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Preventative Water Pump replacement

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Fubar1764, Jul 14, 2015.

  1. Fubar1764

    Fubar1764 Member

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    08 Prius now at 120k. This is usually when I change the ICE water pump. I've been reading about when to change the pump, and it looks like opinions are all over the place. Generally though, consensus seems to be "change it when you see pink crystals on the pully." Is this correct?
    120k is usually when I expect to drop a couple of thousand on preventative maintenance. Is this not true on the Prius? I knew running costs were low, but THIS LOW?!
     
  2. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    a couple thousand on maintenance?

    1. spark plugs
    2. engine coolant
    3. inverter coolant
    4. pcv valve
    5. engine air filter / cabin air filter
    6. change brake fluid
    7. change transaxle fluid
    8. change water pump and belt
    9. clean brakes

    That may run you $1000 if you do all of them at once. I'm sure the dealer can work you a deal.
     
  3. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    i would do it now, then you're good to go for quite awhile. how long do you plan to keep it?
     
  4. jdenenberg

    jdenenberg EE Professor

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    I changed my ICE coolant pump at 150k miles at the same time as the second coolant refresh. I will do it again at 300k miles if I still have my 2004 Prius (about 1.5 years from now).

    JeffD
     
  5. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

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    Yes.
    This low.
    This is what sold me on Priuses over the last 5 years.
    If you make a passing attempt to keep up with maintenance, there's a VERY good chance that you're looking at a 200-250K car without a major repair.

    Like JC says: If you're going to get the dealer to do those maintenance items for you, you might just get a deal.
    An independent mechanic would be even cheaper.
    YOU would be cheaper still! :)

    Then you're probably good to go out to 200K.

    Good Luck!
     
  6. Fubar1764

    Fubar1764 Member

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    This is a stupidly low amount of maintenance. In all seriousness, I figured maintenance would run about $1k a year, including wear pieces, like suspension, etc. After 120k miles, the suspension is starting to get a little bouncy.

    JC91006, is this list exhaustive for 120k? The coolant was changed at about 80k as part of the inverter pump recall. I wasn't planning on changing that until 150k as scheduled.

    This is just downright absurd how low the maintenance is. I'll probably do some of this myself just to get my hands dirty. I'm probably not my mechanic's best customer these days. . .
     
  7. 69shovlhed

    69shovlhed Surly tree hugger

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    look at the bottom of the water pump for signs of leakage. if it ain't broke, don't fix it. my '05 is starting to leak at 155k. I'm gonna replace it in the next week or 2.
     
  8. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    Yes, because the presence of coolant deposits will give you plenty of advance notice if you are a reasonably alert owner who bothers to look into the engine compartment periodically as you check the engine oil level and other engine compartment fluids.
     
  9. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    I would not assume the coolant was changed during the inverter pump recall. Most mechanics would just clamp the hose and change the pump......no coolant being changed. Although the recall specify that the coolant should be changed, dealership mechanics will tell you they don't change it because it's much faster not doing it.