Fuel cleaning procedure gone wrong at oil change location

Dear Members,

I have a 2001 Toyota Tacoma and recently went to an oil change location for a oil, and radiator fluid change. I opted to have the fuel cleaning service done (which I've never had done and GREATLY wished I'd just used a can of seafoam instead, in hindsight) and I realized afterward that it was the first time this guy had done one. I remember hearing the assistant manager say, "was the tank (of fluid) all the way full?" Admittedly, I'm not a mechanic. However, when I got home I noticed a pool of liquid under the truck and those pools have continued since, though they are getting smaller. The fluid didn't look like, or have the viscosity of oil- nor the color of radiator fluid, nor did it smell like anything. I looked up the YouTube video of valvoline doing a fluid cleaning procedure and I do not think this was done properly. I believe that in all likelihood, the cleaner dumped down into onto the parts below because this wasn't done correctly. I brought the truck back a week later and told them what I found. The cleaned the area and thought that would take care of it- it didn't. I brought it in a 3rd time and they re-did the oil and unfortunately discovered they'd put too much oil in it based on what their system recommended (after I mentioned that the RPMs were high during idle). They also attempted to clean the underside again. I put cardboard under the areas and I'm still getting small circles of this fluid. I should mention there are no lights going off on the dash. There is one particular area where this fluid seems to drip from (I'll include a photo, you'll see the shine on it); it seems to stretch along between the front tires with 4 holes in it. I don't know what this part is. I'm concerned that because it has those 4 holes at the bottom (I'm not sure if this part also has holes on the top of it or not) they haven't been able to adequately clean it (3 times), which has a slight vicosity, is going to cause debris/dirt to stick to and/or in it, and cause rusting. I feel like I should probably ask for a refund for the fuel cleaning because I can't imagine there should have been that much that leaked all over the street (I can take pictures of all of these stains if needed to show the size- but here's a pic of one of them that's larger and a small one next to it) but I was hoping someone here might help me be able to help me feel more confident in making this assertion.

Additionally, I was wondering what needs to be done about the part that seems to be most effected by this (assumed) spill of fluids. Do I need to have it removed and cleaned? Is this something I could possibly do myself? Though not a mechanic, I'm a capable DIYer and think it might be safer, if generally doable, to do it myself rather than possibly asking this oil change place to do it based on how many issues I've had with them already. If it's not a do it yourself kind of thing (and should be done), it'd be helpful to know what part this is in case I needed to have an auto shop do it. It's only got 109,000 miles on it and I'd like to take care of it so it keeps on going as I understand you can get 3- 400,000 miles with these trucks.

Any help, or advice, would be GREATLY appreciated... more than you all can possibly imagine!

 

Change the oil yourself, make sure everything is properly tightened, clean the engine to your best ability, see if anything is still leaking.

Make sure your coolant level isn’t dropping and make sure your coolant doesn’t look weird like oil is mixing with the water.

 

First... Take the truck to a car wash and try to clean the underside where it's leaking as much as possible, with the goal of eliminating any remaining fluid in that cross member or other locations where you think it's leaking from.

You need to determine what the leaking fluid is to focus on what system of the truck to target.

If it's oil.. I'd be checking that the oil filter wasn't loose. You should also be able to see where the oil is coming from...

Coolant.. similar, check that they didn't damage the drain valve.

I don't know what a fuel cleaning service is... Did they try to replace the fuel filter? The 2.4/2.7 fuel filter is a pain to replace. Maybe they didn't tighten the fuel lines well enough and you're leaking fuel?

 

I would just assume that you would easily identify a fuel leak because gasoline smells really really really strong and it tends to evaporate unless it’s mixed with something.

 

Harsh.

Oil change locations are notorious for making up and selling completely unnecessary procedures, because those are the only things that pay the rent (They couldn't stay in business if all they sold was oil.) Do not let them touch anything beyond the oil pan plug and the air filter (and preferably not even the air filter); they don't know what they are doing. I would recommend taking it to an actual well-reputed mechanic's shop for maintenance, if you don't wish to turn your own wrenches. Believe it or not, they will be less costly in the long run.

For the weird fluid leak, try to chase it yourself if you can. I'm hoping that its the very simple answer that the tech spilled fluid, which will take a while to drip its way down the block. But you would need to check all of your fluids and chase the trail to verify that it is something that simple. If you can't do that, don't take it back to the oil shack. Take it to a mechanic, let them look at it, have them check the fluids, and then present the bill to the oil shack when its done. You might get the money back, you might not. Post a picture of the bill on their google maps review if not.

