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Prius C exhaust?

Discussion in 'Prius c Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Castanea, Mar 24, 2019.

  1. Castanea

    Castanea Member

    Joined:
    Dec 10, 2017
    39
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    Location:
    Iowa
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius c
    Model:
    Two
    I've not seen any discussion of exhaust/muffler issues here in the Prius C forum. For that matter, there doesn't seem to be much in any of the Prius forums, not that I've done any more than a quick search. I did find this thread, from the Gen 2 forum:

    Prius Exhaust System | PriusChat

    The author asks the same question, noting that "historically, cars that are driving short distances tend to collect water in the muffler and run out." I would add my personal worry about the ICE not running as much as it would in a non-hybrid vehicle. He was answered by the venerable Hobbit, who IMHO was one of the pioneers of PriusChat, especially in terms of hypermiling. All this was thirteen years ago, 2006.

    Having come to my beloved little "C" from a Honda Civic that ate exhaust pipes and mufflers (they easily accounted for 50% or more of my total repair costs over twenty-some years), I would be delighted if the Priii are more reliable in this area. Anyone have any wisdom on this?
     
  2. Leadfoot J. McCoalroller

    Leadfoot J. McCoalroller Senior Member

    Joined:
    May 12, 2018
    6,687
    6,375
    1
    Location:
    Pennsylvania
    Vehicle:
    2018 Prius c
    Model:
    Two
    Exhaust system is covered under the emissions warranty, which is good to begin with and quite lengthy in CARB-compliant states. Given that the c has only been around since 2012 most of them are still covered.

    It's also worth pointing out that one of the design goals of the Prius family is extremely low emissions- and that is prioritized above low fuel consumption. One of the biggest factors in lowering emissions is getting the engine and exhaust system up to operating temperature as quickly as possible, and keeping it there throughout the run.

    So the car is getting those pipes hot enough to boil out the moisture on all but the shortest of trips, and even if you have a bunch of those you have an exhaust system designed to not need replacement for a long time. After all, they don't want to have to buy you another on that long warranty promise.