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Prius C Won’t Start After 1 Month

Discussion in 'Prius c Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by ClarkDelmar14, Mar 14, 2021.

  1. Leadfoot J. McCoalroller

    Leadfoot J. McCoalroller Senior Member

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    Clean the hybrid fan down at the car wash vacuum stall. There are how-to videos on youtube if you aren't already familiar with the process.

    I'd get another opinion from an indy garage- someplace that doesn't sell cars.

    If you really do need a head gasket, it's probably going to be cheapest to pay an indy garage to install a good used engine. I would let that shop become heavily involved in sourcing that engine, because otherwise they will be hesitant to take responsibility for the results should there be any problem later.
     
    ClarkDelmar14 likes this.
  2. ClarkDelmar14

    ClarkDelmar14 New Member

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    Is there any recall for this car?
     
  3. Leadfoot J. McCoalroller

    Leadfoot J. McCoalroller Senior Member

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    I wouldn't know for sure. You can enter your VIN on Toyota's website. There is a service program (not a recall) for rain leaks in the taillights on the 2018 model.

    Overall these cars are the tightest things Toyota makes- so I'm pretty surprised to hear about a head gasket leak. That's why I'm suggesting an indy shop who doesn't just want you to trade it in.
     
  4. topshot

    topshot Member

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    The multiple misfires combined with potential low coolant could be significant. Not sure why bisco was dogging the engine design as these 1.5 L are quite robust, but if you have been letting it run hot for a while that could eventually cause gasket failure. How did you check the coolant level/condition? I'd check the cylinder compression. That's a quick and easy test for most gasket issues or check for oil in coolant and bleed any air out of the system. If you have good compression on all cylinders and coolant is good, I highly doubt it's a gasket so misfires are from something else.

    It appears you do have a bad traction battery - one since it wouldn't jump start (it's the traction battery that starts the engine while the "jump" is to recover from a bad 12V to power the computers) and, two, block #1 has much lower voltage than the others. Clean the vent under drivers side rear seat!
     
  5. Leadfoot J. McCoalroller

    Leadfoot J. McCoalroller Senior Member

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    How old is the fuel in this car?

    Stale fuel can contribute considerably to misfires.

    Any more details on the coolant level and history?
     
    davecook89t likes this.
  6. sam spade 2

    sam spade 2 Senior Member

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    IF......it turns out that your engine AND the hybrid battery have BOTH gone bad,
    I think it would be a MUCH better move to trade it in on a newer model.
    Trying to get things done "on the cheap" often turns out to be MORE expensive in the long run.

    Then.....if you are on a really tight budget, a hybrid might not be the best bang for your buck either.
    A base model Corolla (or similar) might be a better choice.
     
    davecook89t likes this.
  7. ClarkDelmar14

    ClarkDelmar14 New Member

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    I think I’ll trade in for Corolla. Thanks anyway