$500 Prius!-Page 3| Off-Topic Discussion forum |

pheller UltimaDork
11/12/21 12:24 p.m.

Replacement cat costs all depend on the local emissions requirement.

My area doesn't even have inspections, much less any emissions testing. I could run my Prius without a cat if I really wanted to.

Other areas (like California) not only require a "snif test" but also require any catalytic converter be carb compliant, which costs a lot more. I've heard of people replacing catalytic converters with cheapos and not passing emissions testing.

WillG80 GRM+ Memberand Reader
11/12/21 2:06 p.m.

I'll add my Prius story... A friend went to trade in her non-running Prius with only 88k miles. 2006 model. They offered her $100 so she drug it back home instead. I offered to take it off her hands for much, much more and she happily accepted. The cat had been stolen but they had it replaced with a generic unit a few months ago. After that they started having all kinds of issues with the car non going into "ready" mode and all kinds of warning light on the dash coming on. The dealer quoted them $5k to fix. They quoted a new cat, brake switch and inverter coolant pump. I replaced the noisy inverter coolant pump with an OE Toyota pump for $120. Easy job with almost no coolant loss.

Then I started reading about Prius issues. #1 cause of problems are a bad 12V battery. They seem very sensitive to battery voltage. She replaced the battery a few months ago so I knew that wasn't the issue. Another thing is the brake pedal switch. The brake lights still worked and the cruise control turned off as it should so I figured it was fine, but since the dealer quoted a switch ($400 installed) I figured I'll take a look. I took it out and bent the little tabs to take the switch internals apart. Everything looked fine but I cleaned the contacts anyway and bent the sliding contacts to improve contact. Reinstalled and viola! All the warning lights on the dash disappeared and the car starts every time. I'm into the car for less than $2k and it came with ski racks and an extra set of wheels with snow tires. And a full tank of gas!