I am going insane - 2012 Gen 3; please help.

I think someone wrote on PC about using one of these and had good success Cooling System Test and Refill Kit

 

Sounds like a good idea, if you have a compressor.
My way doesn't cost any money.

 

I had no air pocket problems, and that was following the @NutzAboutBolts video, leaving the cap off during the maintenance mode warm-up.

I did open the bleed valve when refilling, could feel air coming out as I filled, then eventually coolant. Maybe Toyota has stripped out the bleed bolt and all mention in the Repair Manual, but it can't hurt: you're filling a large container with liquid, why not allow air to escape at the top as the liquid level rises. At best it's doing something; at worst it's not harming anything.

Next time I will follow the repair manual instruction about filling to B line and putting on the cap, @ChapmanF clued me in to that.

 

I've force fed my Prius like 6 bottles of k seal over the past year or so for science. She stops knocking for about 6k miles but pukes up copper water out the reservoir cap outlet intermittently. Heater still works. Haven't had to replace water pump since using the k seal.

 

As long as light at the end of the tunnel is not the Head Gasket Express. Hopefully the engine was not allowed to run hot for more than a minute or two.

I have changed my gen3 coolant maybe ten times and never had any air bubble problems. Each time I ran in maintenance mode with the cap off for perhaps ten minutes until circulation started. Which I assume never happened after the op's water pump change. Its good to know where to watch for that, ie the bottom hose of the reservoir. It is also imperative to read the coolant temperature during s time like that - if not all of the time.

Running too cool is an issue as well and this hybrid system can easily thermal cycle 30-50 degrees in stop and go traffic or if parked in Ready for extended periods.

 

That's a good one.

 

What you're probably recalling is what happens if a water pump trouble code is present.

If there is no water pump trouble code present, a temperature of 120 ℃ or above will light the over-temperature warning light.

If there is a water pump trouble code present, a temperature of 105 ℃ will shut the engine right down, leaving the power management control ECU wondering what happened to it.

 

I don’t want to offend the status quo but sorry for the delay, I had to think of a “logical” response.

At some point my uncle needed a quadruple bypass heart surgery. No amount of medicine is gonna save you if you want to live they’re gonna need to cut you open. (Waiting for the chance to go visit at this point, move out of critical condition)…

Similarly here with the head gasket you may get a tiny leak as a start (as I understand) where “medicine” aka K-Seal has a chance to seal the hole, then if you do not quickly “take the medicine” it goes into the it’s too late we need to “operate”.

No? I guess it’s like saying it doesn’t work, ever? I mean my wife does not believe in decaf coffee, even though she’s an MD and I ask her don’t you believe the medicine you prescribe works, that they were able to isolate and extract the active ingredient…

To say it clogs the tubes is kind of a contradiction to saying it doesn’t work, if it clogs a tube that’s (to me) the equivalent of a really decent size hole/leak.

That’s kind of the analogy that’s in my head…

 

Ok, so it's making hard blobs in lots of places, and you're kind of relying on hope that those will include all of the places that are leaks, and won't include so many places that aren't leaks that your cooling system is defeated.

 

you could pull off one of the topmost hoses (at hose junction just above EGR components) and leave it disconnected while filling, till coolant comes out.
FYI This is exactly what you have to do to refill the coolant on a GEN 2 Range Rover...Air Locked is what they call it. Several guys swear to parking uphill also to assist in getting the air out of the system. I lost a heater core connection and blew coolant all over in the parking lot of Lowes. (this is in the Range Rover)..pulled into a parking spot where I had room to work on the truck. Found the blown connector and removed it. Walked to oriely's auto parts and bought a new connector and new hose clamps and new coolant. Replaced the connector with a new one clamped it off and refill the reservoir while squeezing the hose closed. ie squeeze add coolant and release. Reconnected the top hose and ran it for 1 minute then topped of reservoir again...repeated until full and it didn't suck down any more coolant. I now carry spare clamps, hoses, fuses, bulbs and coolant along with a bunch of other tools. Taught me a lot. Sounds like you lesson was just as valuable.

 

I think the policy probably reflects that if the water pump might not be moving the water, 105 ℃ right where the sensor happens to be could mean who-knows-what ℃ somewhere else in the engine.

 

You need to make a trip to Hybrid Pit to have the head gasket replaced. While you're there, you might as well have a a Ganador muffler installed.

 

Sounds like something bisco or grit would say...