Head Gasket Replacement Shop Recommendations- San Francisco Bay Area

[Edit] Well, crud, after just taking the time to type in all the blah, blah, blah additional diagnostic bits and pieces below that I have gathered... I read your post #18. I think I need to step away from the monitors and get the car to Gasket Masters for an assessment...]

Since my wife drives it, I really have no idea how long it took to loose a 1/2 gal. of coolant. I may have stated before the last oil change I did, but I think that I would have noticed lowered coolant in the reservoir. So it may have lost coolant over these last 5 months (≈5600 miles). But my wife first reported the engine shake one week ago 1/28. At that time I added the half gal. of coolant. Since the few 6-mile round trips the car has been used for, the coolant level has not dropped from the full mark at all. Not sure what that info means.

As the engine cools overnight, especially with our current overnight temps between 40ºF to 48º-ish, doesn't the coolant contract as the engine temp matches ambient temp, then essentially be close to atmospheric pressure by morning normally? Two nights ago, I was doing MY first drives in the car to test 'when' and for how long the shaking happened. When the Autel Live scanning showed 195º, thinking that was abnormal (glad to know it is not), I pulled over to look at the coolant level. It was exactly at the Full mark that I had filled it to the week prior. I decided to open the reservoir cap, and a big woosh of pressure was released. No coolant/ liquid came out at all. But the coolant level in the reservoir, strictly from releasing the pressure by removing the cap, was then ≈ 1/2" 'above' the Full mark it had been just before removing the cap.
One data point from the Autel Live drive that I forgot to report was the 'Electric Water Pump Speed'. Autel says Target speed is 2450 rpm. When Coolant temp read 187ºF, 'Elect. W/P Speed was 3125 rpm. When Coolant temp read 195ºF, 'Elect. W/P Speed ranged between 3400-3500 rpm.
Back to last week, 1/28, when my wife experienced the knock/shudder, she told me she checked the web that indicated to her it was likely low coolant. That day, I added a half gallon of coolant. I did a scan and it showed P0117 'Engine Coolant Temp Circuit Input Low' (maybe coolant below sensor level) and P148F 'Engine Coolant Pump Over Revolution' (maybe impeller cavitating due to low coolant). After adding the coolant, I cleared those codes and they have not returned.

I still feel drawn to pulling the wipers and cowling, pull the plugs and check Cyl. 1 with a borescope. But, I do NOT have the experience and knowledge to make a complete diagnosis, so your wisdom here is settling in to this old brain to this time, 'let a trusted shop do it'. ;o)

What does "may not choose to use a JDM based on a comment in one of their videos" mean?
I'd be very curious to see the video you refer to.
Thanks again RJ!

 

rjparker, Thank you very much for posting these vidoeos, especially the Car Care Nut one.
After watching the first video, seeing the details he describes, I now clearly see your point that I should just take it to Gasket Masters, have them diagnose the issues and listen to their recommendations and options. At 19:30 in the Car Care Nut video, he lays out how to frame the decision to repair vs. cut your losses and buy a newer version of the car you love(d), so the whole car is newer, not just the engine.

 

Thanks for the comments. I am only 2 years your junior, but still working at my office coffee service business. Not full time, but too much time. ;o) My brain is slower in recent years, so I pretty much say it would take me 5 times as long doing the actual work... But I have to add in another 50% time for all the distractions to other tasks, not to mention my OCD "I need to make all these parts as clean as new, and other unnecessary, 'let's make it perfect' baloney. LOL Still not sure how to proceed, but I think a good first step is to let Gasket Masters do a genuine diagnosis, and go from there. Between you and me... I have had cases where I've thrown more parts at a car than needed. ;o)

 

This problem'ed 2013 will remain parked until I and my wife are available for me drive it there, knowing we may be leaving it there. I've read people say they took their Prius in for a diagnostic at Gasket Masters, the recommendation was change the head gasket, so they started right then and were done in 3-4 hours! I'd like to be able to take it there and if between their recommendation and the price seeming OK vs. 'Moving On', I'd like to just leave it there for them to proceed with the decided upon (HG or JDM swap). I was thinking to have my wife follow me there, so I'd have the option to leave it right then, but I guess I could just drive the Prius there, get the diagnosis, THEN call my wife to pick me up (50 min. drive) if needed. I don't mind the wait, but she would likely mind waiting for the diagnostics to get done. ;o)

So we have had the discussion 'moving on'. She LOVES her Prius. When we talked about the 'move on' choice would mean we'd opt for a 2023 Gen 5 just coming off a lease. She LOVES the look of the Gen 5! She said she'd be happy either fixing her 2013 or as she calls it, the "looks like a Tesla" 2023 Gen 5. I am sure she would be happy with that swap! ;o)

If the cards tell us we'll be looking for a new to us Hybrid coming off a lease, it would be a 2023 car. 2023 being the first year of a significant redesign the engine and of tech, not just the body, my "Be wary of buying the 1st year of a big redesign" (of any carmaker or model) pops up. What are PriusChat folks 20-20 hindsight on the then new 2023 Gen 5?

