P0420 in California (Solution)

warranty information booklet

The 15 year/150K mile warranty on the catalytic converter (and a bunch of other parts) in CARB states should be detailed in your warranty booklet under California Emission Control Warranty. It is in mine.

This should also apply to others w/cars bought and registered in CARB states which should be California, New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Vermont, Rhode Island, Maine, New Jersey and (very recently added) Oregon.

It sounds like that dealer might've been trying to pull a fast one. They should've known better since they are in California.

 

Actually, P0420 is the universal (applies to all makes, i.e. Ford, Chevy, Toyota, etc.) OBD-2 DTC (diagnostic trouble code) for "Catalyst System Efficiency Below Threshold".

http://repairpal.com/OBD-II-Code-P0420

Good for you. By researching the warranty and getting the dealer to replace it, you saved a ton of money.

 

YES, Absolutely, Congradulations on doing the research! We probably get at least one fish a month who did not do the research and ended up paying unnecessarily. There is also a inverter pump replacement program going on right now, make sure you get that done too......it's free! Keep reading PC.

 

Whitehug ; can you post the link where you found that the catalytic converter is covered? Sorry, but from the driveclean website I am not finding what I need, the website might be different now or I am just not clicking the right links. The dealer and Toyota is saying I am not covered, although my car was bought and always registered in CA.

 

Thanks to this post....!!

I own a 2006 Prius and noticed that the engine check light came on. After being informed of the error code and that i would need to replace the catalytic converter, i called around and was told that the replacement would have to be done by the dealer ship.

I called Crown Toyota (Ontario, CA), which is where I purchased my vehicle and was told that it was out of warranty - passed the 80,000 miles and i would have to pay for the replacement!! Even after offering me a 5% discount (absurd) the total came out to be about $1700!!

I did not have that kind of money. I continued doing some research and then by the grace of god, came across this forum.

I searched the link provided...

driveclean . ca . gov

CLICKED on Do Your Research tab, scrolled down to Benefits and Incentives and there it was!

I read about the California Emissions extended warranty (15 yrs/150K miles). The service department at the Toyota dealer confirmed the error code and I mentioned about the California Emission warranty.

They confirmed it and replaced the CC for free!

 

Try replace the oxygen sensors first, usually it will clear the P0420, before spending the money on the CAT.

 

The Prius is a special case in many aspects of warranty, service, and repair. It is often up to the owner to remind the folks behind the counter of the issues, rather than just assuming that they know what they are talking about. Glad to hear that it worked out for you, and hopefully it will work out for SpikeVFR, who seems to be back on track according to a post in another thread.

 

I think I will still do the Oxygen sensors, but after the dealer replaces the Cat. I had ordered the Oxygen sonsors when I thought I would have to pay for the Cat, just to see if it would resolve the issue. After I got word that they were going to pay for it, I thought about cancelling the sensor order, since they are a couple hundred dollars combined. Then I changed my mind, and thought about how the sensors could be the reason the cat went bad, and I don't want the cat to go bad in another 120k miles and have to pay $1,900 out of my pocket to get it fixed.

You would think though, that they would have a website or something where it would have drop down menus where you could put in you car model, year, CA or not and the part, and it would spit back "part is covered for x years or y miles". To avoid any confusion. Why pay someone to look it up in a book?

 

Clearly the "Stealership" as trying to pull a fast one, because the 15 year/150,000 mile California emission warranty has been around for at least 4 maybe 5 years. How a place in California that sells cars would not know this is beyond me.

 

Should they know, of course. But I am not sure it is an intentional attempt to defraud. When they call the company hotline and are told that it isn't covered, and I call the coporate number and am told yes by one person and then no by another, clearly there is confusion. On most Toyotas it would not be covered as a I have 120,000 miles, the only reason it is here is because it is a CA and it is a hybrid. If it were a regular Camry, it wouldn't be covered. If I were in NV, it wouldn't be covered. So it is confusing to say the least.
Besides, what would be the gain for them. Whether I pay or Toyota pays, they still get paid. And at $1,900 I am guessing I am not the only one to walk away without getting it done. So would they rather get paid by Toyota 100% of the time, or only do say 75% of the business and get paid by the consumer? Unless they get paid radically different on warranty work it just wouldn't make sense, besides the loss of customer good will and future business.

