2008 prius: How long do the front struts last on the prius?

Depends on your use. On my 2004, I notice that one of them is leaking at 120K miles. It still seems to be handling pretty well though so I'll probably wait till next year or so before replacing them...

Levi

 

~80,000 to 120,000 miles.

They're covered by the 3 years/36,000 miles basic warranty.

I believe they're also covered by the Toyota Extra Care Platinum Plan extended warranty, the longest of which is 7 years/100,000 miles.

 

I'm at 135,000 miles and I haven't noticed anything unusual in sounds or handling yet.

 

I've heard that aging struts can get stiffer and create a harsher ride rather than getting mushy. Is that true? If true, then how does one determine when it's time to replace?

 

Strut failure in cars is often subtle in my experience. It occurs slowly over tens of thousands of miles so there is no gotcha moment. Until you replace them you might think the ride hasn't deteriorated much...but once you put the new ones on it tends to be "Whoa! How did I ever let it get that bad?" It's sort of like replacing a worn set of tires. Yes, you knew they weren't new anymore but it doesn't seem that bad...

Unfortunately, the best comparison is against a brand new car (test drive). And when your ride gets to about 5+ years old (when struts tend to be shot) there is usually a new iteration of the vehicle out, so that showroom comparison is unavailable.

Sometimes you can see strut failure in scalloping of the treads (they are pretty bad when it gets that noticeable.) Sometimes you can feel it when cornering or stopping. The vehicle won't feel properly damped and will bob more after a disturbance. Some of the tires won't stay in contact with the road when there is some roughness/rippling of the surface.

How long they last probably has a lot to do with the roads they are driven on and how hard you push the suspension. When I had to drive over a dozen or more sets of rails every day it was hard on the struts, toe, etc. and I blew fluid out a few under warranty.

When I replaced my 240's struts through an independent shop I asked the dealer first to evaluate my suspension. The dealer thought the rears were the problem and based on the feel I suspected they were right. Turned out the fronts were completely trashed when we pulled them off and the rears were weak, but still functioning. I never would have guessed the fronts were shot based on "corner bounce tests" and driving feel, until I was holding them in my hands.

 

From what I've seen on my last few cars with strut suspension(though they were awd vehicles), the bounce test never showed any problems. What I noticed was a sideways movement over bumps. When the rears were going, I'd notice the rear end sliding sideways a bit more often over a rough road, and when the front ones went it would occasionally "jump" slightly to the side like over a bump on the highway. Both were fairly suttle, but noticeable if you notice those sorts of things.

Levi

 

If you can see a pronounced leak, that is good evidence that the strut is bad. However the reverse is not true: lack of a leak does not imply that the strut must be good.

I'd say this is optimistic, 60K miles is a likely service life with Prius struts/shocks.

Yes, this also was my experience when replacing struts/shocks on my two Prius. Until the spring has been removed from the part so that you can compress it manually, you can't say for sure whether it is good or bad.

 

Gee this makes me wonder if I should buy the extended warranty if the struts tend to fail before 100K and cost $1K to fix. I assume both front and back struts are covered?

 

It boggles my mind (though seems normal for a dealer) that it costs $1K to replace struts...
I can go get a couple front struts for $58 each, and it's not real complicated to replace... Involves about 6 bolts...
Then an alignment when done...

So it should cost under $200 and maybe a few hours(I tend to go slow) of my time...

Then again I've had places tell me $600 for brakes when I fixed it with a $20 set of pads...

Levi

 

Pls show me where you can buy Prius front struts for $58 each. Also, the removal requires much more than six bolts since you have to remove the cowl that runs across the rear of the engine compartment...

 

Well, all this talk has me worried about every bump I'll hit from now on. Never replaced struts on ANY of my cars. Didn't think I'd start now...

 

Suspension Products for Toyota Prius 2004

KYB GR2's. I've used them several times before on various cars and have been quite happy with them.

Ohh, hadn't actually looked to replace them yet. That would potentially add a good bit of complexity if the top strut mounts aren't out in the open... I'm going to have to investigate further... Still... I'd like to think it's not THAT bad of a job...

Levi

 

How many miles have you typically had on your cars?

Levi

 

My 2005 has just under 142k and the front struts are starting to groan when I go over bumps - not to the point that I am going to replace them yet, just to the point that I am researching cost options.

 

Good find, Levi. KYB produces the Toyota-branded parts.

However, note that you'll probably have to replace the rubber insulators located above and below the spring and should also consider replacing the top strut mount located above the spring if your car has 100K miles or more. That will add more cost.

See my post here for Toyota part numbers and prices.
http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-...ts-regarding-replacement-2g-front-struts.html

I don't doubt that your struts (and rear shocks for that matter) need to be replaced at that odometer reading. However note that the groaning noise you hear may be caused by worn front stabilizer bar rubber bushings.

 

Remember 04 and 05 front struts are not compatible with 06 and up.

 

Although I had also thought this to be true, note that the ToyoDIY website shows the current part numbers are the same. Here's the parts catalog for 2004:
ToyoDIY.com

Here's the parts catalog for 2008, note that the part numbers are the same:
ToyoDIY.com

However see the Champion Toyota website which does differentiate between older and newer 2G regarding front struts:
Champion ToyotaWorld

Champion ToyotaWorld

 

ToyoDIY.com lists two numbers though.

For right, part number 48510-47041 is probably for the 04 and 05. One ends with 48510-47050 is for 06 and higher.

For left, part number 48520-47041 is probably for the 04 and 05. One ends with 48520-47050 is for 06 and higher.

I guess parts are inter-changeable?