Water Pump Problem

View attachment T-SB-0143-10 MIL ON DTC P261B or P261C Coolant Pump Control Malfunction.pdf

 

So, here's a question: Do I request that this be performed just based on my VIN? Or, do I have to get the MIL and the listed DTC's in order to get the new water pump?

 

Tsutsumi is the name of at least one (?) of Toyota's plants. I have taken a tour of a/the Tsutsumi plant years ago. 2nd gen Priuses were on the line along w/Camrys and a bunch of other vehicles, some that don't exist in the US.

 

Re: Water Pump Problem: Getting Refunded

I bought a 2006 Prius brand new, and around 63,000 miles, the dashboard lit up like a Christmas tree. Before bringing it in, I called my dad who is an auto mechanics professsor, who bet me $100 it was the water pump, because Toyota had generated some sort of "pre-recall" service notice on the part.

I brought the car in, and it took two days to fix, and they replaced the water pump, at a cost of around $400-$500 with labor. Two weeks later, I get a notice that the car has been recalled, because all water pumps needed to be replaced...Of course, I was furious, because they had just charged me nearly $500 to fix a part they had to recall. So I had to bring the car in again, have the water pump replaced a second time, and since then I've been having to deal with the Toyota Corporate office to get my $500 refunded. This was back in November, and they still haven't refunded my money. So I've had three water pumps in my car...hopefully this one lasts a little longer than the first one. I'll let you know if they ever pay me back, or how the court case turns out...

 

Thanks for the TSB Josh.

Eric, the way it is written I think we have to wait for the old one to fail before we can get a replacement. I don't like that at all. Some of the places I go I might have to have the car towed for a couple of hundred miles. A broken car in the middle of nowhere is no fun. I wonder if they will provide a loaner car?

I wonder what the failure mode is?