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2007 Prius P1221

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Awks6584, Nov 29, 2012.

  1. Awks6584

    Awks6584 New Member

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    My check engine light was going on and off, then stayed on. Took to dealer, said it was fluid control valve. Replaced at a cost of $544. (Still smarting from sticker shock.) Now, the heat does not work in my car and last night the Master Warning Light went on, as did the light for high coolant temp. warning. These flashed on then off. Hasn't happenned again.

    Questions: Is $544 around the expected price? I'm finding $400-$500 estimates online. Should I be worried if the lights only flashed briefly before going away? Is it likely the replacement and lack of heat are connected?

    Thanks in advance. Don't trust the dealer, but other car places said they couldn't help me with a Prius.
     
    #1 Awks6584, Nov 29, 2012
  2. jdenenberg

    jdenenberg EE Professor

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    First, it is better to post in the correct forum. P1221 is due to a sticking valve that controls the coolant flow in and out of the Thermos (only in 2004-2009 Prii). In my case it was due to a low coolant level as the coolant acts as lubrication for the valve mechanism. When this comes up the first thing to try is more coolant (or bleeding out air bubbles in the system), but that suggestion comes too late for you. The price was a bit high, but not excessively as I was quoted about $400 but adding coolant fixed mine and I still have the original valve 100k miles later.

    JeffD

    Note: the "V", all non-US and all Prii 2010+ do not have this valve or the Thermos. It was an experiment to improve MPG and turned out to be more trouble (complexity) than it was worth.
     
    #2 jdenenberg, Nov 29, 2012
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  3. Awks6584

    Awks6584 New Member

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    Thanks Jeff. New to this, what's the best forum?
     
    #3 Awks6584, Nov 29, 2012
  4. jdenenberg

    jdenenberg EE Professor

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    #4 jdenenberg, Nov 29, 2012
  5. Avi's Advanced Automotive

    Avi's Advanced Automotive Independent hybrid repair shop

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    Oops, wrong forum.
     
    #5 Avi's Advanced Automotive, Nov 30, 2012
  6. cwerdna

    cwerdna Senior Member

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    Out of curiosity, why did you decide to post in the Prius v wagon forum?

    I see a lot of low post count users frequently posting in the wrong forum, mainly a Prius v forum and sometimes Prius c, when they have neither.
     
    #6 cwerdna, Nov 30, 2012
  7. Avi's Advanced Automotive

    Avi's Advanced Automotive Independent hybrid repair shop

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    I think this site might be a little overwhelming to newcomers. I'm sure they don't realize what there doing. Maybe this is because those forums are closer to the top?
     
    #7 Avi's Advanced Automotive, Nov 30, 2012
  8. cwerdna

    cwerdna Senior Member

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    Maybe... just trying to understand what people are thinking when they do this and to see if anything reasonable can be done/displayed to make the error occur less frequently.
     
    #8 cwerdna, Nov 30, 2012
  9. Avi's Advanced Automotive

    Avi's Advanced Automotive Independent hybrid repair shop

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    I'm thinking putting the gen I and II forums at the top and/or having a message pop up reminding them what forum they're in.

    I'd also love to have the location field mandatory, but, that's a different story.
     
    #9 Avi's Advanced Automotive, Nov 30, 2012
  10. cwerdna

    cwerdna Senior Member

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    Yeah... ditto and I'd like to see it mandatory on MyNissanLeaf.com. We end up playing so many guessing games and having to ask over and over on that forum. IMHO, it's even more relevant for MNLers than Priuschatters.
     
    #10 cwerdna, Nov 30, 2012
  11. Avi's Advanced Automotive

    Avi's Advanced Automotive Independent hybrid repair shop

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    How about automatically filled out based on IP address.

    There's nothing like derailing a misplaced thread.
     
    #11 Avi's Advanced Automotive, Nov 30, 2012
  12. Awks6584

    Awks6584 New Member

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    Hi Prius friends. Perhaps I can clear it up for you! I am a computer literate 28 yr. old who was steered here after all of my car troubles by a fellow Prius owner. There are quite a few forums and unless you scroll down, you won't see the explanations of what generation etc. the cars are.

    So for me, I own a Prius and have never really considered its age, other than it is no longer new but it's not that old. So when I see the "v" or "c" I don't know what it means. Until it was explained in the (years) did it become clear. After I was told it was in the wrong place I saw my error and reposted in the correct forum.

    I suggest moving the older car forums with the explantion of the year to the top, or explaining what "v" or "c" means because most of us are here b/c we are novices seeking assistance from fellow hybriders.

    Also, I still have not figured out how to delete a thread, only to edit the information in the thread.
     
    #12 Awks6584, Nov 30, 2012
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