 

Thanks a lot for this thread/information. Last month, i had check engine light on my 2008 prius & pulled out the code - happened to be P0420. Last week, got that catcon replaced by dealer for free. If I have not come across this forum, I would have wasted some $$.
my car 2008 prius - had about 140K miles on it. Earlier I had a failure in electric coolent motor - which I read about in the forum & replaced it myself.. very useful information here.

thanks

 

If you still have the receipt for the replacement coolant pump and the coolant you used, you might wish to send copies to Toyota and ask them to reimburse you for the parts.

A while ago I replaced my inverter coolant pump (to be on the safe side) and then their recall came out. I had saved the receipt for the pump, and was able to get them to reimburse me for the replacement pump.

 

The recall only applies to 04-07.

 

I also have a 2007 Prius that we bought in Hayward CA new. It has about a bit of 70K miles now and recently CEL on and it throws a P0420. I cleared the code (a bluetooth adapter that connects to the OBD interface - ebay under $20 from China and Software Torque Free on my android tablet) and it came back on and off couple times since then. Two weeks ago it was on and drove it to the Fremont stealership. The CEL turned off while I was on the way. Nevertheless I talked to one of the advisors, Matt, about getting a CEL on with P0420. I told him about the California Emission control warranty. He put up a questionmark face pretending no knowledge about that. He said he had to look it up. It might be only 70K. He also said even if the cat converter is under the warranty the sensors or ECU might not. He said since CEL is not on, it is hard to pinpoint the problem at that moment and asked me to come back later when CEL is back. I questioned about why sensors, if defective, are not under warranty and he tried to pull away from it. He said he was not sure and wanted me to talk to the supervisor and of course she was not there. I said I would call her Monday about what is under warranty, what is not.

How may thousands of Priuses they have sold? I do not believe they do not know much about the 150k warranty which is stated in the warranty booklet (page 20 - I didn't pull it out while talking to him). I believe he was testing my knowledge saying that it was "maybe" only 70K. Then he tried to test me again to say the "sensors maybe not be under warranty".

If they can charge me, it would be full price. If Toyota pays for the service, they get only a discounted price. Am I right? Is that why they treat us all like fool trying to rob every penny out of us?

Why are they so dishonest? Where do I find an honest dealership in the Bay Area?

 

I wonder how this would work if you have a Prius that was originally purchased and registered in CA then registered in Ohio (though never leaving California)?
Would the CARB warranty still be valid.

 

Yes, you are right, but it sounds like you've done your homework so you'll be able to assert your warranty entitlements. When I lived in Silicon Valley I felt the Toyota dealers in San Jose and Sunnyvale were OK.

No, it would not be.

You would also have to explain why the vehicle has Ohio license plates if it was continuously operated in California - which of course violates CA DMV policy.

 

Catalytic converters have 8 year/80,000 mile FEDERAL warranty. Obviously, don't go back to this schmuck dealer. But do go somewhere, state that the check engine light keeps coming on for P0420. It WILL be in the computer has a historical and probably pending code, as long as you have not disconnected the 12V battery or erased the code with Torque. If you get pushback, keep mentioning the word FEDERAL.

http://www.epa.gov/oms/consumer/warr95fs.txt
What Should I Do If My First Attempt to Obtain Warranty Coverage Is Denied? If your first attempt to receive emissions warranty coverage is denied, you should do the following: 1) Ask for a detailed explanation, in writing as to why emissions warranty coverage was denied; and 2) Ask for the name(s) of the person(s) involved in the decision to deny coverage, including anyone from the manufacturer's regional or zone office; and 3) Ask for the name(s) of the person(s) with the manufacturer you should contact to appeal the denial of coverage under the emissions warranty. 4) Contact and, if necessary, write to the person mentioned above requesting coverage and giving the basis for your request. Repeat and continue the appeal process until you are satisfied or have exhausted all means of appeal.

 

There are exception to that rule, active duty military would be one of those exemptions.

 

Does anyone know if the 15 year catalytic converter warranty applies to the 2001 Prius?
Thanks!