1. Attachments are working again! Check out this thread for more details and to report any other bugs.

$ 620.00 Inverter fluid change

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by mski, Jan 15, 2020.

  1. mski

    mski New Member

    Joined:
    Jan 15, 2020
    4
    3
    0
    Location:
    CA
    Vehicle:
    2014 Prius
    Model:
    III
    new here got a question, my Prius has 80,000 miles, dealer said I need the coolant changed in my engine and inverter.
    Cost $620.00 I'm a mechanic and that sounds ridiculous .
    My daughter took the car in and made the appointment at a different dealer .
    Hows that sound too much
    Mark
     
  2. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 10, 2013
    16,463
    8,377
    0
    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    II
    that is crazy expensive. There is a guy on here selling a gallon of OEM SLLC for $10. You'll need 3 gallons. any mechanic can do it
     
    SFO and Raytheeagle like this.
  3. Eddie25

    Eddie25 Active Member

    Joined:
    Dec 31, 2018
    315
    121
    0
    Location:
    IL
    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    III
    Not only a rip-off, but unnecessary. Wait until 100,000 miles at least.
     
  4. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 17, 2010
    54,470
    38,103
    80
    Location:
    Greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Touring
    That's steep. That aside, the Toyota USA warranty and maintenance booklet says:

    Engine coolant change: 100k miles or 10 years, 50k miles or 5 years thereafter.

    Inverter coolant change: 150k miles or 15 years, 50k miles or 5 years thereafter.

    I can post a table format summary of the schedule tomorrow: much easier to follow than the event-by-event format in the Toyota booklet.
     
    JC91006 likes this.
  5. Elektroingenieur

    Elektroingenieur Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 8, 2017
    2,515
    3,253
    9
    Location:
    California
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Three Touring
    One edition of Toyota’s Flat Rate Manual allows 0.6 and 0.8 labor hours for changing the engine and inverter coolant, respectively (operation numbers 002019 and 002049) on third-generation Prius cars (ZVW30 series).

    The list price for a gallon of pink coolant (00272-SLLC2) is $20.24, and as @JC91006 kindly mentioned, the job requires about two and a half gallons (7.2 L for the engine and 2.1 L for the inverter). If you’re doing it by the book (more info), you also need a new gasket for the coolant drain plug on the bottom of the hybrid transaxle, part number 90430-18008, list price $1.90.
     
    Peter123 and Mendel Leisk like this.
  6. mski

    mski New Member

    Joined:
    Jan 15, 2020
    4
    3
    0
    Location:
    CA
    Vehicle:
    2014 Prius
    Model:
    III
    Thanks everyone, just as I suspected.
    I know the book says 100,000 / 150000 but wanted to check , maybe some other reason.
    They probably saw 2 young girls they could take advantage of.
    Don't like getting dirty after work but for that i guess I will.
    Thanks again to all.
     
    bisco likes this.
  7. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 17, 2010
    54,470
    38,103
    80
    Location:
    Greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Touring
    @NutzAboutBolts has videos on both coolant changes. Even if you're not considering DIY, worth a watch, to get a feel for the scope of work. There's links in a thread pinned at top of 3rd gen maintenance forum. Attached is some repair manual info:
     
    pjksr02, Peter123 and NutzAboutBolts like this.
  8. Grit

    Grit Senior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 22, 2017
    6,103
    4,032
    1
    Location:
    Wilkes Land
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    If you’re a mechanic, how did the maintenance cost surprise you and how come your not doing the work yourself :ROFLMAO:
     
  9. elementnomore

    elementnomore Member

    Joined:
    Sep 5, 2013
    136
    44
    0
    Location:
    Los Angeles
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    I did both coolant / inverter this weekend and pulled the throttle body off so a bit of fluid came out and I did the best I could squeezing the hoses to get out more fluid. The car was up on 2 front wheels and with drains open I lowered the car down on the wheels while it drained. I paid about $50 for 2 gallons of Toyota fluid with tax at a dealer. I have fluid left over so you are covered with 2 gallons. I 'think' I was quoted somewhere around $250 for each fluid change, there was no discount offered on getting both done at once. Los Angeles, Ca prices.
     
    mikey_t and Grit like this.
  10. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

    Joined:
    Oct 28, 2010
    7,668
    6,482
    0
    Location:
    Redneck Riviera (Gulf South)
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    I'm NOT a mechanic and that sounds ridiculous.

