Prius brakes and exhaust
Discussion
We have a Prius, 07 model bought from a main dealer used last June with about 45k on the clock.
Been for a service and they say the exhaust is ready to blow. Not seen the technical explanation, this was the info passed on to me. The car make no noises from the exhaust but I have yet to look at it myself. Quoted 380 to replace it.
The brakes make a loud squealing sound at low speeds, much like I have experienced in other cars when the brakes are worn and it hits the noisier warning material they put in there.
Toyota want 280 for replacing pads. Seems steep. Anything special about the Prius brakes? I keep reading that they last ages due to the regenerative braking and can get rusty which causes noise.
Is it ok to take to a local garage who may not be a specialist and have them look, maybe clean the brakes. I am thinking of it does need the brakes then buy genuine items to keep warranty intact (the hybrid system has longer warranty and may be affected by non oem brakes in their opinion).
Anyone have similar experience?
Ps mods I did originally post this in Jap Chat but no responses so put it over here too.
Been for a service and they say the exhaust is ready to blow. Not seen the technical explanation, this was the info passed on to me. The car make no noises from the exhaust but I have yet to look at it myself. Quoted 380 to replace it.
The brakes make a loud squealing sound at low speeds, much like I have experienced in other cars when the brakes are worn and it hits the noisier warning material they put in there.
Toyota want 280 for replacing pads. Seems steep. Anything special about the Prius brakes? I keep reading that they last ages due to the regenerative braking and can get rusty which causes noise.
Is it ok to take to a local garage who may not be a specialist and have them look, maybe clean the brakes. I am thinking of it does need the brakes then buy genuine items to keep warranty intact (the hybrid system has longer warranty and may be affected by non oem brakes in their opinion).
Anyone have similar experience?
Ps mods I did originally post this in Jap Chat but no responses so put it over here too.
KILL HIM he owns a prius
Well thats the classic response out of the way
I am always suspecious of main dealers when they say X needs replacing. Take it to a local trusted independent or take it to your local council run MOT station and ask for an MOT and ask them nicely to look at the brakes and exhaust
Well thats the classic response out of the way
I am always suspecious of main dealers when they say X needs replacing. Take it to a local trusted independent or take it to your local council run MOT station and ask for an MOT and ask them nicely to look at the brakes and exhaust
The golden rule with all this is to take a look yourself, so many people talk about these problems with their cars and dont trust in what they have been told, sometimes rightly by a garage, the one bit that is missing is perhaps to have a look under the car.
Peopel seem to think cars are massively complex, they can be but thankfully brakes and exhausts are pretty simple, The exhaust is a metal tube that carries smoke from the engine to the back of the car, have a look at it and look for damage, wear and rust, to be honest, if it isn't blowing then I would bear it in mind but carry on driving it until it does, in the meantime research how much it costs to replace, exhaust can be a pig to change, I have the one off my 944 at the moment but for most it is probably best/cheapest sourcing an exhaust yourself and finding a mechanic/fast fit to put it on.
Brake wise, on most cars, front pads are easy, first take a wheel off if you cant see through to the brakes, shine a torch in and see how much pad material is left, if it is noisy then it may be completely worn but other things can cause noise in brakes, stones stuck, rusty edges touching the backplate, incorrectly fitted pads etc, take a look, turn the wheel and see where the noise comes from. Actually changing them is usually easy, things can be a bit stiff to undo but usually its a clip and a couple of allen bolts, take the caliper off, remove the old pads, push the piston back, insert the new ones and put it all back together, the pads for the front are £26
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/FRONT-Ferodo-SL-Brake-Di...
A good clean with brake cleaner, a scrub with a wire brush and to be honest you will do a better job than a mechanic as you will take your time.
Sorry, but you either need to take what the dealer says as gospel or get busy.
Peopel seem to think cars are massively complex, they can be but thankfully brakes and exhausts are pretty simple, The exhaust is a metal tube that carries smoke from the engine to the back of the car, have a look at it and look for damage, wear and rust, to be honest, if it isn't blowing then I would bear it in mind but carry on driving it until it does, in the meantime research how much it costs to replace, exhaust can be a pig to change, I have the one off my 944 at the moment but for most it is probably best/cheapest sourcing an exhaust yourself and finding a mechanic/fast fit to put it on.
Brake wise, on most cars, front pads are easy, first take a wheel off if you cant see through to the brakes, shine a torch in and see how much pad material is left, if it is noisy then it may be completely worn but other things can cause noise in brakes, stones stuck, rusty edges touching the backplate, incorrectly fitted pads etc, take a look, turn the wheel and see where the noise comes from. Actually changing them is usually easy, things can be a bit stiff to undo but usually its a clip and a couple of allen bolts, take the caliper off, remove the old pads, push the piston back, insert the new ones and put it all back together, the pads for the front are £26
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/FRONT-Ferodo-SL-Brake-Di...
A good clean with brake cleaner, a scrub with a wire brush and to be honest you will do a better job than a mechanic as you will take your time.
Sorry, but you either need to take what the dealer says as gospel or get busy.
"about to blow" 
are they trying to imply it is some kind of high pressure system that will fail with catastrophic consequences?
as him up there rightly said it's just a bit o metal pipe really, unless you have a problem with it don't replace it. sometimes they fall off and make lots of noise but that's about it. I did once have one collapse in such a way it was blocked and made the engine struggle and eventually stall but that was on a very old vauxhall
are they trying to imply it is some kind of high pressure system that will fail with catastrophic consequences?
as him up there rightly said it's just a bit o metal pipe really, unless you have a problem with it don't replace it. sometimes they fall off and make lots of noise but that's about it. I did once have one collapse in such a way it was blocked and made the engine struggle and eventually stall but that was on a very old vauxhall
Dino D said:
The brakes make a loud squealing sound at low speeds, much like I have experienced in other cars when the brakes are worn and it hits the noisier warning material they put in there.
Toyota want 280 for replacing pads. Seems steep. Anything special about the Prius brakes? I keep reading that they last ages due to the regenerative braking and can get rusty which causes noise.
o.
Toyota dealers have a 'fixed price promise' ask if they have quoted with this in mind.Toyota want 280 for replacing pads. Seems steep. Anything special about the Prius brakes? I keep reading that they last ages due to the regenerative braking and can get rusty which causes noise.
o.
Prices on the Toyota UK website for a 1.5 Prius:
£100 for front pads or £220 with discs
£95 for rear pads or £210 with discs
all in inc VAT and fitting.
http://www.toyota.co.uk/cgi-bin/toyota/bv/generic_...
HustleRussell said:
Just PLEASE think of the environmental impact of unnecessarily replacing your brakes and exhaust 
Exactly!Thanks for the tips, especially re the fixed price deal.
Will have a look at the service sheet to see exactly what they on about. It belongs to a woman so they may have been taking the p a little and her description of what they said maybe different to what they mean.
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