This! This happened to a local guy but the dealer admitted the mistake and replaced the engine.

Fight the hell out of this one. Worst case, insurance should (I know multiple that have) cover hydrolock as a comp claim but that should be an absolutel LAST resort.

I'd want evidence of hydrolock though, water near/on the throttle body isn't evidence.

you should fight dealer and hire attorney if they BSing you.
it's impossible to hydrolock it with stock air filter. even CAI design for this car, it will get hydrolocked. like Jeebus said, CAI that design that filter is located right in front of wheel, like RSX-S, Civic Si would get hydrolocked but this is not right case.

A lawyer is a bad idea at this time. If he gets a lawyer so will they and everything will stop until the lawyers fight it out at the expense of all involved. Probably the worst next step he could take honestly.

Instead he needs to keep fighting with corporate, file a BBB claim and start a social media campaign. All of that is more effective right now than a lawyer would be.

Let me get this straight, you removed the resonator, and didn't plug the hole. So you've got a 2.5" hole that is completely open, bypassing the air filter?

That's before the filter. The only hole post-filter is for the sound generator which he didn't mention.

Wouldn't it be easy for them to just drop the oil pan and shake the rods and see if its a bearing? That's like 20min tops...

Who currently has possession of the vehicle?

Is the motor still in the car?

If the car is still intact I would have it assessed by a third party. Find anyone with a mechanical engineering degree and experience with cars and have it looked at, his word on paper accompanied by his title and listed degrees will be hard for Scion to ignore. it is important to get someone else's professional opinion before the dealership gets in there and starts covering their a$$

Gotcha, I thought he removed the sound generator.

He said resonator so I assumed the helmholtz resonator. He could have misspoke, I haven't seen the car so.. :shrug: :)

You can see the intake in the video everything behind the filter is intact.

Call toyota. Make a complaint. They will give you a claim and call them. Toyota reps will be on your side 100% more then a stupid tech.

I did get a call back form dealer and the service manager was much nicer and more informative that the customer rep I spoke with early. Toyota has authorized them to look at it tomorrow and find what cyl it is and if its a rod or the bearing. I feel allot better about this knowing I did not hit water......

A hydro locked engine in most circumstances dies period. I've seen hydro locked engines on the inside and it's never just one cylinder that is messed up. Generally all four are jacked up and they roll out the side of the block. I doubt it's hydro locked at all

wait... you left the hole open when you removed the sound resonator? you do realize that basically by passes the mass ? which could produce an issue.