<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(sea-horsea @ Nov 13 2007, 12:55 AM) [snapback]538751[/snapback]</div> Yes but like any other modern car something needs to be wrong for that to happen. Towing <which the Prius is not designed for> or a cooling system failure or blockage could cause overheating. Running the car full throttle with 110 degrees outside should not overheat your Prius as it is designed for use in AZ. Grill blocking in the summer could set it over the edge easily. So keep your Prius in good condition and it should not happen. PS - the battery pack can become overheated and will provide little or no boost. This is also not common.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(hampdenwireless @ Nov 13 2007, 01:07 AM) [snapback]538758[/snapback]</div> I understand that cooling system might malfunction since it happened to my old car a couple of years ago...what i am curious is why they don't have a temp. meter to give a heads up for the driver? now i am nervous...the last time my cooling sensor broke i was on the way back to L.A from colorado and i had to leave the heater on all the way back....and it was in the summer !!! but then at least the temp. meter told me the current temp. and I could monitor it from there....now i have no way of tracking the temp. of the car..either i am safe or i am dead...
Unfortunately the Prius doesn't seem to have many meters at all. If you want some diagnostic measurements, you have to get something aftermarket. But I'm sure your car will give you a great big warning triangle and exclamation point if something goes wrong. And, as the manual seems to be fond of saying (when it decides to talk, that is), if you see the triangle, pull over and call someone to fix it.
Like alot of cars the Prius has an idiot light if the engine overheats. See the owners manual for the instrument cluster display it will show you the light.
Many have purchased a ScanGauge to provide the ability to monitor a variety of engine parameters, including ICE temperature.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(sea-horsea @ Nov 13 2007, 01:22 AM) [snapback]538773[/snapback]</div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(JimboK @ Nov 13 2007, 06:28 AM) [snapback]538809[/snapback]</div> That's exactly what I was going to say. You can either drive your car with an unrealistic constant concern of overheating or buy a scangauge and watch the engine temp yourself.
It seems to me like the cooling system on the Prius is a little bit excessive for the tiny engine. If people can fully block their radiators in 70-degree temps, clearly the radiator is too large. I don't worry about overheating.....if it overheats, the car will tell you via the displays.
Did anyone see a master caution because of over heat? I've never heard of it. <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(sea-horsea @ Nov 13 2007, 04:22 PM) [snapback]538773[/snapback]</div> It's not caused by a bad cooling sensor, but a thermostat. A good Prius driving is how much we can coast, which means the Prius engine is easy to be cooled down, then we need some material to block the grill. I believe we do not have to worry about over-heating but over-cooling. Ken@Japan
you get master warning light when inverter overheats, but not when the engine overheats, you only get that fancy red coolant light on the gauge cluster
Toyota, like most car makers nowadays, does not want to over-load the driver with information. Most people will worry more by seeing the temperature than by not seeing it. Look at how many people post here asking why their battery is not always full! A few of us want information, and we purchase the after-market stuff. (I have CAN-View, but that does not work with the MFD in 2006-2007 Priuses.) But car makers prefer to give us an idiot light or the dreaded TRIANGLE. (Which I got once for having a door ajar, and a message which had nothing to do with the doors!) However, due to the nature of the Prius, overheating should be about three places below meteorite impact on your list of things to worry about.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(JimboK @ Nov 13 2007, 04:28 AM) [snapback]538809[/snapback]</div> Just as a point of interest, the highest temp I've seen is 200°F while climbing the Cuesta Grade along US 101 (California). It was a warmish day, 80 or so, and I was on cruise about 65, with AC on. I was surprised it got that hot, it usually reads bertween 180 and 190 in "normal" driving. It bugged me not having some instruments, and the Scan gage is the quickest, least hassle and econimical way to see what is going on under the hood.
I personally prefer the gauge. You can really see if the thermostat is about to go out by how the gauge reacts. You can usually tell because they'll start to stick and the gauge will go a bit past normal and then snap back to normal. If I were to see that before a long road trip I'd swap out the thermostat. With an "idiot gauge" this is not possible. I *used* to do the same thing with the voltage gauge but most manufacturers with these gauges are glorified dummy lights anyway. If there's voltage, it's in the middle, if not, it's at zero and the check engine light is on.