I had no clue what the Gen 5's looked like so we watched a reviewer (young lady) describe all the things she loved and the one thing, not so much (plain Jane interior, way behind the competition, in her opinion). She said compared to the 2023 Prius, the competing KIA & Hyundai interiors were just WOW. It seems the closest KIA competitor to the Prius was their Niro. It is a whole different style, more like a small cross-over. It seems to have good ratings. It certainly rates better in headroom, back seat fitting adults, and larger cargo area, so those would be pluses. No idea if my wife would prefer a cross-over look to her self proclaimed 'Tesla look-a-like' Gen 5 (and its 40% more HP than her 2013, which the Niro does NOT have.

If we went with the HG replacement route, IDK if these things would be an additional cost or if any of these would add significantly to what Gasket Masters considers a basic head gasket replacement price: Brand new Head Bolts, Thorough cleaning of the EGR system, water pump impeller (and bearing?), Cam chain tensioner, Thermostat. Are there any other components that you might as well do while it's torn down that far?

Another thought... If we decided quotes they gave us for either the HG (+ other stuff above) or a JDM swap were such that we thought we'd better pass on those, that means we are writing off our 2013's engine. At that point we could consider two options: 1) There would be no downside to adding Bar's Leaks head gasket sealant and driving it until the issue reoccurs. 2) By a newer hybrid and either a) sell it for $1000 or whatever, to someone wanting to repair it themselves, or b) park it in the driveway (Non-Op & uninsured) until I have time to get to a DIY repair. b) would make it available to sell as a working used car as opposed to a project car.

I'll stop there.. it's late. ;o)

 

Mendel, what do you mean by "there’s been reports: hostile reactions to post-job issues, unaddressed collateral damage (broken/missing fasteners, for example)." Can you expand on your thought?

Are you thinking that specifically Gasket Masters' pricing might be “too good to be true” and maybe "find out why, belatedly" due to either a too rushed job or that of a ton of variables in a HG replacement good become problematic just because? One concern I'd have about a HG replacement is how sure can Gasket Masters be in checking both the head and block for not being warped at all. We know the tight tolerances make any resurfacing, especially if it is the head -and- block a problem of ever getting the time to be right again.

 

@rjparker
Prior to driving the Prius to the Manteca Head Masters shop for a full diagnostic, if I were to remove the wipers and both cowls, carefully bagging and labeling all the bolts/nuts I remove: 1) Am I correct in assuming it is fine to drive the car with the wipers, cowling, and hardware stowed in the back as I drive the 50 mins. to Manteca? 2) Would Head Masters not like to see this minor disassembly done by the customer enough that it would erk them or otherwise be a problem? Or would they be OK with me having done this?

It turns out my brother-in-law has a borescope he's going to lend me. Two reasons I am still curious to pull the plugs and look into the cylinders. I am VERY curious to learn the car's cylinders' condition visually myself. Most shops would not like a customer 'hovering' as they did the borescopeing, in fact don't allow customers in the shop area at all. I assume that is most likely (for good reason ;o). That is why I'm still drawn to peeking into the cylinders to see what's there first hand. Additionally, It would save my and their time in getting to the actual diagnostics part of the process (and save me some labor cost, m a y b e ;o)

I understand your previous comment on not telling the shop what I believe is the problem. That they do not like that.
So I'm wondering how much I should share of the timing of what we have observed of when the engine shake happens (never when started cold. Always after getting to op. temp, and the engine being off for a few minutes). The initial P0117 and P148F codes that went away after 1/2 gal. of coolant was added (to full) a week ago. Then a day later after two short 6 mile round trips, then the P0301 code appeared. Now a week later and ≈ only 30 miles in these short trips, the coolant level has not dropped. Is that TMI, or info they'd want to hear? (I'd put this info into Chat GPT to get is reworded as concise as possible. ;o)