Smoke Under Hood Driver Side Near Fuse Box and Inverter - Multi Function Display Flashing 2005 Prius

I parked my newly acquired 2005 Prius with 275k miles after a 3 hour drive, left the key in it and power on, came back 3 minutes later and smelt something but could not identify the source. I got in the car and saw smoke coming out from under the hood in the area where the fuse box and inverter coolant pump is on the front left drivers side.



I tried pressing the power button and the dash warning lights, red triangle, all of them, everything beeping, Flashed erratically. I popped the hood, got out with a flash light, and everything looked okay, I couldn't see what melted or caused the smoke. The smell was a strong plastic type of burnt smell.

After the dash lights settled down there was one interesting light sequence. The the combination meter where the squares that usually indicate the position of the transmission buy lighting around the D, N, or R etc… all light up at once and flash with no other lights. The multi Function display turns on and can be operated to go through the menus.

It was dark and I had no tools other than a crecent wrench, and screw drivers. I happen to have a friend in the area with a flatbed and he picked us up and got it back to my garage at home; a life saver!
I plan on inspecting it when I get home today. It was a tough way to break down I’m excited and ready to tear into the car.

I spent the last night and morning reading other related threads on priuschat.com trying to prepare for the diagnostic and repair of my awesome new Prius.

Should I pull all fuses and check with ohm meter and look for evidence of burning or melted material?

Also, in regards to the inverter coolant pump, I am not aware if this Prius ever had the Inverter coolant pump replaced while Toyota was covering it. Is this something to look at? inspect? or identify if it's defective?

Would an inverter coolant pump smoke?


As a side but possibly related note. I bought the car a few days ago and the radio did not work. So I replaced the fuse under the hood and it worked for one drive. When I shut the car down and started it up again the radio would not turn on. It might have a short somewhere.

When I would hit bumps there was a big clunk rattle on the front left driver side in the wheel well or behind it in the engine compartment. The clunk was alarming but let alone that it is the same area where the smoke was coming from.

One more thing, the horn does not work and I have not looked into it yet.



Edit to add video Links
Video 1

Video 2

 

Thanks Jerry! Ill check the fuse and start digging in to find it when I get home tonight and report findings.

 

The rattle was the black plastic fender well rattling. I could not find any melted wires last night. I will put my code reader on it today and see if it will give any codes.

 

Setup Bluetooth ODBII Port scanner with android tablet
Prius ECU would not connect - figured main fuse blown.
Started checking fuses manually with meter

EM2 15amp fuse blown
Replaced EM2 15amp fuse in engine room main fuse box

dash lights came back on, power on, multi dash lights on.
Will not go into gear

Code Reader connected to Prius ECU - via torque android app.

Prius threw Codes:
Active codes:
P1116
P1121
P1123
Pending codes:
P1116
P1121

Googled all codes together and found this info:

Looked up coolant control valve 16670-21010:
16670-21010 | eBay
Got this interesting tidbit on Prius chat:
2007 Prius P1116 code and coolant control valve issues | PriusChat
Re: TSB EG001-08- Also, note that the valve, 16670-21010 has an MSRP of $66. A couple gallons of SLLC will cost around $50.

Subscribed to All Data diy 1 year $29 info service for some documentation quickly (not sure how good it is yet) to get info
but google did the trick so I have not even logged into the all data ... bummer I spent the money!

Mike Dimmick said
Reading the description in the manual, the P1116 code indicates that there is a problem with the coolant tank outlet sensor. Did they try replacing the sensor? Edit oops it looks like they did. Perhaps the wiring is making a bad connection.
See attached pages.
P.S. It should not cause any damage to the engine.
Just to state that this is the 'coolant heat storage tank
sensor', i.e. the thermos. The sensor is supposed to tell the computer that it's getting hot coolant back from the thermos. The code is logged if there is less than 1 degree Celsius increase after opening the valve, or if the engine coolant sensor reads more than 25 degrees C higher than the thermos outlet temperature sensor.

