2010 Prius Hybrid System - Inverter Water Pump & Damaged Transistor / CPU

Took my 2010 Prius IV w/ 112K to the dealer after Hybrid System Check alarm and looking at over $3K in repairs. Trying to decide if it’s worth fixing or just get a new car. I appreciate any input, especially whether the car will at least run without the transistor kit and CPU replacement (not too worried about fuel efficiency at this point, just need wheels). I drove it in to the dealer fine and I have no idea if this dealer is honest, but am bothered to learn their service reps work on commission.

Here are the problems and costs according to the dealer:
P0A93 - inverter water pump fail
cpoa03 - circuit over heat

inverter pump parts
pump $235.5
coolant $22.88
plug kit inverter $31.06

circuit over heat parts
transistor kit $1486.98
CPU !225.61
transistor wire $10.52
trans sensor $50.89
hw $20.00

8 hours labor $140.00 an hour $1120.00

total $3265.72 before tax

Again any feedback is appreciated! What would you do?

 

Thanks FrankB! I appreciate the input. You’re correct that the water pump failure caused the over heat, and according to the dealer, the circuit (transistor and CPU) was damaged by the over heat. I’d like to know if the Prius will at least run without those functioning, because it was running when I took it in. Again, thanks for the feedback.

 

Thanks tankyuong! I definitely want a second opinion but am also afraid to drive it and do damage with a busted inverted pump. Will likely have that fixed and go from there.

 

Thanks padroo! Unfortunately my automotive experience is limited to a few oil changes and one brake job, none of which were on my Prius, or within the last 10 years. So I guess that’s a no. Appreciate the info on the eBay pump, which is slightly cheaper than quoted from dealer. I agree that I shouldn’t continue to drive it, just want to get it home from dealer to decide what to do next, get second opinion, maybe try to fix pump with some help from friends. I’d like to drive it home (approx 15 miles) to avoid towing cost, but also don’t want to do any further damage. Drove it with check hybrid system light for about 4-5 days with no major issues then finally found time to take it to the dealer.

 

No major issues meaning it seemed to drive fine. The check hybrid system alert was in but didn’t go into limp mode.

 

Thanks again Frank!

 

Thank you Chap! That’s exactly what I plan to do. The dealer said they wouldn’t replace the pump without replacing the inverter so I drove it home (no issues). I hope to take it to a private dealer to replace the pump without the inverter. Hopefully they’ll do it. The dealer was never able to tell me how they knew for sure that the inverter was toast; said they were only going by the code so hoping it didn’t fry.

Does anyone know if the inverter coolant pump can be replaced from beneath the vehicle without moving the inverter and messing with high voltage? I’d do it myself if I didn’t have to mess with high voltage. Thanks again!

 

I really appreciate all of this insight into the issue!! M.Wynn, are you saying that I likely have cooked the transistor pack? Keep in mind I really have no idea what I'm talking about here, trying to learn. I drove the car home from the dealer without going into limp mode, but I think it did go into limp mode one day before I got a chance to take it to the dealer. I've contact Hillmuth a private repair service near my home in Maryland and plan to take it in to see if they'll just fix the inverter coolant pump. Again, thank you all! This is my first experience with actually posting on an online chat service like this, and it's been a good one.

 

M.wynn, you rock! I really appreciate the time that you and others have put in to help me diagnose this issue. It's so refreshing after dealing with the dealer to get some straight answers from good people. I hope you have a great weekend! I'd buy you a beer if I could.