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What is this container with pink liquid and why is it a low level

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by dan034, Aug 7, 2023.

  1. dan034

    dan034 New Member

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    As you stay in front of the 3rd generation prius, it is on the left side. A big container with pink fluid and it is at low level, or even a bit lower than low. Image attached.
    What is it called? And should I do something?
    Many thanks!
     

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  2. Tombukt2

    Tombukt2 Senior Member

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    Feel it to the full mark and watch the h a l e out of it because usually when this starts things only get worse like in replacement engine
     
  3. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    engine coolant

    i can't tell from the pic, but there should be max and min level marks?
     
  4. sam spade 2

    sam spade 2 Senior Member

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    AND it is not very unusual for it to be near the "MIN" mark when the engine is cold.

    IF it comes up about half way to MAX when hot, then don't worry about it and ask them to
    top it up on your next oil change.

    That is assuming that the level doesn't continue to drop.
     
  5. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk EGR Fanatic

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    What’s the miles (or kms?) on it. In my experience the (engine coolant) level had dropped to the low mark by around maybe 50k kms. I topped it up to full line, with Toyota Super Long Life Coolant (specified in North American Owners Manual) and it’s been steady since, now at 97k kms.

    The Full line is hard to.see, almost coincides with a seam. In the attached picture I’ve put black marker on the line.
     

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    #5 Mendel Leisk, Aug 8, 2023
    Last edited: Aug 8, 2023
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  6. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    In my experience in a Gen 3 liftback, it would indeed be very unusual for it to be anywhere near the MIN mark, engine cold or no. Sam may be thinking about the older-style recovery-bottle systems, where coolant escapes into the bottle when the engine is hot, and gets slurped back as it cools.

    The Gen 3 liftback and v wagon have a more modern degas-bottle system—your plastic bottle there is the degas bottle—and it is always a part of the coolant loop. When I change mine and get it refilled to the FULL mark, it is right there at the FULL mark whenever I look at it thereafter.

    If yours is too low (and if you are sure it has not just been too low all along), then the coolant has gone somewhere.
     
  7. JohnPrius3005

    JohnPrius3005 Active Member

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    Shade tree amateur here. I do this:

    Make a mark with permanent marker midway between the full and low indicators.
    Order pink Zerex 50/50 from Amazon - $20
    When car is cold, add coolant to the midway mark

    Check coolant level every day for a week.
    If it doesn't change, check it weekly for a month..

    If coolant level drops, investigate for leaks or other causes.
     
  8. dan034

    dan034 New Member

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    Thanks, I added it. MY gen 3 Prius has 225k km. It was at low level even when engine was hot.
     
  9. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    i just looked at mine. unfortunately, there is a large seem in the container with the max mark slightly above, and the min slightly below. very difficult to read.
    there is also a line about an inch above the max line marked B.
     
  10. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    The B mark, covered in many other threads here, is used when you are replacing coolant. In a fill from empty, you fill all the way up to B, cap the system, and run the engine until all the air has been burped into that bottle, trading places with the extra coolant. When everything has cooled again, hey presto, you find it sitting at FULL. (It's like the engineers knew how much air there would be.)
     
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  11. douglasjre

    douglasjre Senior Member

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    Not technically low. Add distilled water. Move on
     
  12. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    IMG_3141.jpeg IMG_3142.jpeg IMG_3141.jpeg IMG_3142.jpeg IMG_3141.jpeg IMG_3142.jpeg IMG_3141.jpeg Here’s a couple pictures, hard area to see.
    sorry about the dupes, idk what happened or how to delete them.
     
    #12 bisco, Aug 12, 2023
    Last edited: Aug 12, 2023
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