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Preemptive Head Gasket Replacement? 2010 172k

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Technical Discussion' started by tallassazn, Oct 14, 2021.

  1. tallassazn

    tallassazn Junior Member

    Joined:
    May 13, 2018
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    Location:
    California
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    Coming up on 175k miles on this 2010 Prius which has been relatively easy to maintain. Shout out to Raytheeagle and friends for the meetups where we did an EGR cleaning/Oil Catch Can and another for a Coolant Flush/other fluids.

    The car sometimes rattles upon startup but it isn't really consistent. Had a few battery issues (non hybrid) and finally swapped in a new 12V Battery. I chalk those issues to possibly leaving the interior car lights on over night. At the last oil change, I did myself, I was a bit shocked but a little over 10k miles, there was about half of the oil remaining if not a little less than.

    Coolant looks full still. Oil in the OCC and when doing a change, looks black and dirty but not milky at all. OCC maybe needs to be dumped once a year if that.

    Just trying to ascertain if I should preemptively have the head gasket swapped out. A shop up in SAC quoted me $1200 to swap out the HG and machine/resurface the head. A shop down in Socal said $1k.

    Obviously people get on this board when there are issues. I'm just trying to see if its worth it to invest $1k preemptively vs don't fix what isn't broken. Its hard to get a read but what % of owners actually have this issue. I'm in the Bay Area, regarding weather/temperature, and while it may be foolish given the amount of CATs being stolen, I park outside and mostly drive freeway miles.

    Contemplating trying to sell the car or invest $1k in hopes that will allow the car to go another 150-200k miles.

    Appreciate any insight/perspectives.
     
    #1 tallassazn, Oct 14, 2021
    Raytheeagle likes this.
  2. xliderider

    xliderider Senior Member

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    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    Don't you have to address the real cause of the oil burning and head gasket failure though? The pistons, rings, and probably worn cylinder walls?

    A head gasket replacent won't address those issues.

    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
    #2 xliderider, Oct 14, 2021
  3. Ran4it2

    Ran4it2 Junior Member

    Joined:
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    Location:
    Lafayette, CA
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    Clean your EGR cooler ASAP if you haven't already and at the same time install an oil catch can with a new PCV.
     
    #3 Ran4it2, Oct 14, 2021
  4. rjparker

    rjparker Tu Humilde Sirviente

    Joined:
    Jun 6, 2008
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    Location:
    Texas Hill Country
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Three
    Its not really fix something that is not broken. Most head gasket leaks on these cars start small and rattle infrequent without obvious coolant leaks.

    However a head gasket won't get your 175k car to 325k-375k miles.

    If you changed the oil every 5k miles and only needed one quart each time, that is not terrible. A low cost head gasket might reliably get you another 30k.

    Personally I would factor in an engine rebuild if you think 150k-200k additional miles are necessary. Hopefully a brake booster or hv battery does not further skew the economics over the next 150k miles. You can almost count on the battery if its original.
     
    #4 rjparker, Oct 14, 2021
    Last edited: Oct 14, 2021
    Mendel Leisk likes this.
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