2400 miles to do asap

If you are traveling at 80 mph you might want to use the Waze mobile app so you can have advance warning of speed traps. I drove to FL and back 2 weeks ago - 1,500 mi. Drove close to 80. No problems. I had a Yakima cargo carrier on the roof. Wait one - I'll find a picture.


Regards,
Allen

 

I would be highly inclined to change the transaxle ATF before going a long way at high speed, in hot weather, on a well used car. It is a simple drain and fill, although I realize it might be difficult to arrange that. Check all fluids, and check for turbulence in the inverter coolant reservoir (next to the inverter, take the cap off) while the car is in Ready.

 

What was the mpg difference with the carrier?

 

I'll bet it was brutal

 

I find it's a loss of 4-6 mpg

 

While you're driving 80 on the interstate, all of the "hybrid stuff" is mostly just along for the ride, presuming that the interstate is mostly flat and you're not one of those morons that are trying to put the car in N on long downgrades.
Interstate duty is easy on cars and trucks....hybrids included. Your fuel economy will be a little lower than if you were taking a long leisurely drive at 45mhp, but that's not a hybrid thing, and you'll still be getting better fuel efficiency than most of the other cars on the road.
Put the "giveacrap" switch in the "don't" position and enjoy the scenery!
You'll almost certainly be fine unless there's an undiagnosed (or unreported) problem with the car.
Just remember that the speed limit isn't 75 in those itty-bitty little blue states.

 

The transaxle uses just shy of 4 bottles of Toyota ATF. It takes maybe 20 minutes to do the drain and fill. Any mechanic with a lift or ramps can do it easily. Plenty of pictures here on PC or on youtube. Same for engine oil, very straight forward.

You might want to make sure the A/C is working while you are at it. Using the A/C is beneficial as that is also helping to cool the big battery under the rear seat. As pointed out though, straight and level driving does not stress the battery much.

 

How many miles on this used Prius?

 

Hi John. I'd just make sure of a few basic things that you can check yourself pretty easily.

1. Engine oil. Just make sure it looks ok and is somewhere near the top mark on the dipstick. Take a quart with you in case you need to top off. Don't overfill though.

2. Coolant levels. Make sure you check the levels in both the engine coolant and the inverter coolant reservoirs.

3. Inverter coolant pump (a common failure that sometimes goes undiagnosed for quite a while). Take a flashlight and check the inverter reservoir for flow (turbulence or gurgling near the top of the reservoir when Prius is in ready mode).

4. Until you've had it a bit more thoroughly checked out (after you get home), I'd take it easy if you've got any mountain passes to traverse.

 

It was significant - BUT it was still way better than the Suburban I was driving. My usual rate is 45 mpg. For the trip with the rooftop box I got 35 mpg. I'm happy with it since I had the use of this great storage space. We drive from Ohio to Florida Emerald Coast. Our lab rides in the rear and we put much of our gear on top so Lola can have a comfortable space.

 

Good info. Thanks.

 

You're probably already on the road, but you should know that just because they replaced the inverter coolant pump doesn't mean they did a complete inverter coolant replacement.
When they put in a new pump under Warranty, they usually just clamp the inverter coolant hoses with duckbill clamps, swap out the pump and add the small amount of coolant lost. If the Toyota Owners Website doesn't show an actual Coolant replacement Invoice for your car, Radiator and Transaxle, as well as Transaxle ATF WS replacement, you are at critical mileage to have those done. Hope you made it.

 

That's good to know.

BTW. Do you know what MPG you averaged for the trip?

 

Just so you know, these cars were made like any other car, they just happen to do great in the city. Drive it like any other car and it will work just like any other car.

Now that you have it home, bump up those tire pressures.