.:: Hybrid Pit • Buena Park, CA • Review ::.

Forgive me if this is the wrong section to post this in. There isn’t really a California subforum and I noticed most of the Prius modders here are from SoCal. Just wanted to share with you guys my first experience as a customer of HybridPit. I’ve known both Sean and Roger for almost two years now, but I haven’t taken my car to get serviced or repaired by them in the past. I usually try to knock out the simple oil and filter changes at home.

Long story short, my sister also has a Gen III Prius with just a little over 166k now. A few days ago, she was driving to work when the car suddenly went into a ‘limp’ mode. The car locked itself into B mode and did not let her accelerate to speed the car up. The ‘Check Hybrid System’ warning appeared on the dash along with many other error lights. Thankfully she was driving at a low speed in stop-and-go traffic and was able to let the car coast in B to the side of the freeway.

As soon as she called me, I began looking for similar symptoms and solutions on the forum. I told her to turn the car on/off 3-4 consecutive times to try and reset the ‘Check Hybrid System’ warning. No dice. Next up, check the 12V battery for any loose connections. Everything was secure. Gas was halfway filled, nowhere near empty. I was stumped and told her to just tow it home so I could take a closer look. At this point, I figured the HV battery had finally taken a dump.

Once the car was home, I tried to drive it around but the car would lock itself into neutral just a couple seconds after the ICE would turn on. I noticed it was also shaking more violently than usual. I didn’t have an OBD2 adapter to read any fault codes and the car wouldn’t even make it down the street to an O’Reilys to get it scanned. Fantastic. (I ordered one and downloaded Carista same day — I just hit 90k on my 2012 and I’m sure it’ll come in handy.) Anyways, I contacted Sean and asked him if I could have the car towed to Hybrid Pit. Luckily, there was still room for one in the packed shop!

A few hours later, the car was finally towed over to The Pit. AAA happened to be ridiculously busy that morning and had me wait 3 hours for the next available technician. As I arrived, Roger was there waiting and he began to diagnose the car with a battery tester as well as TechStream. The following code kept pending after multiple resets — P3190 “Poor Engine Power”. Roger tested the fuel pump, and Sean confirmed that was the issue the next day after testing the pump relay and harness.

With the new fuel pump installed, the car was ready to rock and roll again. But since the car was already at Hybrid Pit, I figured it could use some more TLC with 166k on the clock. I’ve been reading more and more threads on the EGR system carbon build-up issues and I wanted to prevent any future blockage. So I had Sean & Roger give the full EGR system — pipe, valve, and cooler — as well as the intake manifold a good thorough cleaning. I’ll let the pictures speak for itself.

Finally had some time today to pick up the car and I couldn’t be happier with the outcome. The car drives great! Again, a big thank you to both Sean and Roger of Hybrid Pit for taking care of us. Their workmanship is truly top notch and both guys are very honest and thorough, continuously sending me texts as they went through the car. They stand by their work and won’t try to up-sell or pressure you into getting certain services done all at once. For those without an open checkbook readily available, they’ll also work around your budget and recommend which maintenance items to prioritize.

I highly recommend any of my friends and fellow PriusChat enthusiasts in the Los Angeles or Orange County areas to contact the guys at Hybrid Pit if you need any work done on your vehicles. From what I’ve seen, most conventional independent shops are one, too afraid to touch a hybrid car, or two, charge a crazy premium to work on a Prius. Hybrid Pit pricing is very reasonable and they work on more than just hybrids! I saw an IS300 getting the transmission rebuilt and an Acura Legend with the motor all torn apart while I was there. Where else will you find 2 bada** full G’s Prius twins hanging out in a parking lot?









Thanks for looking!

 

Thank you again to the HybridPit team!!! The codes C0200 (Front Speed Sensor RH Circuit) and C1235 (Foreign Object is Attached on Tip of Front Speed Sensor RH) popped up on my sisters Prii a few days ago and the VSC, ABS, and TPMS lights were on. Symptoms included no regen braking and a longer depress of the brake until initial bite. The car was still drivable, just a little hard to control in stop-and-go traffic.

Yesterday, I texted Roger asking if he’s ever dealt with those 2 codes and if I should clean the brake sensor or replace it. He says, swing by the shop later. I get to Hybrid Pit a couple hours later and Roger test drives the car, confirming those aforementioned symptoms. So we take off the passenger front wheel and find our culprit. The brake sensor clip fell out of the chassis hole and was dangling down while the tire probably kept shaving down the wire. Roger gives Sean a call and what do ya know, Sean has a spare at the shop! I got super lucky. Now I don’t have to pay a ridiculous amount for a new part at the stealership or take my chances with a cheap aftermarket sensor. ($150+ OEM vs. $25 aftermarket)

Roger replaced the sensor with ease and I was in an out of there within half an hour. Thanks guys!!!