2005 Prius won't start

Over the years, I've used and owned many laptops, and more than a few times, they shut down when the processor overheated. I usually get a message on the screen, or if I'm not there, it says the computer did not shut down properly. So, naturally, I assumed this was normal. Cover the vents of yours and see what happens.

When it failed to shut down the time I described, it was the first time I'd ever heard of it happening.

The one I'm using right now, sometimes pops up a window that says it's shutting down due to over-temp, because I haven't given it a good cleaning in awhile.

 

Generally they just monitor the CPU and Chipset temps, will shut down the entire system if the temp crosses a threshold.

That sort of protection assumes that heat will buildup at the Chipset or CPU socket faster than elsewhere and isn't foolproof.

It is possible for a system to overheat in a way that triggers the shutdown but then damages/destroys one or more components of the PC before the shutdown finishes or even after shutting down assuming the heat doesn't dissipate quick enough or continues to build (if ambient temps are too high).

Generally controlled by a BIOS setting though in a Dell/HP/Acer prebuilt system the setting is likely hidden / locked at a set value.

 

It's possible that it didn't shut down fast enough, I suppose, but I think it's more likely the rat-bastards just wanted to make more money on repairs.