2016 Toyota Prius Engine Problems

Water pump failed without warning and caused irreparable damage to the engine ("blown" engine requiring replacement). Vehicle began to stall and not respond to attempted acceleration while traveling on 4 lane divided highway, 55 mph speed limit. One "Maintenance Required" message was received the previous week, but disappeared. This is the same message that appears for routine oil changes. No other warning messages were noted at the time of the incident, no unusual noises, and no smoke or other sign of overheating. Driver was able to steer vehicle to safety, but this failure could result in stranding on a busy, dangerous interstate highway. For such a critical piece of the vehicle (i.e., the water pump), there should be obvious warning message(s) and dedicated monitoring of the equipment.

Refer to TSB 0135-19 dealer denied repairing under the California emissions defect and performance warranty.

We were driving kids to camp and the thermometer light went on. It was blinking for a while, then turned off and then turned steadily on. We weren't sure what to do, so we called our trusty mechanic who said "bring it in right now." We did and it turned out that this was a broken head gasket. Our car is regularly maintained by a trusted Prius mechanic and has less than 78K miles, despite its age. From our mechanic: We found the engine coolant was low in the radiator. We filled the system and pressure-tested, found no external leaks. The thermostat and fans operate normally. We found 54 ppm HCs in the radiator initially, and after a test-drive we re-checked and found 110 ppm HC in the radiator. Combustion chamber gas is getting into the cooling system, typically a symptom of headgasket failure. The cylinder head needs to be removed to evaluate. FYI this is the first headgasket failure we have seen on the 4th gen Prius, but it is the same engine designation as the 3rd gen Prius, which has a pattern problem of headgasket failure. The expectation is that the failure is the same, but we need to open the engine to evaluate. Given the low mileage, it might be worth pushing Toyota for a goodwill warranty even though it is out of the official powertrain warranty period. I called Toyota and they refused to pass along a goodwill warranty.

Shortly after having my Toyota serviced, I had an engine coolant warning sign appear. I checked and noted the coolant was gone. I bought coolant and filled the coolant tank. A week later, I see the light again. I have seen no leakage at all on the ground. I refilled the coolant and checked again the next morning. Again the tank is empty. I took the car to a local reputable service person and thus far, he sees no leakage outside of the car. This suggests to him a bigger problem, where the coolant is going somewhere it should not. If it is to the engine, I will have to replace that!!

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 TOYOTA PRIUS. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE STRUGGLED TO MOVE FORWARD WHEN ATTEMPTING TO ACCELERATE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO TEMPE TOYOTA (7970 S. AUTOPLEX LOOP, TEMPE, AZ 83326, (480) 420-3425) WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT A NEW FUEL SYSTEM NEEDED TO BE INSTALLED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED, BUT THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO CAMEL BACK TOYOTA (1550 E CAMELBACK RD, PHOENIX, AZ 85014, (602) 464-7261), BUT WAS NOT DIAGNOSED BECAUSE THE MECHANIC STATED THAT THERE WAS NO FAILURE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE AND DID NOT ASSIST. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 71,000.

THE CAR STARTED TO BURN LOT OF OIL. LIKE 1 QUART FOR EVERY 1000 TO 1200 MILES. WHEN I GOOGLED, I SAW I WAS ONE IN A MILLION AS ALREADY PRIUS OWNERS WERE SHOUTING ABOUT THIS ISSUE ONLINE. WHEN I CALLED AND EXPLAINED THE PROBLEM TO AUTONATION DEALER IN TEMPE, HE CLEARLY UNDERSTOOD THIS PROBLEM(BECAUSE HE FACED THE COMPLAINTS) AND HE SAID IT WOULD COST 6000 BUCKS TO FIX. TOYOTA IS NOT READY TO EXTEND THE WARRANTY FOR THIS PROBLEM. BUT, THE DEALER IS READY TO BUY THIS CAR FOR JUST 1000 BUCKS. MY CAR'S CURRENT VALUE IN KBB IS 7800 BUCKS.