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Generation 4 2016 Prius Head Gasket

Discussion in 'Gen 4 Prius Main Forum' started by Mukunda, Mar 3, 2023.

  1. Mukunda

    Mukunda Junior Member

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    I have 2016 Prius Two single owner purchased in California new from delaer in 2016.
    very low mileage as of today.- 51K
    Everything was going smooth.
    When I took my Prius to Irving , TX Toyota Dealer - September 2022 (at around 44K odd miles) they said their is recall Exhaust related code - Warranty code - 170171P
    They fixed it under warranty and they said they are not filling coolant completely as it is not covered under warranty.
    I took my Prius to Lewisville , TX Toyota Dealer in December 2022 for oil change. they just recommended Brake fluid, which I did not take it.

    about 1 week back ( Late February 2023) check Engine light is on, coolant light was blinking. I could not take my car to get it fixed with busy schedule.
    On March 1st. my 2016 Prius completely stopped on highway and I towed my Prius to the Richardson Tx Toyota Dealer.
    They are saying Car Engine is damaged - Head gasket It is not worth repairing.
    I can see coolant is disappearing , no traces on the floor.
    Technician is saying coolant is leaking to Engine due to Gasket failure and engine is completely gone.

    Technician is saying coolant and Exhaust repair is not at all connected.
    I spend couple of hours in google I found to repair 170171P should follow instructions published in the TSB bulletin
    T-SB-0135-19 September 26, 201

    From the bulletin I am seeing 170171P, pretty much related to Coolant leak to Exhaust pipe
    Am I reading correct?

    Did Toyota of Irving, TX Dealer did not handle Warranty recall code - 170171P properly?
    Did Lewisville , TX Dealer did not do his job of checking coolant level ?

    Experts please help
    Engine failure 2016 Prius at 51K is insane, this is my 3rd Toyota car. ( Corolla, Highlander)
    Is there any possibility Richardson Technician who is saying Engine Gasket Head (Failure) incorrectly diagnosed?




    upload_2023-3-3_8-9-24.png
     

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  2. Mukunda

    Mukunda Junior Member

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    These are the codes they have provided when dealer did scan
    THERE IS CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ON.
    P00B111, P011511, P148F00 AND P319000.
    FOUND ENGINE OVERHEAT VERY BAD. NEED TO REPLACE ENGINE AND WATER PUMP
     
  3. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    when they said they were not filling coolant completely, did you offer to pay, or did you continue driving with low coolant?
    when the overheating light came on, how much farther did you drive, and at what speed?

    it is still possiblethat the repair failed, i would have an indy take a look at it, and call toyota customer service to lodge a complaint against the dealer who did the tsb and failed to refill the coolant all the way
     
  4. Mukunda

    Mukunda Junior Member

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    first thing I really doubt if current dealer (RIchardson Toyota) where my car is at right now really did any Diagnosis other than check engine light code scan.
    As the report is just 2 line with the below codes and says engine in over heating hence need replacement, and pump has to be replaced.
    It doesn't have any of these terms 1) head gasket 2) sludge etc.

    Can anyone tell me which code says engine went bad or engine is over heating.
    P00B111, P011511, P148F00 AND P319000.
     
  5. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    This is the first thread (of two) that you started on this, and you've posted in several others as well. Maybe just stick to this thread? Have you tried getting in touch with Toyota USA yet? Any reply?
     
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  6. Mukunda

    Mukunda Junior Member

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    Yes Mendel.
    Opened the case with Toyota USA.
    they are waiting for more details from both the dealers.
    I did not hear any positive tone from Toyota USA.
    Apparently Engine warranty is 6 yrs/ 60K miles.
    My car passed 6 years but not 60K miles, hence not covered.
     
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  7. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    You can google those codes, but tbh, they don’t look right
     
  8. Mukunda

    Mukunda Junior Member

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    Google is not helping much.

    This is what I found so far.

    P00B111 - Radiator coolant temp
    P011511 -- Temperature sensor - Engine coolant Temperature circuit Malfunction
    P148F - coolant leak exhaust
    P319000 - Defective Engine Coolant Temperature (ECT) sensor

    To be honest I did not find any of these codes talking about Engine condition.
     
  9. MalachyNG

    MalachyNG Active Member

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    so they supposedly performed a repair on the coolant system and said they didn't refill your coolant? How low was it? Did you top it off at any point after?

    Uhh, did you continue to drive it with the check engine light on and coolant light blinking? Did you check your coolant levels and refill?

    Was your coolant still low? Did you drive for a whole week with warnings on the dash?

    Yeah, that'll happen if you keep driving without coolant in the system.

    possibly but it's kind of on you if you drove for a while with low coolant. If you were refilling your coolant the whole time and have receipts of buying more jugs of coolant and have record of bringing it into mechanics to try to figure it out and can give all that to Toyota corporate they might give you a good faith discount on a fix or replace for the motor. But if you were driving around on highways with chronically low coolant and ignoring engine lights then they might say you're on your own.
     
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  10. Mukunda

    Mukunda Junior Member

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    One thing doesn't connect at all.
    At the point where there is no coolant, Car computer/chip shouldn't stop the engine before any damage ?

    As I have faced 0 coolant problem with rental Ford Van before (Engine just stopped).
    moment I filled it, it started running like a charm.

    something like, if you ran out of Gas, Car will stop moving it will not blow off the Engine right ?
     
  11. Mukunda

    Mukunda Junior Member

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    How come Lewisville , TX dealer did not find low coolant (if it was low in December).
    How did my car work from 46K to 50K odd without any light (passed through one oil change).
    And how did things started all of the sudden at 50K odd.
    Why Lewisville , TX report says Brake fluid change has to be done, but nothing else ?

