Not shifting from second gear to third

Ludicrous.

There's no starting to short out because of dirty fluid. Dirty fluid has nothing to do with any interaction to the windings. Either a winding is compromised or it's not. Even a tiny amount of ground fault current (voltage from winding to case) and it will throw a ground fault nag. Until a winding coating has failed which is pretty rare electrically the trans could care less how dirty it is. That's just a wear item. It's a lifetime fluid nobody cares how dirty it is. Unless you care about extending the life of the planetary gear set and the diff then it's strictly a GL4 decision.

And any Prius near 100k miles should have that engine water pump drive belt replaced. It's a tactical belt. The alternative if it fails is bad news there is no alarm the water pump has stopped turning and until the engine overheats there is no alarm. There is no customer temp gauge, By the time the check engine comes on from overheat usually the aluminum cylinder head is damaged. Seen this many many times here. To debate replacing a belt ofthat importance is stupid. You can't tell it's condition till it's removed. I replaced mine at 80k and it looked bad.
And it's not that easy if the tensioner is stuck like we have seen many many times. $175 to replace it is not bad. Don't be surprised if there's surprises.
Took me a couple of hours. Remove the idler assy and clean and lube it.Check the idler bearing.
Install the belt. Slight tension on it. Run in inspection mode to break belt in
For 15 mins then final tighten.

 

I always think when you replace the belt, go in and replace the pump too. Many people have reported replacing the belt, just to have the pump leak a short time after. Like changing the belt would somehow cause the pump to leak

 

When belt is replaced it’s very easily tightened way two much. And that will cause the pump to wear a lot faster.

 

Yes, that's why it's best to replace both when the time comes

 

and tighten the belt to specs, in either case.

 

True. However, for what it's worth, my belt was changed a year ago, but the pump appeared to be in excellent condition and wasn't changed. I'll probably change it this year as a precaution anyway....it's probably overdue.

However, I'll admit to always checking for coolant leaks regularly, during my walk around before I take off......er.....drive off...


iPhone ?

 

Aye!


iPhone ?

 

I agree Jc.
Just didn't have th time at the time I did my belt.

 

OP you have my sympathies regarding the way the garages diagnosed your car's issues. For them to talk about shifting from 2nd to 3rd gears in a Prius, they really must have no idea how these cars work That said, I'm glad things are getting sorted.

A question to the floor - what are your thoughts about $175 for a water pump belt change? My jaw dropped when I saw that price because I changed mine myself in about 10 minutes (that's generous, it is so soooo easy) and it was my first try! The belt itself cost me €10.24 which is $11 in today's USA dollar money.

 

There's a reason they're called "stealerships." I hear that these days they make very little money in the sales department, with internet-savvy buyers all over the place. So they need the service department to step up.

I did a job like the belt on a neighbor's car, saving him hundreds of dollars in the time it takes to enjoy a beer, and he pondered how much money he would have saved in his lifetime with a few skills like that.

I've never paid the Prius dealer to do any work on my '07. They've done the recalls, and that's it. But I have bought parts and supplies there--sometimes they're competitive.