Prius (2004-09) :: Inverter And Transaxle Coolant Cross Contamination
Dec 9, 2010
My 07 Prius is leaking transaxel fluid into the inverter cooling system. Transaxel fluid is sweating through the inverter coolant hoses. Before my taking ownership of this vehicle, it had previously been in a front end collision (that’s a whole other story). Anyhow – if I replace the radiator, should that take care of this problem? Are there any other ways these two cooling fluids could become cross contaminated?
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I just got a 2006 Prius and I brought to Toyota dealer to do a regular oil change. After that, been told that I'll need a Inverter Coolant and Transaxle fluid change in next maintenance point.
This prius already has 111,000 mile now.
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I have an 06 Prius that I got needing a transmission. I picked up a used transmission from the junkyard, and I started working on it today, but I am having a problem. The big orange cables that go from the inverter to the transaxle have been cut. So I need to swap over my good cables (from the bad transmission) over to the new transmission. I need to know how the cables are removed/installed from the transaxle side. They don't seem to want to pull out.
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I have a 2010 Prius, currently at around 69,000 miles. Back in Feb 2015 (when it was just under 60,000) I was driving on a city street and hit the accelerator once a stoplight turned green - immediately as I took off (at a normal rate of acceleration) my 2010 Prius made a loud noise and I got the red triangle of death, with a "Check Hybrid System" message. The car quickly shifted into "limp home" mode and I was able to make it back home as I was only about a mile away.
Got towed to the nearest dealer the next morning and after tons of testing and going back and forth, they replaced the transmission and inverter (was able to get it covered under powertrain warranty), and I was on my merry way. No issues until last night.
Yesterday evening, I am on a city street and get a warning beep. I look at my dashboard and this time I have a yellow exclamation mark with the "Check Hybrid System" message yet AGAIN. Towed the car to the nearest dealer and am now waiting on next steps. Only update I've gotten so far is that they are still trying to diagnose the issue, and are getting 4 error codes in this process, 2 of which are new. I am waiting on the technician to tell me what the actual codes are - hopefully should get them tomorrow.
I would hope if it's another issue with transmission or inverter, it's covered under warranty given I replaced both less than a year ago. However I'm not sure and am worried that it's going to be $$$ in case it's something else that failed. Plus I'm getting serious doubts as to the safety of my car - what if I had been moving at a high speed on the highway during either of these situations?
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So, the sideways coolant tank in the engine compartment, not the one next to the grill, but the one that is sort of between the air filter box and that shiny metal square
I have always thought that tank was slightly low, but it has a seam just about where the full line is, so I was never sure....finally about three weeks ago, I worked up my courage and put a few ounces of coolant in that tank. THEN it was up to the full line.
So, a few weeks after adding the coolant, I had the water pump recall done. Now the coolant level is back down to where it was before I added....so I am assuming that the correct level is just below that seam that seals the top of the plastic tank to the bottom part of the tank.
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I am getting a slow coolant drip from my inverter . The very slow leak appears on the left side of inverter when facing the front of car with hood open . The connection point alum tube to coolant resevoir black rubber tube. The inverter coolant connection reservoir tube side is damp to the touch and has visible red goop buildup.......
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Prius 2009 inverter coolant pump failure 51,300 miles....
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Back in February, received a light and discovered that the inverter coolant reservoir was empty. I refilled the reservoir and cleared the code. Today, only 3 months later, the same thing happened. I don't see any wet hoses, puddles, or obvious signs of leakage. Where all my coolant is going? What steps should I use to properly troubleshoot...
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My original intention was to replace the engine oil in the car. I was in a hurry(yes....I know) I could not find the oil drain plug. I did find a large bolt which turned out to be a drain plug for the inverter coolant instead. The instant the fluid drained from the car, I knew it was not engine oil. I did not know the drained fluid was inverter coolant. It had the color of a transmission fluid but significantly less viscous.
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We seem to be getting reports of failed inverter coolant pumps here on just about a daily basis. I'm wondering if they're all just failing now or if this is something of a "backlog" of failures that started in Winter but are only really being detected now.
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My 2007 Prius with 162k miles had an Inverter Coolant Pump Failure Monday 6.5 hours from home when my wife was driving it home from a trip. Red Triangle, (!), vsc, and check engine light. She was able to make it about 20 minutes to a dealer where it was diagnosed. Luckily no further damage was done to vehicle. Yes, she should have stopped but continued on since car was driving OK.
