Need advice- Brake actuator repair cost

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by sanantoniopriusman, Dec 23, 2025 at 5:55 PM.

  1. sanantoniopriusman

    sanantoniopriusman New Member

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    Need some advice on this situation:

    -2008 prius, 145k miles
    -Brake actuator went bad. Dealer quoted $3200. Mobile mechanic quoted ~$2000.
    -I'm due for alignment, and pretty much every fluid replacement per the dealer totaling $1600 for maintenance items per dealer. I know that the dealer usually inflates the prices and need for these services but this is just for context. I've been pretty good about the oil, but all the other recommendations seem according to schedule with the maintenance of the car.
    -Tires will likely need to be replaced soon as well.
    -Hybrid battery has not been replaced, nor any other major car component.

    Should I just scrap the car at this point? If I repair I feel like i'm still gambling to have a hybrid battery replacement on the near horizon. I feel like I'm fighting a losing battle with this car. WWYD?
     
  2. Tombukt2

    Tombukt2 Senior Member

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    Well at 25 in Texas I bet ya feeling it . An old Corolla will carry ya decades with almost no maintenance. It's been the number one selling small car throughout the world for almost 40 years thisgen Prius is part of that family. But generally reserved for the grown-ups. Seriously. The Corolla in Yaris have always been for the younger crowd as they don't have the batteries n electrical systems that are daunting. And younger folks usually don't have their faculties in place just yet for this kind of complexity not being ugly that's called reality . Mine get fixed I have a few . Choices ..... But before I started messing with these older Prius I had been driving regular toyoda's about 40 years Corolla celica hi lux etc all of those making 400 plus thousand miles.
     
  3. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    The good thing is your car is somewhat low miles for a 2nd Gen Prius. These cars can go 300k miles with little maintenance.

    The 2 items you mentioned are the most costly and will fail on the car, the hybrid battery and brake actuator. Both will run you around $3000 for new replacements.

    So if you think about spending $6000 plus tires and maintenance, you're all in at $7500. Assuming the car is in good shape and not burning much oil, what car can you buy for $7500 that will have most of their expensive repairs sorted out? Answer is probably there isn't a car for $7500
     
  4. saneesh8

    saneesh8 Member

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    My 2009 with 157k is still on original battery. Had to replace the brake actuator. After i bought it last year with 147k, i replaced all fluids, water pump (preventive), inverter coolant pump (failed), brake actuator (was making sound, no code), spark plugs etc and now the front brake pads/rotors.

    Check with your local mechanic on how much he will charge to do the brake actuator + all fluids and clean the hybrid battery fan (most important). Get the actuator from local dealer. Order it online and pick it up. Also shop around with various dealers. When i bought it last year, it was like ~$1.3k.

    I would say keep it. Even if you need to replace the battery. Still reliable than most of the other cars.
     
  5. Tombukt2

    Tombukt2 Senior Member

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    What you do is is you go out and buy one of these newfangled cars that are all sitting in shops waiting for engines Kia GDI Hyundai GDI Chevrolet
     
  6. Tombukt2

    Tombukt2 Senior Member

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    And you'll be running back to your old Toyota after messing with above type vehicles . Or you might get seriously lucky but I kinda doubt . Car wizard .... Check him out . Hoovies .