Help! Is my head gasket leaking? (Photos)

The problem is the methodology and the proactiveness on these parts is not going to help. The problem is is the Atkinson cycle of the car causes the car to regurgitate its own puke kind of like a bird does to feed it's young that nastiness clogs up your intake manifold ports that are allowing this nastiness back into your engine to be burnt up again to gain you maybe 2 mi per gallon Toyota was willing to sacrifice their name and quality for two miles per gallon essentially We bought it the rest is history they've tried to band-aid this in the generation 4 and that's all that is now there is a 2 l out and hopefully this stuff is a thing of the past We have yet to see. The best thing you could have done would have been the EGR cleaning the cooler the intake manifold with gun brushes if you will and make sure that flow is good or better than adequate in Toyota software you can see this flow rate apparently I would just probably say before 140,000 you should clean the business and if you see that the EGR valve has a problem with the plastic piece or the thing that goes bad in there then of course you would replace it. Do you have a head gasket leak right now I have no idea If you are and everything is as factory you'll be losing some coolant every so often you'll look it will be noticeably down You will at some point get the rattle depending upon how much you drive the vehicle and so on and so forth it varies I have a 2010 got the rattle one time took the o-ring out of the d gas bottle and now very little coolant leaves the system because it's not being squeezed out by the 9 or 10 lb of pressure that the system requires of course that lowers boil capacity but for now it keeps the engine running with minimal rattle. And the vehicle is used around 120 mi a day hopefully I will convince my other half it's not worth fixing and put her in a nice generation too that she will have a hard time killing

 

I would ask him what is leaking. It appears to be oil on the outside of the engine, which is more commonly a timing chain cover on these engines. Sometimes the timing chain tensioner or oil pressure sender, both on or near the timing chain cover.

A head gasket coolant leak typically leaks internally to the cylinder and can be bad including rod breakage causing a hole in the block.

But oil on the outside, if that is the mechanics concern, is less concerning other than the chance you could run out of oil. A leak that bad will leave oil in the driveway.

So ask what is leaking.

 

You need a better/real mechanic. Because he doesn't know the difference between
a leaking head gasket and oil pressure switch. That is clearly the oil pressure switch
that is leaking. Which is very common. Maybe $20 at a parts store.
Or is you wanted a Toyota switch, not sure of price.

He must not know much about the Prius engine or he's know that. You can "gunk" down that
area where the oil is leaking, then hose it off real well. Then drive. (check you oil also)
After 5 miles or so check the area. You should be able to see where the oil is from.
Because of how air flows in that area, the oil will get spread all over the place!

Look at your coolant tank on the passenger side of the engine. There should be pink
coolant in it. Where the 2 halves are plastic welded together is the "full" mark.
That is where the coolant should be. If it's lower than that, likely your head gasket is
failing. At 200,000 miles, it's 50/50, depending on how you drive. Those who drive
mostly highway miles seem to be able to go longer. Short mileage for city driving.

No need to replace the manifold, egr cooler or egr, or piping. The pcv valve is
about $10-20. Worth replacing since you have the intake manifold off.
Everything else can be cleaned. You should replace the gaskets also.
About $20-30.

 

The headgasket failure issue is specific to coolant leaking into the engine cylinder between #1 & #2... I've never once seen evidence of this known problem happening where these photos indicate so I'm skeptical of mechanic's diagnosis.

If I were you I'd deep clean all those areas yourself or pay an auto detailer to do it and monitor it to confirm...

Currently there's too much other dirty stuff not associated with signs of headgasket leak to confirm based on those photos. And you have no symptoms... So maybe not go back to that mechanic if your engine stays clean in that location.

 

I agree, does look more like oil than reddish/pink antifreeze.

I've seen folks using a head gasket leak tester....turns yellow if there's combustion air getting back into the coolant from a bad head gasket.

 

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If the EGR has never been cleaned, and with your miles, you likely do have head gasket failure, now, or soon. Any rattle when starting it in the morning?

replacing any or all EGR components is no better than just cleaning; save your money. Cleaning should be done, but sort out head gasket first.

Leak down test or boroscope inspection are the go-to procedures for head gasket assessment.

 

Definitely an oil leak and it looks like a small one. As others have said, clean it up and see where it's coming from. If you clean up and then spray some antiperspirant deodorant or something else that will leave a white powdery residue, it will be super easy to spot the leak as soon as it starts.

I also agree that it's unlikely to be coming from the head gasket. That filthy oil pressure sensor is where I'd look first.