I have a 2014 prius with about 140k miles. It has had excessive oil consumption for a while but good compression and no real issues other than some misfires (presumably related to the oil leaking into the cylinders) but I've just kept the oil topped off and there have been no issues. A few days ago, the alert the engine was overheating came on. I slowed down and it went off very quickly, and when I got home I noticed the engine coolant was very low. I filled it up. I was driving to work 2 days ago and I noticed the heat was not turning on so I figured I would check the coolant level again when I got there. The engine overheating light came on at one point again but then quickly went off. When I was about a block away from work the car started to make a high pitched noise whenever I accelerated and a lot of white steam/smoke starting coming from the car. I am not sure if it was steam or smoke because it was very white but smelled smoky. I couldn't tell exactly where it was coming from. The coolant was of course very low when I checked it. Maybe 2 inches from the bottom of the reservoir. All of that made me think water pump so I replaced the water pump before trying to drive home, but then my car wouldn't start. The engine will spin for a few seconds but then give an alert about the hybrid system warning me to pull over, and the power steering alert will come on too, and then it shuts down. I have no idea what to try or how all of this is related. Any insight would be appreciated. I'm sure I've made several mistakes so far so figured I would ask some folks who know more than I do.
You need to get a good scan tool for the Prius to read the trouble codes. Take a look at this thread, https://priuschat.com/index.php?posts/3290690 The Autel AP200 is a good choice. It is $59 + tax on Amazon.
Could be, at 140k it’d be very good idea to change, that’s about when they start failing. would that be causing coolant to drop though, and show up in exhaust? it is also a common time for head gaskets to fail.
I replaced the water pump but then it still had those issues. Do you happen to have another guess? The smoke was not coming from the exhaust. When it started it looked like it might have been coming from the hood, and once I stopped and got out it looked like it was coming from under the back of the car. It was windy though so the only thing I can say for sure is it was not the exhaust. What would explain the issues I've had since changing the water pump?
To be honest I have no idea what the EGR circuit is. I haven't cleaned it since I've had the car which has only been for 40k miles or so
You can guess for a long time and walk around the car, but without reading the problem codes and their full analysis, this is a waste of time. Buy a scanner as indicated above, read the error codes and report them here on the forum. Then we can objectively help you.
What error? The scanner should show the code. For example, P3190? If the scanner does not show the DTC error code, then this is not the right scanner.
To check for blown head gasket: On the morning after driving the car the day before, take off the wipers and cowl, pull the plugs, inspect combustion chambers with a boroscape. You're looking for exceptionally clean cylinder(s), pooling coolant atop pistons, coolant tears running down the cylinder wall from the head gasket seam. If you manage to pressurize the cooling system (remove reservoir cap, replace with a stopper with hole, apply and hold air pressure. Video #13 here, shows spark plug access (it's a pain). Note, torque value plugs is NOT per the video, it's 15 ft/lb, with clean/dry threads. A 14 mm or 9/16" spark plug socket is required.