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Red triangle, coolant, outside temp related?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by fccjben, Jun 29, 2010.

  1. fccjben

    fccjben New Member

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    I have a 2008 with 60k miles. Recently, within last month, the red triangle has been coming on briefly and then going out. Just discovered today that pressing "problem" on display gives you a hint of the problem. Today it was a coolant problem. That happened once before and it was low on oil at 55k when due for a change. I have been experiencing problems with the AC also. Thanks to Patrick Wong in "AC won't work when engine off" thread about condenser air flow direstion. Fan should be pulling air into engine compartment, not blowing out front of car. My car did have a front end collision and apparently the fan may have been reinstalled with reverse flow causing AC problem. I have to verify that is the problem. Air is flowing out the front of the car. I didn't have time to switch it today.
    When I stopped today to investigate overheating problem the"outside temp" was reading 122 degrees. After getting the correct type antifreeze added, within 10 miles and 15 minutes of driving, the "outside temp" reading dropped almost 30 degrees to 93. Where is the "outside temp" sensor? Is it close enough to the engine or cooling system to be an indicator of running hot? Local temp was in the mid 90s. "outside temp" has always seemed to read much higher than radio temp forecast. Could this be due to fan being mounted backwards?
    I have read threads about inverter coolant pump. Is this what they call the water pump now?
    Thanks to all for info provided. Hope to be "chilling" more soon. Hot in Va.
     
    #1 fccjben, Jun 29, 2010
  2. paprius4030

    paprius4030 My first Prius

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    Well if the fan is blowing the wrong way, it's also blowing hot air from the engine into the radiator, which would explain your running hot problem. I'd get the fan problem fixed pronto before you fry your engine.
     
    #2 paprius4030, Jun 29, 2010
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  3. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    The inverter coolant pump is an electric pump located behind the driver's side headlight. Its function is to circulate coolant between the inverter and transaxle.

    This is unrelated to the engine coolant system which has three pumps: a mechanical pump mounted to the engine which is powered by the serpentine belt; an electric pump that only runs for a few seconds upon startup and shutdown to move fluid from and to the coolant heat recovery canister; and an electric pump that circulates coolant to the cabin heater core when the mechanical pump is not running (because the engine has stopped.)

    The outside air temp sensor is mounted in front of the radiator. If it reads higher than ambient air temp this is evidence that your radiator fans are blowing the wrong way. This is not a reliable indicator to show whether your engine is overheating or not.
     
    #3 Patrick Wong, Jun 30, 2010
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