I leave mine running every night. Mostly for power with the HVAC off unless I really need it. At campsites with generator quiet hours I turn the car off.
Follow up to https://www.reddit.com/r/overlanding/s/ei2Tg9kwWf
Looks much better now, gonna touch it up if it ends up fading again
Posting since it took me a few months to track this down and I didn't find much about it online.
Earlier in the year my 2015 Prius was giving me a red coolant temperature warning light on the cluster. This was only happening on long highway hill climbs with sustained high engine load. I never saw it under normal driving. No codes were ever stored.
Since my car had just reached over 200k miles and I'm trying to preserve my head gasket, I preemptively replaced both water pumps, the thermostat and the filthy engine radiator with Aisin parts and new Toyota coolant.
However, despite me monitoring the engine temperature using Hybrid Assistant, I was confused as to why I was still getting the coolant warning despite the engine coolant temperature being no hotter than 208F.
So it turns out that there is another coolant temperature sensor, mounted inside the Exhaust Heat Recirculation system which reports directly to the instrument cluster.
This exhaust chamber sits directly downstream of the catalytic converter and contains a coolant loop to bring the engine up to operating temperature more quickly. Once it reaches 176F, a mechanical actuator rod is supposed to extend and open the flap so exhaust can flow out. This entire system looks like an automatic choke from the ~70s.
When I learned about this and went to inspect the flap, I noticed that despite the engine being warmed up to operating temperature, the rod was not touching the flap at all and my exhaust was always being routed into the recirculation heat loop.
Unhooking the spring on the valve relieved some of the tension, which allowed me to use a 6mm bolt to force the valve to be in the always open position.
Immediately after doing that:
- Gained a lot more engine power
- MPG went from ~30 to ~40
- Coolant temp warning on engine load never showed up
Before I was getting low 30MPG and what felt like reduced power, all very gradually. Since my Prius is heavily modified with off road suspension parts and tires plus a lot of stuff on the roof, I assumed that would be the trade off.
I plan to leave the bolt in until I get a chance to replace the actuator sometime before the winter.
I don't ever get out of my car when I pull in to sleep, but I always double check the signs on Google Maps if I can't see them from my window
But not for me. Thankful for the Prius letting me get a good night’s sleep
Follow up to https://www.reddit.com/r/plastidip/s/Sl5Nj7mmdo
I cut away the peeling parts and used my leftover can to build up the base layer. I ended up using the whole can to touch up each wheel and it looks a lot better now. You can see where the cut marks were and the original wheel imperfections but for a low effort job it looks good from a few feet away
>Earlier this year, District Attorney Todd Spitzer launched a new prosecution unit called RIDE SAFELY. The goal is to create accountability for kids and adults who ride e-bikes and e-motorcycles, but it also goes after those who break the law while riding one of the popular 2-wheelers.
>"We currently have four open prosecutions against parents," Senior Deputy District Attorney Elisa Kim said at the community meeting. "We also have 26 open investigations against parents, where we are considering filing charges."
I used a HyperDip kit to paint my wheels gold. It was fine for over a year but when I had new tires installed, the shop messed up each wheel. I have one can left over so I could touch it up, another whole kit is $120. Should I instead just have the wheels fully painted if this will happen every time I get tires?
The hunt is on. Bike did a number on some of the greens. What is this kid thinking?
Wondering if anyone goes down south to Mexico to cut down on the cost of living a bit. I see they have some US chain gyms there but also some of their own as well. Possible to do a week or longer in the car there? Serious replies only please
My car has been dirty ever since I relocated to San Fran. Seems like a huge lot for just a wash but think of how many cars they could do
I was planning on buying a water tank soon for this summer and noticed that there seem to be a few unbranded water tanks on Amazon that look identical to the Waterport. Is it worth the extra $60 to get the genuine tank?
Also if anyone has this or a similar water tank, I was wondering where I could fill it up on the road. A car wash or maybe a campsite water tap came to mind but maybe there’s a better place I hadn’t thought of. Thanks
Only free entree + forced chips for 150 points more. Skimping on everything.
Still advertised on the site https://www.chipotle.com/rewards