Don't Buy a 3rd Gen Prius! - Blown headgasket at 233k

How much oil were you burning?

 

What's the liquids in 2 and 4, coolant, coolant/oil sludge?

 

Be sure to replace the electric engine water pump as part of the job. Those pumps are known for intermittent failures which can cause the HG failure. You can buy an Aisin one off rockauto for $250; it is the same pump as the one from the dealer (you will see the Toyota stamping ground off) for half of the price.

Toyota does not recommend resurfacing the head but I know some people have done it with success. What do you plan on doing with yours?

 

Found the Repair Manual info on checking the head bolt length. Here's some screen grabs, and I'll attach full pdf, the cylinder head disassemble, inspection, reassemble.



Dimensions b and c, and that second diagram, all seem a little poorly drafted. I think I get the gist of it

 

Maybe. I guess it depends how you define overheating. This car trips an engine overheat light at a certain point, but we are not kept in tune with the actual coolant temp. I would replace the pump- it is cheap enough considering the amount of work you are doing.

 

Thanks for the pics! It's nice to see how the internals look. Pretty ironic that the #2 cylinder looks cleaner (at least re carbon) than either of its neighbors. I guess it's been getting a good "steam cleaning..." As for #4, anyone care to hazard a guess.

All that said, you're clearly a few steps beyond the average DIY Joe. I'm pretty sure you didn't just scrounge what tools you could find in the end drawer in the kitchen and then go to work. If you've gotten the head off, cleanly and without hurting the car (or yourself...), you obviously know what you're doing. Please fill us in! Absalom? I seem to remember a famous head of state with a problem child by that name. . .

 

How much are they charging you for the head reconditioning?

 

Well, at least you're still around to tell the story...

Have you considered running with a Scangauge attached? I use it while driving for the tach and temp, but it also reads codes of and when they appear. I'll post a pic later, I keep it on the top of the steering col. It's nice to see temp in real time...

 

Why yes, I do. This is a marginal picture of my Scangauge-II, sitting atop my steering column, just behind the wheel. It obstructs nothing, and is easily viewable through the steering wheel. I haven't gotten around to permanently mounting it yet. . .
You can set it to display many other parameters, but these are the four I usually keep visible. I wonder, however, about your situation. If there was an overheat sufficient to damage the head, you should have gotten multiple codes. Maybe there's an issue with your engine's coolant temp sensor(s). If that's the case, you might have detected it indirectly be noticing erratic, unusual readings (as in believable enough NOT to trigger a warning, but NOT matching the situation, e.g. reads medium heat, maybe 100-ish when you know it's a lot hotter).

 

I received a notice similar to that years ago. It expired before my first (and only, so far) instance of start-up shake.

 

Can definitely see #2 was your opportunity .

Looking good though.