confused and questioning homosexuals

[@douglasheld]

12:05 It looks like your car requires 0W16... but your sponsor's bottles are 0W20.

[@EngineeringExplained]

Ha, good catch! They actually have a few different products depending on the viscosity grade - there's an advanced fuel economy product specifically for hybrids with even lower grades. In fact, they have a 0W-8 (yes, 8!) specifically for some Toyota hybrids!

[@TaylorPhase]

Prius also takes 0w20 and that extra thickness adds more protection. Only downside is slight dip on gas mileage

[@swimmerboy172]

@@TaylorPhase Not true, the manual makes it clear that : “If SAE 0W-16 is not available, SAE 0W-20 oil may be used. However, it must be replaced with SAE 0W-16 at the next oil change.” So another downside is that you can only use 0W-20 once and only if you don’t have a better option.

[@tardeliesmagic]

@@TaylorPhase Exactly. I don't have a hybrid but a 2015 Yaris 1.3L 90,000m...i use 0-20 for winter & 5-30 for summer here in the UK....over kill some may say. Sometimes i use 5-20 for winter if there's a sale,but i always use good oil & change at 6 months (Garage service with oil filter then 6 months later i just do the oil,no filter) I do short miles maybe no more than 2,500m a year. I will start to use Magnatec soon 5-20 or 0-30 all year round as prices are decent i noticed.

[@CoronaBier-pn6gm]

​@@swimmerboy172Though the Toyota manual is a bit ambiguous, too: "An oil with a higher viscosity (one with a higher value) may be better suited if the vehicle is operated at high speeds, or under extreme load conditions."

[@ronolson2024]

I bought a used 2012 Toyota Prius V hybrid in 2018 with 30K miles on it & now have 140,000 miles on it, driving 95% hwy. miles at 55 MPH (45 MPG). My oil still appears clean after 7K miles so I've been changing it at 9K intervals, & still uses no oil between oil changes. No breakdowns, just routine book maintenance. Go Toyota!

[@dannee16888]

As it ages, you might want to drop the interval down to every 5K or so, and the engine will last even longer.

[@afluffypinecone3577]

5:01 As a chemistry student, I find your lack of balancing chemical equations disturbing

[@233kosta]

As an engineer, I find the lack of overall thought in this channel's content disturbing 😮‍💨

[@mungojack]

Brought to you by Big Oil

[@raybod1775]

Yes, but big oil are the only ones.

[@TurboHappyCar]

I only buy sustainable fair-trade single-origin batch-fractionation oil from minority owned businesses.

[@MrMatteNWk]

"Hellooooo, I'm an electric carrrrrr. I can't go very fast or very far. And if you drive me, people will think you're gay." "One of us. One of us."

[@ThisOldChris]

We also see this in ICE car when you work near where you live. The engine never gets warm enough.

[@richardburfoot8638]

Got 2 Prius in the family, the 2007 Gen2 is still running perfectly and has been utterly reliable from day 1. The Gen4 is barely out of the box in terms of it’s expected lifespan

[@NETBotic]

Perfect, now I can send this video to the people that laugh at me for buying hybrid oil for my hybrid. Thanks.

[@NotOftenPoliteGuy]

Don't forget to buy lawn mover oil, bus oil, truck oil, scooter oil, motorcycle oil, etc

[@N0Xa880iUL]

​@@NotOftenPoliteGuy Username checks out

[@leanderzulu3494]

As they should because the oil shown here doesn't even meet the application required

[@matt45540]

motorcycle oil, it's typically designed for 4-stroke engines that are not water cooled. Meaning higher temperatures, an revs . They also make oil specifically for small engines like lawn mowers and all of the ratings I.e. "sae" are for different types of engines@@NotOftenPoliteGuy

[@1DwtEaUn]

@@NotOftenPoliteGuy lawn mower oil you do, at least if it's not full pressure lube with a filter, which is 30ND

[@Rambleon444]

Oh no, my Prius with 243,600 miles is prematurely wearing out with cheap Costco synthetic oil. What to do?

[@EngineeringExplained]

What do you mean? As discussed they can last with regular maintenance - good on ya for staying on top of it!

[@HEMI345S]

It was proven so many times that Costco branded synthetic oils are no inferior to brand names oils that clueless people are wasting their hard earned $$$ on 😀😀😀

[@Hedonismbot26]

​@EngineeringExplained OK, but then why is this a video about hybrids if the lesson is to maintain your engine (which is way below your personal paygrade in my opinion. )

[@imzjustplayin]

Is this a sarcastic post? If you're really concerned, get a used oil analysis test. If you buy a quality vehicle and maintain it regularly, most people chuck the vehicle before the engine gives out.

[@Ntmoffi]

​@@imzjustplayinhe's probably being sarcastic because this video is showing off Mobil 1.

[@Offensively-normal]

After months of vacillating between a ICE & Hybrid. I go with a Toyota hybrid. I see the tag line and my heart sinks. I'm back to being ok. I can live with 2-300.000 miles. I also follow a philosophy of, oil is cheap engines are expensive. Change it every 5000

[@RennieAsh]

Why sink over a KZbin title? Guess what modern ICE cars do - stop start with little of the benefits that hybrids can do to reduce engine wear from on-off engine operations.