    If Toyota car has 100K+ miles, we can understand problems pop up but at 51K ?

    I have 2007 Highlander 115K miles, did timer belt, spark plug etc. touch wood no issues, never saw check engine light.
     
    #11 Mukunda, Mar 7, 2023
    Last edited: Mar 7, 2023
  12. Mukunda

    Mukunda Junior Member

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    when Irving , TX Toyota dealer drained the coolant and filled to minimum level, if it contains air bubble what are the consequences ?



    quick google of running car without coolant results

    upload_2023-3-7_15-3-34.png
     
  13. CooCooCaChoo

    CooCooCaChoo Active Member

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    The car won't turn off if there is no coolant because it is more dangerous than running the car without coolant. Imagine you are on the highway doing 80 and all of a sudden the car shutdown.

    Because the majority of dealerships offering free multi-point inspections actually don't check those things when they mark them checked. I don't trust them to do anything they offer for free.

    If it was only filled to the minimum level, its fine to drive on. BUT, it safer to fill to the FULL mark instead because if there is a problem with the coolant system, i.e. leaks, then having it drop from full to low is better than having it go from low to empty.

    One way of checking to see if the headgasket is blown is to do a compression check. Coolant can leak into many places, and unfortunately for the Gen 4 Prius, it can leak into the exhaust which can make it look like a blown headgasket. The only surefire way of finding out if the headgasket is blown is to tear the engine apart to physically inspect it. Obviously this is expensive.

    Those cars you listed use what's called air cooled engines. They are specifically designed to be air cooled. Instead of water to cool the engine while running, the engine has cooling fins that need to have air passing over them to keep them cooled. They work fine in colder climates than in warmer climates, especially in the summer.
     
    #13 CooCooCaChoo, Mar 7, 2023
    Last edited: Mar 7, 2023
  14. Mukunda

    Mukunda Junior Member

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    I just got off the phone.
    After opening case with Toyota Customer Care Center at 800-331-4331
    They could not get any additional info from either of the dealers.
    They have closed the case saying.
    1. Engine is over heating and hence needs replacement (exactly what Toyota Richardson, TX said) - No information why engine is over heating.
    2. Since my 2016 Prius passed 6 yrs/60K miles engine warranty. I have to pay Full price of the Engine.
    3. If there was any issue due to T-SB-0162-13 fix done by Irving Toyota dealer. Care would not have run these many miles.

    They kind of agreed, it happened all of sudden. might be case for future recalls and additional warranty coverages.
    Toyota Customer Care Cente, not willing to spend a penny / second on my case any more to find
    a) current state of my car
    b) investigate what and how it happened to my 2016 Prius at 51K.

    I have launched complaint with NHTSA
    mine is 2nd complaint of 2016 Prius - For Engine failure. Someone else filed complaint before mine.


    My advice is
    If you have coolant light on
    Find a technician outside of Toyota dealership as they are not handling the fixes properly
    Esp. - T-SB-0162-13.

    Toyota Customer Care Center - did not get the TSB number which Irving, TX Toyota Dealer gave on the service record.

    How much I can expect from outside market for Engine failed car which has 51K miles on it
     
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  15. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    probably quite a bit these days. look up kbb value and subtract a few k for engine replacement
     
  16. Mukunda

    Mukunda Junior Member

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    I am leaning towards replacing the Engine even thought it costs 10K to get new Engine installed as it has only 51K on it.
    For 2 reasons.
    1. Brand new Prius is close to 30K.
    2. I have to spend at least 20K to get Camry/Accord or any of these sedans which has 40 k/ 50K - Dealing with unknown Devil

    Dealer is saying if they install Engine (from LKQ as Toyota won't sell engines) they will give 12K / 1 year warranty.

    If my 2016 Prius can run another 50K miles it is worth spending 10K on it.
    Experts please share input / thoughts on this.
     
  17. Mukunda

    Mukunda Junior Member

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    I was going through my all the service records.

    My August 22 (at 43k) Service record is saying they found P148F

    upload_2023-3-8_7-47-10.png


    After that they executed T-SB-0162-13 ( at odo 45K) September 22 by replacing


    upload_2023-3-8_7-50-51.png


    And Now at 51K same P148F again.
    And Engine failed completely

    upload_2023-3-8_7-52-52.png



    It is clearly Head Gasket issue / Manufacturer fault or TSB did not address the issue properly.
    But Toyota corporate is not ready to listen and agree at all.
     

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  18. Prius2016excel

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    I’m a little lost here. I’ve had the heat exchanger replaced after failure and AFAIK it has never been a recall. There’s a TSB about it but not a recall. People have had various levels of success in getting it repaired free of charge -(they did for me in the UK, but only after escalating to Head Office).

    If the dealer did the repair, why on earth would they not replace/fill the coolant up to correct levels as part of the repair? Surely they’re not going to do a $2k repair on warranty but refuse to fill up with $20 worth of coolant?
     
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  19. Mukunda

    Mukunda Junior Member

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    I am spkepictal on coolan refill anyways.
    Even if they filled it.
    P148F will reoccur and finally kills the engine.
    That is what we are seeing in this forum.
    Problem might start from coolant leak-or disappear / P148F
    they will take several routes to fix - most common i have seen in this forum is - T-SB-0135-19
    Ultimately death of engine.

    We are in Capitalism- very very poor consumer rights in USA.
    only Companies are protected
     
  20. Mukunda

    Mukunda Junior Member

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    Can you explain difference between TSB with covered parts vs recall.
    when I called Toyota USA also denying any recall.
    Yes probably Front Exhaust pipe was covered under Emissions warranty, still why they have to execute TSB (replacement of Exhaust pipe) without a recall.