Maintenance at 168,000 miles

Change the Transmission Fluid (Toyota Type WS). Your Dealer should charge about $100.

The only failure I've had was the upper steering column assembly $900 at 150k miles

JeffD

ps: My 2004 Prius is at 193,500 Miles

 

So, you're still on the original 12 volt? How are your determining that it seems "ok"? If still on your original, it's likely on its last legs and reading very low voltages.

I would REALLY change the PSD fluid at this point. FWIW, some dealers claim that the fluid is "lifetime fluid" and the dealer I called today claimed it didn't need to be changed until 120K miles. Most repair experts on PC here disagree.

I'm not waiting that long and am going to do it before the 51K mile mark.

 

Have you ever had a thorough brake inspection?

 

Serpentine belt and PCV valve came to mind. Just my 2 cents.

Here is a thread of interest:
http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-...70410-100k-maintenance-fun-3.html#post1237297

 

Spark plug is overdue. The schedule is at 120k miles.

 

1. Transaxle oil
2. Spark plugs
3. Serpentine belt

Save up for a 12V, 'cause it has to be close to its end.

 

Hobbit wrote up a fascinating monograph on brake fluid maintenance. His two basic observations were 1, brake fluid ages most slower in a Prius than a regular ICE car because the friction brakes are little used; and 2, a simple copper strip test is probably enough to check brake fluid quality in deciding if a flush is needed. I am convinced, and do not plan to flush the fluid based on a mileage number.

 

Boy, that car has been really good to you! Hope mine does as well? Hal

 

Toyota seems very vague on the subject of brake inspection, at least comparing to Honda, which is my past ownership experience. Honda's maintenance schedule call for brake inspection yearly, typically. And, the Shop Manual has a thorough and clear explanation of what the entails, basically pulling off the pads, cleaning, relubing and re-installing. Also, check of disc run out, parellelism, thickness, though this tends to be good for a long time, at least till the discs wear thin.

Drum brake shoes need inspection too, lube of the contact points with the housing, and check of thickness obviously.

I'm a little perplexed that a dealership lets you go that distance with no decent inspection. And quite candidly, would not want to have to do a panic stop in front of you.

Addendum: The Toyota Repair Manual may be part of the problem:

The brake sections basically explain a complete tear-down of the brakes. There is no explanation as to what a brake "inspection" entails. Obviously it's not complete disassembly, but what is it? It seems to be simply a check of pad thickness, maybe without even swinging up the caliper for a clear view, from what I've heard about dealerships.

 

[deleted, duplicate post]

 

Mike,

CD problems are common in Early Gen2 Prii. I bought a replacement stereo that was salvaged from a 2006 from:
Plug In Hybrid Electric Vehicle PHEV (Steve is a great guy)
for $82 (including shipping from Indianapolis). There are full instructions at that site for removing the MFD and then the Stereo which takes about 30 minutes (as does installation). If you feel insecure about DIY, just bring the instructions and the replacement stereo to any decent car stereo shop.

JeffD