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I own a 2006 JDM prius with 323,000 km. The inverter coolant pump failed recently (got P0A93 code and no agitation in coolant reservoir). I ordered a replacement on eBay and am awaiting arrival. I may need to do some light driving in the in the interim and am thinking about installing a 10 inch fan in the space between the inverter/transmission and radiator to keep things cool. Is this wise or should I just let the car sit until the new pump gets here?
Also, I am burning oil...I usually have to top up 1 to 2 quarts in between changes. Is there anything I can do without tearing down the engine? A friend of mine suggested using Lucas oil stabilizer the next time I change oil...could this have any negative implications?
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Just noticed my level is about an inch below the full mark, it was fine at the last oil change, no leaks that I can see....nothing on the ground.
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How do you know if the inverter coolant pump/reservoir is bad after the recall was performed?Since it doesn't produce any codes but can reduce the electric-drive if getting too hot, how do you convince Toyota to give it a second look?
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Inverter coolant runs low and also regular coolant blows up. Do they use one line together? Everyday I have to fill the inverter.
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My 2001 Prius with 134k miles has been running great but leaves a small amount of coolant on the ground after parking. I've had to add approximately 8 ounces per 100 miles.
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I have had my certified 2010 Prius since June 2015. Last Saturday I noticed my inverter coolant reservoir was on the low mark. I went to the closest dealer and they topped it off up almost to the full mark for free. I thought it had probably went down from evaporation and I just hadn't noticed it before. Yesterday I went back to the dealer where I purchased it which is about 90 miles away to have the CVT fluid changed. This morning the coolant was back down to almost the low mark. I looked on the ground and can't see any evidence of a leak. Tomorrow I have a appointment to have them check it. Since it is still in the one year certified warranty I don't know how motivated they will be to find the problem when they can't charge me for it. I don't think the level would have went back down right away if there wasn't a leak somewhere. I checked and there have been no recalls done or called for on it.
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Having seen the rather catastrophic outcomes that are possible with inverter coolant pump failure, I've thought a bit about adding a flow sensor in the coolant path. I even went so far as to buy a flow sensor, which would probably do the job. However, it's somewhat heavy, and then there's the plumbing job to take care of. Seemed somewhat challenging to pull off.
Since this aborted endeavor, I began thinking about ways to detect surface turbulence at the top of the coolant tank, and am now thinking that might be easier to pull off, even if it requires programming a PIC to do the monitoring. My current thought is to install an LED and optical sensor in the cap, and measure light intensity received.
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I'm a new owner of a used 2008 Prius. Car only has 67K miles and other than the leak, appears to be in good shape.
I noticed the coolant was low in both reservoirs, filled it up (with the proper SLLC), but a day or so later the check engine light came on. Took it to mechanic (dealer is 2 hours away), he read and cleared the codes, then found the leak. Appears to be leaking where the lower hose attaches to the pump, so not sure if it's the pump or the hose that's the problem. I've also noticed that the pump seems a bit noisy for a few minutes after shutting off the car (of course, I'm new to the Prius so not totally sure what "normal" sounds like).
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Changing my oil today, been awhile since I had the hood open for an inspection a year maybe about 5 - 6K miles
It's been about 2 years since the prior owner had it in for a service, I recall they had it in right before we purchased it in August 2008
I live in Miami Beach where it's HOT
I noticed the inverter coolant level is no longer at full It's hard to see where it's at, actually
It's not below low, and it seems to be at least up to the bottom of the double seam that wraps around the tank, but I can't see where it levels off behind the seam
Should I be concerned enough to take it in to the dealer and pay them to hunt around until they find a small leak, or is it normal to lose a small amount of coolant over the course of a couple years
Should I just buy their high priced Toyota Super Long Life Coolant and top off the extra 1/8-1/4" or so until it's at FULL?
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I read in the owners manual that the engine antifreeze should be an ethylene glycol type. I believe that Prestone makes this type of coolant in a 50/50 mix. Is that correct? Also, what type of coolant does the inverter use? I want to try and stay away from buying it at a dealer. Also, my gen 1 has 117,000 miles and I must admit that I have been slacking with the maintenance. My gas mileage is down to 40/mpg compared to 48-49mpg when I got the car two years back with 40k. I am pretty sure the original auxillary batter is still in it, so I order a new one today. I also plan an changing the transaxle fluid, PCV valve, air filter, and cabin filter. The plugs where changed at 80,000 miles. Where can I order a gasket for the transaxle pan? I intend on dropping it and cleaning it out. Do you think this will get the gas milage back up?
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