Head gasket went last month, DAMN !!!

Coming home from a doctors appointment last month the engine started rattling at a stop until I gave it a lot of gas and then it stopped and about a block later the check engine light came on, lucky I was by an AutoZone so I went in and had them put it on the code reader, got the code misfire in cylinder 2 .so of course I change the spark plugs and the coils which was overdue, while I was at it I also changed the Intake Manifold and EGR valve and the PCV valve. And no I didn’t clean them, Ordered new Toyota parts. Watched about 3 days' worth of YouTube’s about head gasket problems and diagnosis. Kept coming back to a company called “Gasket Masters”, so I gave them a call and asked if they can recommend any shops in the Vegas area. He told me we also do on site work and that he’ll be in the So. Nevada/ Utah area next week, I told him please pencil me in!!! I was his first stop before heading to Vegas. And at 8am on the dot a Mercedes-Benz van pulled into my driveway. He had every thing you could think of in their van, parts, complete engines, hoist. He said they seem to be doing more Prius GEN 3 and 4 gaskets than anything else. From the time he pulled in, to the time he pulled out it was 4 hours. an he's a absolutely great guy (Larry) to talk to, he has five shops in California the northern shops handle Northern California and Reno Nevada and the southern shops handle southern Nevada and Southern Utah. I told him that I love watching their videos, so much info. He’s the shaved head guy you can tell he was in the military at one time because all the instruction is kept pretty simple and to the point. After the engine was put back together, I was surprised about how much time it took to get the coolant bubbles out of the system and flashing the computer/ doing the diagnostic on all the sensors. So, if you live in California, Northern/ Southern Nevada or Southern Utah, I highly recommended him/them for Prius engine work. I kid-you-not theses' guys can do it with their eyes closed..... OK let’s go to the most important part ""the cost"". The Stealership where we bought our Prius from originally quoted us $4700 just for the gasket job nothing else. "Gasket Masters" does the gasket with a used but clean EGR, then all the diagnostic afterwards for $1950. And that is the fixed price for doing a Gen 3 or 4 gasket. Same engine. I hope you’re reading this Larry because you guys are a lifesaver.

 

180k some thing.

 

He also highly suggested that I takeoff my cold air intake ( Not good for the gasket) and put the factory intake back on. luckily I kept it on the top shelf for these 11 years,

 

Yeah, It was clogged but not to the extent where it through a code “yet”

 

No idea.

Yea, One smart thing he did was removing the lower EGR stud from the block, makes it a snap to take the EGR off to clean it. As some of you know, that lower EGR nut is a BITCH TO GET OFF !!!! Dont stress it, delete it, lol

 

Same engine

 

call them then, or respond to one of their y-tubes

You're right, I miss spoke, But they still bow Gaskets, look at one of their y-tubes doing gen 4 gaskets at taxi companies.

But they still bow Gaskets, look at one of their y-tubes doing gen 4 gaskets at taxi companies.

 

I just realize it’s been years since I posted on Prius chat, I looked on my archives and the vast majority of the stuff was when we first bought it ,the cold air intake, larger rims and putting XM into it. talking about memories. And my wife and I just realize that we’ve had three other vehicles since we bought the Prius. we both didn’t like the GEN 4’s, we thought they were pretty damn ugly looking, but the renderings of the GEN 5’s thats coming out in 2023 look incredibly like the GEN 3’s. We can’t wait to see them and test drive one. If we do pick up a new one next year, I'm definitely have some ideas that I want to try with this thing other than cosmetics and electronics.

 

YEP, If its not warped. Larry said you wouldn't believe how many people still drive their Prius when the engine is doing the death rattle, warped heads, blowed engines. That 2nd time at the intersection, I PARKED HER !!!, So he didn't half to do any resurfacing of the head on ours. I will admit it was great to use our good old Land Cruiser for last weeks trip to AZ. Oh if i could only put the LC seats in the Prius, I WOULD BURN THOSE DAMN PRIUS SEATS OF TORTURE.

 

Not really, But when we go on long trips, I put back the factory rims and tires back on, That makes a Huge Difference in gas milage.

More air to combust. Look it up, I bought it from the PRIUSCHAT STORE, about 10 yrs ago. We did like the sound the car made................ they still sell them, it's listed in the performance section.