Dealer recommended service after 30k checkup

i wasn't joking, there is a transaxle, (ecvt) with 4 quarts of fluid. most experts here recommend changing it around 30 or 60,000 miles, 100,000 at the latest, even though toyota calls it lifetime. if your's is original, you've pretty much killed that theory.

 

Yes, and another thing, I drive the car so much, that I prefer dealer parts.
Also, have been researching this on Prius Chat, youtube and so on, and it seems that changing the thermos is one best left for the dealer because the system will need to be properly bleed, or there are other expensive problems later on.

Question still is, can I get away with just a sensor change, or does the sensor come as part of the assembly with the thermos.?

 

I don't think I saw it in my owners manual. So, no, it has never been changed that I know of. I generally go by my owners manual 1st, opinions that I trust on PriusChat 2nd, the dealerships seem to be full of salesman.

 

Ok, you are talking about where the drive chain is at. I have wondered about that. I read it had a PSD, but did not know how it was lubricated.

 

It is true that the engine coolant system needs to be properly bled, and I have posted on how to do that in posts 22 and 42 here:
Changing engine coolant | Page 2 | PriusChat

If you are motivated to DIY, then before you decide that the temperature sensor is the problem, I suggest that you use a handheld infrared instant read thermometer to see how hot the fluid is coming out of the canister when the car first starts up. The fluid temperature is supposed to be at least 122 degrees F. Also, the Prius runs the CHRS pump five hours after the car shuts down to determine the temperature of the fluid in the canister, which should not drop more than 54 degrees F from the temperature of the fluid as it entered the canister.

The canister is hiding behind the driver's side front fender liner. You can see a photo of the canister in my thread here:
How to replace engine coolant pump and thermostat | PriusChat

 

My Owners Manual says to check engine air filter every 8000 kms, and replace no later than 48,000 kms. But:

I don't know if it's just our near-the-coast-marine-air environment or what, but coming up on 48,000 kms, I took a look at ours again (have inspected before), and it's was still looking virtually brand new. Could not bring myself to replace it. D.O. for the cabin filter.

I suspect it's due to a lot of low speed driving, easy on the gas pedal, meaning the engine's off a fair amount. And with the cabin filter, we rarely run AC, and through the summer just shut the system down and control temp with window opening.

 

I hope you are looking at the bottom of the engine air filter when evaluating its condition.

 

Oh yeah, pulled out, held up to light, check out both sides and looking through it too. I'm very myopic too, focus around 4" distant without the glasses, so give it the macro vision scrutiny, lol.

It's funny: just changed both filters on my son's car, with maybe 35000 kms since last time, and they looked like small furry animals. Same environment.

 

What model car does your son drive?

The Pacific Northwest and British Columbia have great air quality and I remember both areas very fondly.

 

2006 Civic Hybrid. Our ex car. They run it harder, AC a lot.

Yeah, grew up here, guess it's home.

 

Haven't you had to replace the drive belt? (More than once with 400k miles of service)

 

Never crossed my mind like that, but makes sense, esp when considering the Autobahn. Even if no Autobahn, makes sense Lexus would want to be in the same boat and list a specific interval, to be the same like the competition.

Didn't know about the Highlander Hybrid. But makes sense. Reminds me how the Intergra oil filters were priced more, even though it was the same oil filter as the Prelude or Civic, just a different part number. Man these manufactures. Screw you because it is a "upscale" brand.

 

check out this site:

PriusDIY.com: Maintenance Tutorials - Toyota Prius

specifically engine air filter, MAF, throttle body. it has pics and everything.

 

Contact Avi @Avi's Advanced Automotive to get non-dealership pricing for the Water Pump and Brake Flush. He seems to have a good reputation and chimes in every so often on Prius Chat. His Prius Chat profile lists 323-284-7922; LINK
Yelp shows a Tijunga location, and phone number of 818-352-0097. LINK
Santa Monica to Tijunga, maybe 30-45minutes away, w/ little to no traffic of course.

Throttle, TB (Throttle Body), ICE (Internal Combustion Engine) Plate, are all referring to the same thing. Just everyone has a preferred term they are using for the same item. Understandable how you can be confused.

These are the decent videos showing the Throttle Body being cleaned. Each car requires different stuff to be removed to get unobstructed access to the Throttle Body; don't pay attention to that, since the Gen 2 Prius is SUPER EASY to get to. The actual cleaning is what you need to see. You should feel confident to tackle this specific maintenance task after seeing these videos. Just out of curiosity, did the dealer say there was an error code for this $390 "intake manifold oil service built-up?" I'm guessing No.

2010-2014 Prius
2004 Sienna TB & MAF cleaning
2003 Camry TB cleaning​

If you want. You can watch me do this to my wife's Prius, then do it to your car; I have the tools for this. Just PM me (via "start a conversation" link in my profile) . Monkey see, monkey do, now you can do this yourself, forever.

If you lack a lot of automotive tools, Sears has a 250 piece Mechanics tool set that seems to regularly go on sale for $139. LINK This would be a great starting point for you. You can also wait for the Black Friday sale this year (11-28-2014) , as Home Depot, Lowe's, and Sears, will have very similar Mechanics Tool Sets for great prices. Sears had 220pieces for $100 in 2013; LINK.

 

ICE is the pretentiously verbose Internal Combustion Engine, reduced to an unintelligible acronym, when engine would serve.

 

1. Again, I would encourage you to first make sure that the engine coolant pump is actually leaking before you spend $600 to have it replaced - unless you have more money than you know what to do with. Look at the pump pulley for a pinkish stain which is dried antifreeze residue. In very bad cases there will be spray on the under hood insulating pad or an accumulation on the air conditioner compressor. If you don't see anything, ask the service writer to show you the leak and if you don't see a pinkish stain, then you know there is no problem.

The pump itself costs $57 while the serpentine belt costs $14 (plus shipping) - I just bought the correct items at Autonation Toyota Gulf Freeway (Houston, TX) via weborder. So you can see how much profit the dealer wants to make on a service job that might take the tech 1 hour or so.

If the pump actually needs to be replaced you might call around to get other quotes, from other nearby dealers and from independents that specialize in Toyota vehicle service.

2. The brake fluid does not need to be changed at 30K miles unless you have more money burning a hole in your pocket and you are determined to give another gift to your dealer's service dept. However if you do decide to replace the brake fluid, this must be done by a dealership or by an independent who is trained on Prius service.

3. The intake manifold "problem" is not necessarily a problem at all. Remove the air cleaner housing cover and use a flashlight to inspect the inside of the throttle body. Rotate the spring loaded shaft of the throttle plate to inspect the intake manifold which is visible below the throttle plate.

If you see black gunk accumulated on the throttle body interior then you need to clean it off. Remove the air cleaner housing so you have access to the throttle body, and spray a clean cloth with throttle body cleaner. Use the cloth to scrub off any gunk. At 30K miles I really doubt that there is much to be concerned about in that area.

If you have not noticed any drivability issues then you should not be concerned about #3.

 

Hi TryingToLearn,
Patrick is giving great advice. Honestly, I would look under the car for pink coolant deposits on the water pump. It is my personal opinion that none of this service needs to be completed. I have seen numerous posts on here where dealers say the water pump is leaking but its not. The easiest way to tell is to check your engine coolant reservoir, and note how full it currently is (always check when engine hasn't been recently started preferably in the morning), then check it again a week later. If no change, your pump is not leaking significantly and doesn't need replaced.

I would personally decline all service and find another dealer.

 

My gf purchased the 2009 Prius with the 26k miles on it and the hw electric water pump has been replaced at 23k miles according to toyota service history.