    Advice:
    1. Stay away from Toyota dealerships....especially THAT dealership.

    2. Coolant changes for a 6-year-old California car are a YMMV thing.
    Me?
    I wouldn't do it now.....
    You fix cars for a living and I fix phones, so I'm not going to virtue-signal you on the periodicity of this maintenance but the price is about 2x what I'd pay for inverter+radiator coolant changes. At least they didn't insult your intelligence by calling them a coolant "flush." ;)
     
  11. Rebound

    Rebound Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 11, 2010
    3,961
    2,609
    0
    Location:
    Portland, OR
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    The engine coolant change is particularly easy. You just remove a trim panel beneath the engine, open the drain valve — it’s a stopcock, needs no tools — and drain. Close the stopcock, replace the trim panel. Then you refill, warm the engine slightly while squeeIng a bit on the radiator hoses to bleed out any bubbles. That’s it.
     
    Raytheeagle and elementnomore like this.
  12. mski

    mski New Member

    Joined:
    Jan 15, 2020
    4
    3
    0
    Location:
    CA
    Vehicle:
    2014 Prius
    Model:
    III
    I work on airplanes, also years ago I got new cars to quit getting dirty at home,
    The regular dealer I visit never pulled this crap , but they know me.
    For that price I'm getting dirty I guess.
    Thanks
     
    mikey_t likes this.
  13. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 17, 2010
    54,470
    38,103
    80
    Location:
    Greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Touring
    There's a couple of openings in the underpanel, one just aft of the radiator spigot, that you can reach a hand in, and a smaller one directly below the tap. You can reach in and get it draining without underpanel removal. I think it helps to have the front slightly raised, clearance is tight.

    That said: the Repair Manual recommends to also drain the block, and to get to that location you probably do want to remove the underpanel. And have eyes on stalks, and arms 4 foot long: the block drain point on the rear side of the engine block, fairly high up, and near the passenger end of the engine. It's similar to the radiator drain, having a spigot you can push a tube onto. You "open" it by turning a small socket-head cap screw just above the spigot, takes a Allen key IIRC.

    And that said: I seem to recall those that have got to the engine block drain found very little came out.

    Another point you can drain: remove one of the coolant hoses on the exhaust coolant heating system, it was reported here some coolant can be drained there.
     
  14. mski

    mski New Member

    Joined:
    Jan 15, 2020
    4
    3
    0
    Location:
    CA
    Vehicle:
    2014 Prius
    Model:
    III
    Thanks for the info, looks like fun ,
    guess I got a while before it needs it.
    I think cars nowdays are so reliable that the dealers are desperate to drum up work.
    Again thanks for all the support.
    Mark
     
    Mendel Leisk likes this.
  15. Rebound

    Rebound Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 11, 2010
    3,961
    2,609
    0
    Location:
    Portland, OR
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    I don’t see any reason for draining the block unless there’s been contamination with oil, or you’re removing the engine, etc.
    But just for maintenance? Not needed.
     
    NutzAboutBolts and The Critic like this.
  16. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 17, 2010
    54,470
    38,103
    80
    Location:
    Greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Touring
    Well I'll give it a try, see how much comes out, at least once. With hondas over the years, about a couple of quarts came out of the block. That seems a reason: if the object is to replace the coolant, I think it best to remove as much of the old coolant as practical.

    Repair Manual recommends it, fwiw.
     
  17. The Critic

    The Critic Resident Critic

    Joined:
    Oct 28, 2005
    3,193
    2,315
    0
    Location:
    CA
    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    Not much comes out of the block anyway. If you live in an area that sees salt, the block plug can be dangerous to touch.
     
    RMB, Raytheeagle, pjksr02 and 2 others like this.
  18. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 17, 2010
    54,470
    38,103
    80
    Location:
    Greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Touring
    Can you recall roughly how much? Say a cup?
     
  19. douglasjre

    douglasjre Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 13, 2008
    1,743
    613
    0
    Location:
    Orlando, FL
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    ----USA----
    I need to raise my prices....
     
  20. The Critic

    The Critic Resident Critic

    Joined:
    Oct 28, 2005
    3,193
    2,315
    0
    Location:
    CA
    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    Honestly don’t remember, but it was very insignificant.



    iPhone ? Pro
     
    Mendel Leisk and Raytheeagle like this.