[@losgringos7537]

I've learned more about cars from watching your channel than any college professor I ever had!

[@wileymonair]

My dad lived a 1/4 miles from work. He drives his SUV there and back and nowhere else often. He doesn't really drive anywhere else. He thinks he can still change the oil at 5k miles. I told him Atleast once a year minimum. Probably should go 6 months instead. Oil is cheap.

[@MyGoogleYoutube]

Or get a bike or an EV?

[@PFinkoloTL87]

@@MyGoogleKZbin or just walk 🤷‍♂

[@MyGoogleYoutube]

@@PFinkoloTL87 How about a zip line!

[@christophertaylor9100]

I still think hybrids are much more likely the future of cars than EVs

[@danmarjenka6361]

Beat of both worlds.

[@harbirsingh7266]

At least in the current era, we need more plug-in hybrids. They're the best of both worlds, and the perfect solution during the transition period to electric. I think electric is still the future. We just need to develop solid state batteries to get there.

[@BooBaddyBig]

The running costs of hybrids suck compared to EVs though. TCO is much lower with EVs. Unless you're doing consistently long journeys very frequently they're not worth it. Even taxi drivers are usually better off with EVs.

[@Lewis_Standing]

Better keep thinking then

[@darrellhay]

@@danmarjenka6361 Worst of both worlds. A rolling compromise.

[@drakestafford1]

Why does Toyota recommend 0w16 and 0w12 in their engines but Mobile 1 only makes the hybrid vehicle oil as 0w20? Does Mobile 1 recommend ignoring Toyota’s recommendation for oil weight?

[@geneturner3190]

There is now even a 0w-8 now

[@TaylorPhase]

Toyota owner manual says you can use 0w-20 if you want. That’s their recommendation. Clearly you don’t own one. The 0-16 is suggested for “ maximum gas mileage in cold environments. “. Their words

[@drakestafford1]

My 2019 Prius manual suggests 0w16 but says if I do use 0w20 that the next oil change should be with 0w16

[@TaylorPhase]

@@drakestafford1 im assuming its a USA manual correct?

[@orlandovelastegui1391]

My Toyota Prius has 330,000 on the same Engine and Transmission still going strong I was so impressed I bought a 2022 Toyota Venza now I have two hybrids.

[@trenthorton9532]

We had a 2010 Prius that died due to engine wear & tear in 2022 at 180,000 miles. I always thought it was odd that the engine was what went first, but after watching this it now makes more sense as to some of the stresses it was dealing with.

[@RennieAsh]

The 3rd gen models have an issue with egr? and head gaskets

[@tails300]

Wear and tear isn’t what killed the engine.

[@SovaKlr]

1:30 in I've got the solve already. Electric oil pump, constantly circulated with a valve to allow it to be used as a "cooler" for the hybrid system in order to keep the oil (and to a point the engine) temps up. I'll leave the fuel problem to someone else.

[@kipkipper-lg9vl]

or just use a diesel engine and avoid all this nonsense

[@rokuplayz464]

Mini cooper motors already use electric oil pumps, my solution is get rid of plug in hybrids

[@webcodr]

@@kipkipper-lg9vl yeah, and get way more other nonsense. Modern diesel engines are overcomplex, overcomplicated and still emit much more particulate matter and NOX than a gas hybrid engine could ever achieve. And the manufacturers have to deal with this crap ... well, or they don't, like VW. This stuff kills people. Stop it.

[@erickbernard8208]

Your fuel type matters too, E85 pulls moisture from the atmosphere too, methanol is even worse, its best to run gasoline when storing/not driving

[@ego4551]

Yeah, if you put your fun summer car in storage over the winter put in some premium fuel. If it's a very old car also fill up the tank completely to the brim.

[@JasonISF]

It's NULON Apex 5W-30 long life engine oil for my Toyota Crown Hybrid mate. Runs like a Swiss watch. No need for expensive Mobil one liquid gold. Cheers from Australia 🇦🇺

[@chrisw.2492]

So does the stop/start function on ICE only cars also cause extra wear on the engine? Note: I'm not an engineer.

[@leviathan5207]

Yes it does. Why would it not?

[@bing-chilling1713]

yes, id say that so much so that it's not worth turning that function on. ac needs engine power.

[@Neodymium5312]

Yes it does because the main bearings and crank bearings do not have oil pressure up to a few seconds into the cranking and starting procedures. If you have oil pressure the bearings do not actually touch the shafts when you have no oil pressure you get wear, every time you start an engine you're going to get a small amount of wear because you do not have oil pressure yet, more starts means more wear. In industrial engines we have a pre-lubrication pump that sends oil up into the journals and bearings before the engine even rotates, and gives you oil pressure because the engines are so big and heavy that they cause extreme amounts of where when there is no oil on the journals and the cranks are so heavy that they push the oil out from underneath them and you do not have a film to protect the bearings without oil pressure

[@florian_d]

Yes it does. As does driving only short distances.

