Been through gambit with my 2001 need help

you need a copy of tech stream

 

Gonna likely need a lot more than that....

Was the car functioning prior to the initial steering gear job?

 

Or, if not Techstream, some kind of scan tool that is able to read the supplemental "INF codes" from the HV ECU to go with the P3120 and P3125 that you have. (Somebody once figured out how to program a ScanGauge II to read those INF codes, if I remember right. Techstream is the go-to solution though.)

The reason that's so important in this case is that P3120 has twenty-four different INF codes that would all be indicating different issues ranging from mechanical problems inside the transaxle to wiring problems in the MG1 or MG2 resolvers or temperature sensors, and so on, and needless to say, the steps for fixing issues from such a wide selection could be very different.

P3125 is just like that only more so: it's got 81 different INF codes, all indicating different things that could be going on with the inverter, converter, or the wiring linking them up to each other and the transaxle and the ECUs.

 

Look on the bright side, if you kept the old catalytic converter(s) you can get over a grand for them now just for scrap.

When you try to start the car and the engine 'bucks', does this mean the engine is actually spinning for ignition or does it try to spin (causing the 'bucking' forward) but is acting more like it's seized?

 

Getting those three digit codes will really help. Some of them could indicate actual mechanical issues inside the tranny, others could indicate issues with the rotor position resolvers. The car applies magnetic fields relative to how it thinks the rotors are positioned, and if that information is off, the motion won't be what's expected. Some of the possible issues could be simple. It is safest not to try to guess at them.

 

it won't run on mac anyway

 

You can run it on a Mac in a VM like VMware or Parallels. You can also create a Win 7 BootCamp and run it there.

 

if your mac is adequate. my 8 year old macbook pro doesn't have what it takes

 

Runs fine on my 9 yo MBP.

 

Gen1 A/C is driven by ICE not by inverter like gen2 does, only thing there is a electromagnetic clutch that you can disconnect to see if it is causing short circuit code (I don't think so). Basically reversing 12V supply can burn many component in circuits not protected by reverse protection diode. If I'm in your boots I would open every single unit and check for signs of burnt components, trouble is not all are failing visibly.

 

P3125-265 indicates that one wire between the inverter and the HV ECU is either open, or shorted to ground somewhere. It is the NODD circuit, a blue-with-orange-stripe wire from connector C4 pin 4 at the inverter to connector H12 pin 4 at the HV ECU. If you check that circuit out (as the manual says, it's rare that a wire just breaks somewhere in the middle, more likely to be near a connector, corrosion-related, etc.), you might find a simple wiring issue to fix. If you prove out that there's no wiring issue, then it might be the used inverter.

Can you find where you read that again? It would be interesting to see how that conclusion was reached. P3120-240 is reported if the ECU thinks MG1 inside the transaxle is unable to turn.

If you jack up one front corner of the car, leaving the other on the ground, and shift into neutral with the car off, are you able to turn the jacked-up wheel by hand?

 

When you don't know something - google it before ask, this way you will save your and others time and create less "digital pollution".
ICE is Internal Combustion Engine, petrol motor in your car.
When you smell burning things (whatever it is) - shut it down immediately and disconnect all possible power sources, then diagnose until you find reason of failure and never repeat power up step until it is definitely found and fixed.
In regards of thread with A/C blocking drivetrain - that's surprise for me as there must be 2 faults, compressor itself and clutch both stuck.

 

'ICE' is a shibboleth we use here at PriusChat to spot people who may already know perfectly well what an engine is but haven't been properly initiated into our cult yet.

 

Got it. Yeah, in his case, the A/C compressor pulley bearing seized up, 88301 here (though it is usually easier to find the whole 88410 as an orderable part and it can be cheaper than the constituent parts).

That pulley is the part that is always driven by the belt, whether the compressor clutch is engaged or disengaged. The poster in that other thread confirmed "the clutch spins by hand" (meaning the inner, pressure plate part 88403, meaning the compressor itself was ok). If that outer pulley is seized up so that, via the belt, it restrains the engine from turning when MG1 tries to crank it over, the HV ECU can be forgiven for thinking MG1 might be seized up.



It'll be easy enough to find out if this applies to you. The test I suggested earlier (jack up one front corner, shift to neutral, can you spin the jacked-up tire by hand?) will tell you about MG1. If you can spin the tire by hand (and this doesn't turn the engine ), MG1 itself is ok.

Then you can check with both wheels on the ground, can you turn the engine easily, say with a wrench on the crankshaft pulley bolt? (If you take the spark plugs out first, it should even turn easily by hand, but that's a bunch of extra work. Plugs in, it should still turn easily enough with a wrench.)

If it's hard to turn the crankshaft, then loosen the belt idler pulley and the belt and try again. With the belt off, see if you can turn the water pump, the A/C pulley, and the idler pulley by hand. Fix any that won't turn, or feel rough or make noise.

With the A/C compressor, you can do the same check that other poster did: try turning the pressure-plate (88403) portion by hand. If that turns smoothly, the compressor is ok. Don't replace the whole compressor then, that's just a bigger unnecessary job involving refrigerant recovery and the whole nine yards. If only the pulley is seized, it's just a clutch-replacement job; there's a thread for that.