Inverter IPM - 15 year Warranty Enhancement ZE3

Maybe not? Module usually implies it's an autonomous component, capable of being popped out, replaced.

 

From what I understand they only replace the IPM as the warranty states, if that is the only component that fails. If other components fail as a result of the IPM failure they should be replaced.

 

Got my letter!

 

An FYI regarding my recent experience and others that may encounter this.........My IPM failed last week (Gen III, purchase Dec. 2009, Type IV). Never received the letter, but have complied with all recalls. I saw this and similar threads before taking the car in. I coordinated official diagnostic and repair through corporate Toyota (who sent me to the main dealership that had completed all of my other maintenance). Even though I had not received the letter, they covered the cost of replacement ($2k). The dealership covered the rental car cost (didn't have to). So, I just had to pay a little extra for rental car gas (lower mpg than my Prius).

 

I bought my secondhand Prius on 4/24/20 and experienced IPM failure on 5/4/20. Isn't that lucky?! Had it towed to the dealer and everything was covered under warranty. They had the part in stock and it only took a day. Hopefully the new inverter lasts 10+ years.

 

Good show!

Right ... I think I read the TSB at one point, and the IPMs (may be more than one in there) are replaceable, but not necessarily what you'd call "popped out": inside the inverter assembly, requiring disassembly, reassembly and resealing, in a cleanroom. I remember it surprised me to even see such elaborate procedures being sent to car dealerships. I haven't seen my local dealership's cleanroom.

But it is possible I'm remembering a TSB for an older generation inverter and it was about replacing discrete transistors.

Just to follow up that five-year-old information ... it turns out a close reading of the published defect information report turns up a little bit more, apparently that the solder voids resulted from too-rapid cooling of the solder after heavy heating event. That would open the possibility that the firmware fix works by stretching out the cooldown period after heavy acceleration or braking, which could be done by tweaking the firmware to 'waste' a little extra current through power-factor manipulation after the heavy power-demand event, when you probably wouldn't notice it, and the amount of energy needed to do that would probably be too small to show up in economy.

That's certainly the avenue I would have explored. As I wrote in that post, it's conceivable I could have thought of that and a roomful of Toyota engineers didn't, but I bet that's so not the case.

 

I'm a little late to the party. I have a 2012 C model with 230k and just got the code P0A94. But Toyota says the warranty enhancement does not apply to the C model. What a bunch of BS.

 

Sometimes car parts die and it is nobody's fault. Just the fact of life.

A Prius C is more like a Gen2 than Gen3

 

Well, it has the 1NZ engine, like Gen 2 ... I think otherwise, it's recognizably kin to the Gen 3.

 

Does anyone have the specific parts or the IPM recall service bulletin listing the visual inspection of the inverter. We are getting the run around at the local dealership and we have two small kids who ride in the car, mostly freeway miles. We can’t have it go into LIMP AGAIN on the freeway.

 

try toyota.com/owners

 

I did. Nada. I’m so frustrated. This dealership has been an awful experience. Usually they are great. We have owned exclusively priuses. Nearly 23 of them in our 3 years of marriage. I know a lot about the Gen 2’s. We currently own 3 but this 2011 went into limp mode on the freeway with our kids in the car going up a hill no cell service to call a truck for a tow and the choice was to either sit there in lane 3 of 5 lanes or save and clear the codes and now they can’t replicate the problem and therefor the dealership won’t fix it. I’m also getting a lot of flack from them because we are south and I’m a girl. The service manager has told me that the tickets are “closed” which they aren’t. just a big run around

 

Drove 9 miles, didn’t even leave town before the dash lit up like a Christmas tree.

 

Looks like you're in the right place to get it sorted.

 

I’m actually guessing that tomorrow they will call with more run around. Keep in mind they have had the car for a day and a half and they flat out refused to do a visual inspection. Lied about the pump working (it’s not) and told me things were “closed” and “didn’t apply” to the car when I have the VIN specific letter that say they do. I have never been more frustrated with a dealership than I am right now.

 

Ugh...

Well hopefully a dash full of warning lights helps.

 

is the inverter pump working?

 

So right. I didn’t have my techstream so I couldn’t pull codes and it happened 3 minutes before close so.... yeah.

 

No it blew and the only way to get it you of limp mode was to clear the codes. I was on a 5 lane freeway going up the hill and the car was DEAD with no cell service. My only choice was the pull the codes, clear them and get out of the middle of the road. I had two little kids in the car. There was no choice. And despite the fact that I have the codes, the data and the freeze frames they REFUSED to do the work. The pump blew, fried the inverter and looks like damaged the traction battery.

it’s a mess and we haven’t even had this car for a month.

 

anyone can replace the inverter pump/fuse