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No more gen2 cars on long hot trips

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by JC91006, Jul 9, 2018.

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  1. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    So I drove from Los Angeles to Las Vegas this weekend in 110 degree heat and for the first time didn't see any gen2 prius cars on the 15 freeway going or coming back from Vegas. I did see a brave soul in a gen1 though.

    I think many people are worried breaking down in 110 degree heat, not taking their gen2 prius on long road trips anymore. Just me in my 2005 braving the heat without any fear
     
    #1 JC91006, Jul 9, 2018
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  2. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

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    Maybe they wanted to save their luck for the destination ;).

    You go there to watch Evel Live:whistle:?
     
    #2 Raytheeagle, Jul 9, 2018
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  3. Starship16

    Starship16 Senior Member

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    #3 Starship16, Jul 9, 2018
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  4. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    Travis Pastrana! I stayed to watch his first jump at Planet Hollywood but couldn't get myself to walk across to Caesars Palace to see the final jump. Here's a picture without the crowd at Planet Hollywood, I thought there would be more people..... IMG_19121.jpeg
     
    #4 JC91006, Jul 9, 2018
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  5. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

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    That does look sparse:(.

    They had a lot of theatrics for the event. Not as much as the golden knights home games, but still done up(y).
     
    #5 Raytheeagle, Jul 9, 2018
  6. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    There has been many reports of inverter pump and hv battery failures on the gen2 cars, both items will pretty much keep you from driving it long distances. Also it's very hard to detect when they are about to fail, so there's really no true warning signs (except a weak battery).

    I would only drive long distances with a gen 2 if it has had the inverter pump replaced within the last 80k miles and if the HV battery is not refurbished and under 8 years old.

    A new Prius will easily go 8 to 10 years without major issues, but after that, it's a roll of the dice.
     
    #6 JC91006, Jul 9, 2018
  7. wjtracy

    wjtracy Senior Member

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    I think you just saying Gen2 Prius owner are not gamblers.
     
    #7 wjtracy, Jul 9, 2018
  8. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    I think the owners that know about their cars will take the risk. But most owners wouldn't want to risk a battery failure (I think this is well known, not so much the inverter pump failures) on a long distance trip.j

    I think we should have a recommendation for people to replace their inverter pumps, same rule like a 12v battery. After 5 years....best to replace it.
     
    #8 JC91006, Jul 9, 2018
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  9. wjtracy

    wjtracy Senior Member

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    my inverter pump just went bad a few weeks back
     
    #9 wjtracy, Jul 9, 2018
  10. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    from the time the recall was done, how many years/miles did you log on that pump?
     
    #10 JC91006, Jul 9, 2018
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  11. breakfast

    breakfast Active Member

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    Maybe it's because Simon Cowell is going around crushing every Gen 2 Prius he sees in LA... ;)

    (Warning, contains graphic scenes of Gen 2 Prius destruction :()
     
    #11 breakfast, Jul 9, 2018
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  12. wjtracy

    wjtracy Senior Member

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    Looks like I did the recall Jan-2011 at 81,000 miles...now at 175,000 miles
     
    #12 wjtracy, Jul 9, 2018
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  13. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    Pretty close to 100,000 miles. So to change it out before 80,000 miles would be safe, unless you're a bit of a gambler
     
    #13 JC91006, Jul 9, 2018
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  14. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    is it time or miles? i suppose operating time?
     
    #14 bisco, Jul 9, 2018
  15. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    That's a good question. I think many people all jumped on the recall at the same time, that's probably why we are seeing a rash of failures all at once. Maybe in the time frame, people averaging 15k miles a year would be close to 100k miles?
     
    #15 JC91006, Jul 9, 2018
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  16. wjtracy

    wjtracy Senior Member

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    Re: inverter pump- it's a cool powerful little pump operating at 12v- I was noticing YouTube has some videos people re-purposing the pump for general water pumping duties.
     
    #16 wjtracy, Jul 9, 2018
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  17. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    i'll have to look up my daughters '08 recall date. don't need that problem on her 400 mile weekend r/t drive. is heat a factor?
     
    #17 bisco, Jul 9, 2018
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  18. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    If she's planning to keep the car, just have her change it. It'll be good for another 5-6 years
     
    #18 JC91006, Jul 9, 2018
  19. wjtracy

    wjtracy Senior Member

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    Dealers here seem to be charging $750 for replacement which is yikes!
    On YouTube Lucious Garage said they charge like $275, but that was a few years back.

    You can get the pump on Amazon for about $60 and it's not a bad DIY, though I got half way through it and decided to let my mechanic do it as he was a Toyota guy.
     
    #19 wjtracy, Jul 9, 2018
  20. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    Where did you get stuck? I think this repair is one of the more straight forward ones, not too cramped for space. Just remove the headlight and clamp the hoses. Then unbolt it.

    $750 from Toyota is crazy, the book time and parts price will equal around $450 from Toyota's current labor rates
     
    #20 JC91006, Jul 9, 2018
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