[@EngineeringExplained]

I think it's common to assume it's hard on the battery/starter-motor, but obviously these are sized appropriately, and as for the battery, most start/stop systems will only activate if the battery charge is high enough. Otherwise, the engine remains on as the battery continues to charge.

[@theonetruerobb4852]

Hi, welcome to our barely disguised Mobil 1 promo! Moving on at 2:27....

[@MrPruske]

Paid for by literally big oil. Imma take this with a bit of salt

[@jamesphillips2285]

Salt also damages your engine!

[@FredFlintstone21]

​@jamesphillips2285 for sure the valve cover! Many 7.3 powerstrokes out there in the salt belt have needed new oil pans! (Yes, probably other motors as well, but this one comes to mind)

[@jamesphillips2285]

@@FredFlintstone21 I kind of just assumed: because I know what salt does to bicycle drive-trains.

[@mattyee9369]

Just bought a 2024 Prius XLE AWD, and I love it!

[@richiejrich]

Nice try, BIG OIL. I’m not moving away from hybrids XP

[@pooyakhalili406]

I love the way that the videos are super technical yet easy to understand. Thanks Jason ❤❤

[@EngineeringExplained]

Happy to hear it, thanks for watching!

[@kalanajasenthuliyana]

Thank you Jason. You've answered some key questions I've had for a long time. Comments section with engineers ensuring built in mechanisms to help force warm ups helped as well. Thanks guys.

[@lomein2186]

I dont want eggs in my engine oil? Everything says i need eggs in my engine oil

[@EngineeringExplained]

No eggs in your engine oil!!

[@JSFGuy]

Beavis, he said hard on..😁

[@JNX07]

heh huh heh, hard on heh heh 🤣

[@digitalzomb]

Huhhuh huhhuh. Hard on.

[@somewhat-similar]

hnnngggggg hrrrrrhhhhhh hu hu huh

[@David_Crayford]

Well done. An engine for giving you a hard-on. 7 / 10.

[@BikeFromTheBrink]

It comes as no surprise. Hybrids also use smaller engines which need to work harder. Many of my workmates chose hybrids as company cars as they didn't want to commit to full electric. They are only getting 30-35 mpg(UK) long term. Yet the 2.0 diesels we used to have did 68mpg(UK). Personally I had a 2004 E220 diesel, it did 52 mpg(UK) on my daily commute, later I had a 2014 E300 hybrid, same engine and only 42 MPG(UK) on the same commute. I went full EV for my company car now, but only due to the tax breaks. Still have a V8 for smiles at the weekend, and of course, the Cortina with 1.6 pinto.

[@alien-vx2bj]

you talkin nonsense, priuses do 70 mpg in the city , even a 20 years old prius do 55-60 mpg in the city. a bmw 320d does 38 mpg in the city. im a delivery driver drive 150 miles a day in the city had al sorts of cars but so far my current prius is the only car it didnt break down has 250k miles. been england romania twice already with no issues. had 3 older bmw s in the past 2 petrol one diesel they all broke ,had to scrap 2 of them.

[@TaylorPhase]

Meanwhile my Hyundai hybrid gets 70 city and 90-95 mpg on the highway. Everyone talks about Toyota. Sure the build quality and customer service is better, but Toyota hybrids get worse mpg across the board compared to Hyundai hybrids. Also shorter warranties and higher Msrp. But brand name means a lot to new buyers

[@RennieAsh]

@@TaylorPhase some would question why you need to have a long warranty. Do they think something will go wrong with the car?

[@TaylorPhase]

@@RennieAsh longer warranties usually mean a company is more confident in their car

[@sofwanlutfy4050]

The title probably should've been better, like "Hybrid engine problems and how it's solved". Based on the comments, some people clearly looks at this channel and thinks this channel is only about criticizing manufacturers decision.

[@TheAdventureAuto]

Its nice driving an EV and not having to worry about all this cold start, oil flow, stop start crap.

[@Gazer75]

Still have to be careful with the 12V battery. They are even smaller in EVs as they are not running a starter. At least most modern EVs actually charge the 12V when you've plugged in to AC charge over night. Some early EVs did not. The car actually had to be on and the HV battery connected for the 12V to get charged. Most common reason for road side assistance for EVs in winter here in Norway is a dead 12V battery apparently.

[@TheAdventureAuto]

@@Gazer75 I had to jump the 12v so many times on my gas cars. Not once yet in 4 years have I had any issues with my EV.

[@ledzeppelin1212]

Yeah, this is why I went from gas car to EV. It was a good call. I still think hybrids are good for many people. Plug-in hybrids could be a good balance.

[@DearSX]

Battery in Prius is 80 times smaller than a Tesla yet it still gets half the mpg rating. Not bad. Also batteries are pretty nasty to create, dumping a lot of emissions into the world. Really an EV may never be better for the world than an efficient hybrid. We won't be converting our grid to clean-ish energy for decades more.

[@Bambarbia2447]

I went the other way, from Tesla MY to new Camry. So nice not to worry about astonishing depreciation, very high insurance and expensive out of warranty repairs. Tesla was crazy fast though