Dealer told water pump was leaking need help/advice.

generally speaking, the pump leaks a tiny bit all the time. if you aren't losing a significant amount of fluid in the radiator, there's no need to change it. your radiator level looks good, keep an eye on it to make sure it's not going down. no puddles under the car?

i agree that pricing is a rip off, you can have anyone do it if you want to, just make sure they know how to bleed it. if you do change it, do the belt as well.

how many miles on her?

 

Mine went about two years ago at 65K or so. I WAS losing coolant, but otherwise the symptoms were about the same as your symptoms. Dealer charged $500, I had a 10 percent off coupon == $450/

The Prius water pump is a bit famous for failing early. If you don't want to replace it, keep a close eye on your coolant level -- via the actual radiator -- not the expansion tank -- that means removing the black plastic cover to get to the radiator cap....

 

sounds like a plan. if you do change it, patrick wong has the details on bleeding the air out.

 

Bisco is correct there's a bleeder on the pumps,they always release some signs of coolant,which causes the crust.This has been happening most likely for a while.If you get a Toyota tech that just wants to make money,he will try to sale you a water pump.Buy a pressure tester if you like pump it up to 16 psi and see if it leaks.I worked for Toyota for 10 years I have seen that non leaking crusty water pump sold numerous times.Preseure test and check coolant level.Dont replace unless it's a active leak!

 

I replaced it when some pink crusty stuff started showing up. Cost about $100 total for the OEM pump, gallon of SLLC and some water pump RTV (optional). Getting the air out isn't that bad. I just parked the car with the front uphill, filled up the radiator as much as I could with the allen-key radiator bleed screw open, closed the bleed screw ran the engine about 10 minutes with the heater on (and a little pressure on the go-pedal to keep the engine running) topped off the rad, and then took a few short, gentle drives, topping off again between each until no more gurgling could be heard behind the dash and the radiator level stayed up at the cap. The new pump has had no visual leakage whatsoever, so I don't think I would consider some leakage to be "normal".

 

There's a big difference in active leak and Toyota putting a bleed hole in the water pump.I could pull 10 Prius cars with 30-40k miles on them and they would shows signs of blow off from the bleeder on pump.Acrive leak means that coolant is running off pump.If you pressure test it it Will leak.Im not saying I know more than you by any means but I have been at a dealership in service since 1988 I know the difference I get paid to sell water pumps if there leaking.

 

Oh, I'm sure you know more than me. Mine may have been one of the "blow off" cases then. No visible leaking whatsoever from the new pump in the several years it's been in there though.

 

ok, that pink crust is leaking coolant. it shouldn't be there, and it means it is time to replace the pump. its a very easy diy; 3 10mm pulley bolts, and 5 10mm nuts / bolts to remove, and the pump is off. I don't touch the belt adjuster when I do them, the belt will stretch just enough to push it on/off the pump pulley. if it is for some reason too loose or tight after its reinstalled, then I would move the adjuster, but I haven't needed to do that on either of mine.
the biggest rip-off is that the dealer tried to sell you a coolant flush on top of the pump replacement when they must drain the coolant to do the pump. pure thievery.
bleeding the system is a bit more difficult than most cars, but not that bad. get the front of the car up high and run the heater on high, just like tanglefoot did. don't run it too long at a time so it doesn't get a chance to overheat.

 

1. The pink crusty stuff is dried antifreeze and you should keep an eye on the coolant level in the radiator.
2. The fluid level in the radiator is good. The fluid level in the overflow tank is assessed by comparing to the full mark on the reservoir.
3. You definitely have an engine coolant pump leak.
4. Yes, getting the air out is not easy if you do a complete job and drain the coolant heat recovery system. Use the yellow plastic Lisle funnel which you can get at amazon.com

My post on how to do this job is here:
How to replace engine coolant pump and thermostat | PriusChat

The photo of a pump in my post #1 shows an engine coolant pump with a very slight leak. That repair could have been deferred but I decided to do the repair since I had the pump in hand.

The photo in my post #29 shows an engine coolant pump with a more pronounced leak, sufficient so that coolant spray was deposited on the underhood insulation pad. I would not leave such a pump in service, given that condition.

The other contributors to my thread provided photos of pumps that were in generally nasty condition and they were right to replace them.

Your pump bearing definitely is leaking. It would be OK to defer the repair if you check on the coolant level in the radiator periodically. Do not rely just on looking at the coolant level in the overflow container. If the pump develops a more pronounced leak, it will allow air to get into the engine coolant system and then the overflow container will not be able to replenish the radiator fluid level as the fluid drops.

 

I am trying to set the record. I am at 150k miles orig pump. I had some pretty bad leakage at 80k miles, when many Gen2 had theirs replaced. I kept adding the special Toyota pink coolant, and the leak stopped. Many Gen2 owners had this replaced under extended warranty before 100k miles. But we did not have extended warranty, so I was reluctant to make the repair. $800 sounds excessive.

I'd have 69shovlhed fix mine instead of paying $800, but I live close to him.

 

You should have seen my pink salts, yours is like a tiny trace...I bet its holding. Keep an eye on it.

I did my plugs at 130k miles

 

Not sure about water pumps, but in home water systems, small leaks will on rare occasions "heal themselves" as mineral deposits form. Not sure about water pumps, but the principal seems the same.

 

Ah, just budget to replace the water pump, accessory belt, belt pulley assembly and necessary SLLC. Buy the Lisle Funnel (for sure) and if you want super style points get the Airlft II as well, (if you have access to an air compressor). Buying all this, including the Airlift II you will still be hundreds of dollar ahead of thieves at your dealership.

There are decent enough Youtube videos and Patrick's How-To is an excellent source of information as well. You will be able to get everything you need off of Amazon, but shop around for the best bang for your buck. For a first time water pump R&R I'd give yourself about 4 hour or so to knock it out. I consider myself an average garage hack and that is what my first one ran me a month or so ago.

Thank you again to this board and other contributors.

 

If there's anything worse than an idiot, it's a self-assured idiot. The Toyota Repair Manual for 3rd gen outlines the procedure, it is a simple drain and fill. I'm sure 2nd gen is no different.

 

If you should decide to wait a few months, that would be OK. Just keep an occasional eye on the radiator coolant level.

It looks like you have the correct coolant pump part number. My post cited in post #12 above has pictures of the various Toyota part numbers required if you want to change more than the engine coolant pump. At the time I wrote that post the part number was 16100-29156-83. Since the part numbering has been evolving over time, hopefully that means the new designs will last longer than the original...

The Prius has two separate coolant systems and the coolant is supposed to be replaced at 50K mile intervals after the original factory-fill coolant is replaced.

I suggest you buy your Toyota parts from one of the dealers that sell discounted parts over the Web. I usually buy from AutoNation Toyota Gulf Freeway in Houston but recently found parts.com to be an excellent alternative.