2005 prius died

I think I would be demanding a way more substantial explination then a "short in the transaxle." That make no sense whatsoever to me. I would at least expect to know excatly what parts are being ordered and how they decided they were the cause of the problem. This sounds rather fishy to me. Good luck, though, on getting it repaired.

 

1 week to special order a part- common. orders can only be placed on weekdays before 5 IIRC and count 2-3 working days for it to come in.

that gives the tech about 2 days with your car. which isn't all that bad really if they're pulling the transaxle apart. i know the total amount of time sucks but they really don't keep those kinds of parts laying around on the shelf unfortunately.

can you ask them what diagnostic codes they got from the car? some of us can look them up and explain to you what's going on in better terms than they used. it's not uncommon for them to oversimplify things.

last time i had aaa tow a car (my old buick) it took them 3.5 hours to show up. 10 minutes! wow!

good luck and hope this gets sorted out soon.

 

While I can feel for you on the whole new car breaking down concept...the amount of time doesn't seem unreasonable considering the timing. The car got to them on Friday, for unscheduled maintenance....and it was a holiday, and so is Sunday. They may be giving you a long estimate for the hope of getting it back to you early, kind of like the wait at restaurants is never under 30 mins so you're happy when they seat you in 10.

Talk to Toyota's Customer Support about the treatment you got from Roadside Assistance. Seems like they were just too lazy to be of any help.

You don't mention your location, or how big of a dealer it is where you took the car. If it is a small dealer, perhaps they are having to bring someone in who is Prius certified. Be patient...the Prius is totally worth it.

 

Roadside assistance should be 24/7-- get your money reimbursed by Toyota and ask for the name of the dweeb who blew you off. No excuse for that.

As to the week, it's probably normal for complex cars today. Ask for specifics as to what was wrong, what was replaced, and of course this won't cost you a penny.

 

The Queen song another one bites the dust song keeps popping into my head every time i hear of these happenings....

interesting though, there seem to be quite a few break downs, this would be expected on new model years, but the 06? all they changed on it was cosmedic's... right?

 

The affected Prius is an '05 with 11,000 kmls. (kilometers?)

I've heard of many, many, many more Prii running great.

Hope they fix it and you're back on the road soon. Stuff happens.

 

It is STILL just a car. Cars break down. This car is VERY reliable but all cars have problems. This is NOT a big deal.

 

I wonder if this is the same issue someone else had a few weeks ago: an issue where one of the MG windings went to ground? :blink: How did that one ever work out? I still can't believe that's not considered part of the "hybrid drivetrain"! :angry:

 

there is such a thing as a short in the transaxle, could be about anywhere. error codes won't really say much about where the problem is, unfortunately.

as others have said, yes it's just a car and cars break down on occasion. it happens, it's a fact of life. however from one of the most high volume prius shops in the country... 99% of them that come through are for regular maintenance, and the 1% that need non-maintenance type work are much less frequent than, say, corollas.

good luck with the fix, let us know how it's taken care of.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(pixbroker @ Apr 19 2006, 12:34 AM) [snapback]241919[/snapback]</div>

isnt that kind of jumping the gun a bit? i mean the car is getting fixed (for free) since it is still under warrenty, even if it was a 2005 reliability issue with the trans axel, you are going to have a brand new one installed, so thtere shouldnt have to worry about anything else for quite awhile

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(pixbroker @ Apr 18 2006, 11:34 PM) [snapback]241919[/snapback]</div>

Good idea. May I suggest a VW Jetta TDI. I hear they get great mileage. For a few more $$ you can get a Jaguar, a great car.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(pixbroker @ Apr 19 2006, 12:34 AM) [snapback]241919[/snapback]</div>

That's a bit hasty, isn't it?

My Prius died twice, and I really considered dumping it the second time, but I've held onto it. Make sure you really want to sell it.

Having said that, I really wish I had sold mine the second time it died. I'm seeing a lot of evidence that the car is not going to stand the test of time

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(RonH @ Apr 19 2006, 01:40 AM) [snapback]241960[/snapback]</div>

You want reliability, get a Rolls Royce. It -is- a few $$ more than the Jag.

- Tom

 

You really should get a VW TDI as this way you will get to know the service tech on a first name basis.

Currently 42k miles. Owned since 11/03. Never a problem! This car seems like it will give me many more years of service.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(pixbroker @ Apr 19 2006, 12:34 AM) [snapback]241919[/snapback]</div>

does a used car have a warranty? because used cars don't get whole new transmissions for free, ya know.

this is why they give you a 3/36 warranty to begin with! the majority of failures will occur early on if there are parts defects. this way it's all covered and you don't have to worry about it.

find me any other car that is resistant to a transmission failure. at least this is under warranty and not out of pocket. i know someone burned her transmission (ford, automatic) 4 months after the basic warranty ended. multiple thousands of dollars came out of her pocket. and she had to pay for her own rental, too.

 

I've seen ALOT of evidence that shows these cars are very reliable and very-long lived...both miles-wise and time-wise.

I'm sorry u are having problems.

Curt.