If this doesn't happen, chances are pretty good that the sensor has stopped working. It can also indicate that the coolant isn't flowing properly due to a blockage. There are also three other codes relating to this sensor - P1115 indicates an intermittent open circuit or short, P1117 indicates a permanent short circuit, and P1118 indicates open circuit. If the valve doesn't open properly, it should log P1121 (Coolant Flow Control Valve Position Sensor Circuit Stuck). Codes P1120, P1122 and P1123 indicate problems with the valve position sensor.

http://www.justanswer.com/uploads/skyvisions/2008-05-30_223901_prius.pdf?r=aw|78888|0&awc=7742_1488481092_51d32fe2b95b4642dfe4b10feb5174a3
P1116
Got priuschat link check engine light: codes p1116 and p1121 | PriusChat
Says: p1116 is about the coolant temp sensor, and p1121 is for the coolant flow control valve.
make sure all the air in the system is bleed

​

I pulled the back seat up and part of the trunk panels to access the HV Battery.
I pulled the Orange HV plug with 100amp fuse out and let it sit for 15 minutes.
Plugged it back in and the car started and went into gear!!!!!.

I still have not gotten to the bottom of it.
I have no clear idea where the short is or what caused the short , smoke, or error codes.
I am going to take it for a drive and will upload the video with details.

all the yellow/orange lights on the dash.

Update:

Got Prius on the highway and it drove perfectly with the CEL and other orange lights on the dash. Then 30 miles into it the Red triangle lit up and I re-ran the fault code scanner on the tablet.

A new code came up P0A93 - Which I googled and it says the Inverter coolant pump failed. (the scanner was still showing P1116, P1121, P1123). A few minutes later the other codes disappeared. Now the only code is the P0A93.



The temperature reader was up around 180F and peaked at 195F when I got back home.

I ordered a Inverter collant pump on eBay .



I hope this is it. I need to figure out if I have a short somewhere or if the underlying cause was the bad pump. .

I also found the horn that was not working and there was no fuse for the horn. I need to add a fuse and see if it works again.


Thanks a million!!!!
D​

 

Yes, it's coming along! I am now waiting for the inverter pump to arrive in the mail anytime before the 7th of March.
I also have to look into the radio and the horn.
In the mean time I might leisurely start the process of removing the headlight to get to the bad pump so when the new one arrives I can simply disconnect it and replace it with the new one and button everything back up quickly.

 

Hey RRxing, thanks for bringing that up. as aside, I priced it out with one auto glass guy and he mentioned $220 for a sound insulated windshield that has some sort of acoustic layer in the glass and $180 for a standard loud windshield.
Does anybody know the difference between the 2 windshield types?

 

The subscription to AllDataDIY.com is paying off. I found a out the bulletin for the hybrid water pumps turned into a Safety Recall, SC-COU
SC-C0U 01/15/2013 Recall - Hybrid Electric Water Pump Replacement


I am going now to check my vin and see if it is eligible.


Question:

Safety recalls don't expire until work is complete because it's a federal traffic safety board law regulation right??? Does anyone know the details on this so I can be armed with the correct information if I go to the dealer for this.

(I already ordered the part and can easily perform the repair but I might just call the dealer Monday and see if they can fit me in and get it done. I'd shave a few days off downtime for the pruis since the part is not due to arrive until Monday at the earliest and Wednesday at the latest. )



Thanks

 

Wow M.Wynn, Thank You!!!

Really solid perspective and advice I can count on.
You explained it in a way that resolved the uncertainty for me in regards to this issue.
Sincerely, Thanks.

I'm now going to go order the 3 way coolant valve and will update.

 

My hybrid water pump came in the mail And I installed it.

I drove it for an hour or so and the code went away.
Now after 1/2 a day of driving the computer says it failed again!!!!'

Red triangle and everything!


What can it be?

The coolant temp is 186degrees farengeight

 

I got it all fixed thanks to the great help and support of the Prius chat forum members!!!!

I decided to tear it all down again because I was replacing the coolant control valve. Upon inspection (It takes a lot to admit this) I found that the Inverter coolant pump was not fully plugged in.

I replaced the Coolant Control Valve and plugged in the Inverter pump and put everything back together. It worked perfectly. I have not had any temp or check engine issue since!!!
Thanks Again,