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Undriveable After Servicing

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Technical Discussion' started by Allison Cohen, Apr 5, 2021.

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  1. Allison Cohen

    Allison Cohen Junior Member

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    2007 Prius. 96,000 miles.

    Evaluation done Saturday by dealer in Hollywood (I am looking to trade in). Some check lights were on and after Saturday they were gone.

    The next day, drove the car between Los Angeles and Palm Springs. About 1 hour into drive, all warning lights came back on on LCD display/dashboard. About 10 minutes later, brake warning light went on with high pitched sound.

    Car then started de-accelerating. Ended up on side of freeway, etc.

    I diagnosed the problem (thru prius chat) as having problem with brake accumulator/booster pump, etc.

    Had car towed to a dealer in Redlands, CA (tow to Los Angeles from where the car broke down too expensive).

    In the 14 years I have owned this car, it has never broken down, not even once.

    In the past 2 years, the LCD/Dashboard has gone dark 2 or 3 times. Once, I could not get the car to turn off.

    Is it possible that this car just completely shuts down AFTER being serviced by dealer (who knows and is pushing me hard to trade it in?)

    Carvana has made a very good offer to me on this car, but it must be drivable. It was drivable Saturday (2 days ago), but after servicing, it is no longer drivable!

    When Toyota of Hollywood diagnosed the car on Saturday afternoon, some medium repairs were needed, including: Water pump leaking and drive belt. The air bag light also remained on (after servicing) and needed further testing (guy wasn't in that does that kind of testing).

    The Hollywood Dealer told me, no major stuff, just minor and the above was needed to get the car in shape.

    Now, I am being told it is underivable with the new issue of the Brake Light and high-pitched sound (booster pump), which only first occurred yesterday after servicing.

    Does anyone have any thoughts on this? Can it be just a coincidence this new major issue occurs immediately after servicing?

    Thanks for any help you can provide.
     
    #1 Allison Cohen, Apr 5, 2021
  2. Allison Cohen

    Allison Cohen Junior Member

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    Dealer Mechanic where the Prius was towed, says now the car's inverter water pump needs replacing.
     
    #2 Allison Cohen, Apr 5, 2021
  3. Elektroingenieur

    Elektroingenieur Senior Member

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    Was the car completely unable to accelerate, even using the accelerator pedal, or might the problem have been only with cruise control?
    Exactly how was the problem diagnosed? What were the diagnostic trouble codes (DTCs), what further troubleshooting was done, and what were the findings?

    A drivability problem such as you describe is more likely to have its cause in the hybrid system than in the brakes, but there’s only one way to find out for sure: by using a Toyota Techstream diagnostic system, or equivalent, to read the DTCs stored in the car’s computers.
    Yes. Without much more evidence to the contrary, I’d assume that an older car with some known problems developed more after driving a while at freeway speeds. No one in a service department has an incentive to have tampered with your car—indeed, they earn more if you keep it and pay for the repairs.
     
    #3 Elektroingenieur, Apr 5, 2021
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  4. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    skip the water pump and belt for now. have them evaluated by an independent mech. they might need replacing.
    you can check the inverter pump by looking for movement in the reservoir.

    brake pump is common, you'll probably need a hybrid battery at some point, but you've got a sweet little ride there.
    unless you're looking for something newer, i would invest in it,but get a second opinion. there are some good indy hybrid shops in la.
     
    #4 bisco, Apr 6, 2021
  5. edthefox5

    edthefox5 Senior Member

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    Doesn't matter who caused what the ABS pump has failed as you surmised and if your at the dealer mercy to get that repaired that's like $3000.
    And sounds like it needs lots of other attention too.
     
    #5 edthefox5, Apr 7, 2021
  6. ozmatt

    ozmatt Active Member

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    its all just speculation without trouble codes, smells a bit like hybrid problems eg hv leak
     
    #6 ozmatt, Apr 8, 2021
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  7. ColoradoCrow

    ColoradoCrow Active Member

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    Hi. how old is the 12Vbattery in the rear of the car? I had similar problems on my wifes 08. A new 12V battery from Orielys solved a lot of them. $200 and about an hour swap in the parking lot with the service guy. The LCD going dark is the combination meter. I had them repaired at texas hybrid batteries dot com and the turnaround was quick and well worth it. I actually did both our Prii and the same time. removing the dashboard is not to difficult. You tube video from Boulder Co hybrids. Watch it with a mechanically inclined friend and you can do it together.
    Invertor pump is $158.00 from Amazon. Also watch a You Tube Video to repace it. Moderate level of ability. an 07 with 96K is a rare find. I would keep her on the road. Let us know how you make out. Good luck.
     
    #7 ColoradoCrow, Apr 15, 2021
  8. edthefox5

    edthefox5 Senior Member

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    Amazing enough my local Toyota dealer/bandito is selling the factory battery now for $222 out the door. Shocking I tell shocking!,

    Dont forget your DVM!
     
    #8 edthefox5, Apr 16, 2021
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