Question about Inverter Coolant Pump

It's your second photo... The OEM pump is near the same kind of cheap junk as the low priced ones. I always buy the cheapest one for less than $30... Even if it fails early, they swap out pretty quick if you use the hose clamp method and I'd rather have the option to swap out 4 of these for less than $30 each than spend more than 4 of them combined for a single overpriced OEM pump.

 

The OEM pump will last at least 10 years often more and assuming these $30 pumps last 2.5 years (lots of reports where they don't make it one year), then you will have changed the pump 4 times and spent the same. I guess that's okay if you like doing the same job over and over.

I prefer once and done.

 

The top one of your two photos might actually be the Gen 2 heater pump. I've never seen one with my own personal eyeballs (it's kind of buried in the engine compartment) but the drawings show it with roughly that kind of shape.

The heater pump is part of the engine cooling loop, nothing to do with the inverter cooling at all.

 

You're just pulling numbers out of thin air on this... Have you ever measured the flow rate on these junk pump? I've seen pumps for a fish bowl that cost less than $10 that are higher quality then these junk OEM pumps, which is why Gen2 had to do a recall on them back in the day. But go ahead, keep thinking up all the reasons why you deserve to be ripped off for over-priced stuff that should be illegal to sell at such a high price, especially when you're filling your gas tank!

 

Those may be "made up" numbers, but in general, I can't say that I have heard of anyone saying that the Toyota pump they installed a few months ago randomly doesn't pump (until they cycle power a couple times). AM pump can work ok, just more likely to have a problem.

If going the inexpensive route works for you, then so be it. Some will do that, some won't.

Me, I don't want to do that job twice to try and save a few bucks. Also don't want to deal with an inverter overheat code.

Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.

 

If only we had a materials inspection expert that could find us a way more reliable and durable inline 12v pump with slightly more GPH for super low price so it could be considered an upgrade, rather than gambling on how much we should spend on its reliability.

 

You're correct to an extent, but I was being generous with the 2.5 years. If I was to go by what I have heard reported many times you would have bought ten pumps, done the job ten times, and have cost you $300 versus buying one OEM pump, done the job once and cost only $125.

No, I haven't but I bet Toyota has and I bet the flow rate is exactly right for what they want. Have you thought about whether the higher flow rate you think is required could have unintended consequences?

I am not saying anyone is right or anyone wrong, just giving another perspective. Not everyone views the world through a jaded lens.

 

Have you thought about the fact that when you're mass producing vehicles choosing a higher quality $2 part over a lower quality $0.25 part adds up to millions of dollars in additional production cost?

What's key to car customization is having a material science perspective so you can examine part quality and improve performance and durability in a meaningful way. Toyota doesn't do that...

And nobody has ever replaced ten inverter pumps on the same Prius, maybe two or three or four, but no matter how cheap the part, odds are you put it in and it will work fine for the rest of the life of the vehicle.

 

You might be onto something there. The Dorman pump definitely moved more fluid than the OEM one, it really got the tank roiling. I think another factor of 2 or so and it might have been enough turbulence to start forming bubbles, and that would not be a good thing. Note that the Dorman pump is slightly bigger than the OEM one. Most of the cheap stuff is pretty close to the same form factor as the OEM.

 

Let me jump in on a very old tread.

After buying two OEM pumps at $$$, now I simply bought the lowest cost I could fine for $$. The factory installed pump actually burned the AM2 fuse, the other two went silently, as of now I am driving without the inverter pump, waiting on the low cost pump to arrive via mail. For how long I drove without an inverter pump? I do not know. Yes, succinctly speaking, their savings are our costs..... and I still need to post all the stuff that has failed in my GEN3 Prius, before the 50K mark lol...one of these days I will.

 

If that is the case, then there is something else going on. Are you sure you bought genuine OEM pumps and not just some fake pump in a fake Toyota box and sold as genuine?

After how long?

 

Can't say what's going on in your case. I get my pumps from the local dealer. The one in my 2006 has been good for almost 60k, and none of my other installations have had problems.

Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.

 

I am second other of using OEM (from online-toyota or dealers) for the inverter pump ...it is expensive but I for 3-600 dollars of installation, I can not take risk .

I am sure you can find cheap, and of course, it may work, YMMV !!!