Good luck, hopefully it's just spilled fluid.

 

I do not believe it is a fuel leak as it does not smell at all, nor does it evaporate quickly. It also has a slight viscosity to it, so that leads me to believe it's not likely fuel.....thankfully.

 

Would you recommend a cleaning product to use, or are you suggesting just using water? Thanks so much!

 

I use just simple dish detergent in a spray bottle and a hose without too much pressure. A lot of stuff they sell on the Internet is too harsh on plastic and rubber.

 

Neither are they

 

Looks like oil. If it's dripping from the front crossmember behind the oil pan, you might want to check the rear of your valve cover for a gasket leak.

 

Everyone has that one incident that prompts them to start doing their own maintenance. This might be yours. Start by getting a basic manual and basic metric tools. Start by the most basic stuff, oil changes, spark plugs, etc. Get an OBD meter and learn to use it.

My "moment" (AKA TL;DR)

I used to have a Ford Ranger 4 x 4 that almost made it to a million miles before I sold it (was still running, no smoke.) Auto tranny fluid is a messy job, you need to remove the pan and it gets everywhere (and you should force flush it.) I decided to have someone do it, my appointment was 10 AM on a Saturday. I arrive at 10, mechanic is not here yet. Shows up at almost 11, telling everyone how drunk he got at Herb's Cantina last night - I should have run right then.

I spent the next half hour watching him wander between the truck and the bench like he didn't know what planet he was on and I couldn't handle it, this 45 minute job could take hours. I walked home (lived 4 city blocks down the street,) came back at 2PM and he was just finishing up. Paid, got in the truck, started to drive it home. 4 blocks - about halfway there blue smoke billows out from under the hood, I pulled in the driveway, opened the hood . . .

Three weeks before I'd pulled and repainted both valve covers. When filling the tranny fluid this maroon had dumped it all over the cover on the right, it was also down under the intake manifold and all over the exhaust header. I drove right back and ranted like a madman. Manager says "bring it back in, we'll make it right." I expressed in no uncertain terms that I or anyone I knew would ever let them touch my vehicles ever.



A week later or so a small drip formed from the tranny pan. I found out he also had stripped two bolts, I wound up having to pull the pan, replace the fluid AGAIN myself, tap out the stripped holes and put on a new gasket.

Never again. If someone is going to f'k up my stuff, I'll do it.

 

This is exactly the kind of advice I was hoping for, very much appreciated. I certainly don't want to degrade any of the parts/hoses as they're becoming harder to replace. I don't mean to be a bother, but I was hoping to clarify. Do you mean a dish soap when you suggest a detergent (not that I trust the oil change place ANYMORE, they did say they used a mixture of dish soap and water), if not, what kind of detergent do you use? Additionally, do you have a recommended ratio of detergent to water? Again, thank you so very much for your help. I'm eager to learn and appreciate any assistance!

 

I just use Dawn.

 

Oreillys has a foaming engine degreaser for like $5. Your good to spray it on about everything. Let it sit a couple minutes and pressure wash off.

 

Amen to that, bro!

 

Thank you so much for the advice! I checked the radiator fluid and it looks good.

 

Thanks so much for the advice, I appreciate it

 

Oh gees, I'm so sorry to hear this. A few years ago I got screwed by the Toyota dealership big time. After charging me a few grand, I think they reset the code and gave it back...and naturally the code came back up. My dad (who happened to be in town), took it to a mechanic who fixed it easily in less than an hour for $50. Unfortunately, the code came back up months later. When I took it in to this same mechanic it took months, nearly 2K and it still wasn't fixed. He suggested I should probably just sell it.... I think he did this all on purpose because he was hoping I'd agree to sell it to him. Found a mechanic with good ratings and he finally fixed it for good for about $500. It needed a new mass air filter (which had apparently been changed by previous mechanic). He also discovered that someone had removed the hose from the correct throttle body connection and moved it to the one labeled "r," (if it wasn't that one, it was one of the other 2 next to it) if I remember correctly. This is the stupid (I have much stronger language I would use, but I know it's not permitted) stuff you deal with when you're a woman. I've always had toyotas because I wanted to absolutely avoid mechanics at all costs. I'm going to try to learn more so I can do more of this stuff myself.

 

I use simple green as my cleaner

 

Full strength, or do you dilute it? If so, do you have a ratio you use of cleaner to water? Thanks so much!