Short drive with no inverter coolant

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Technical Discussion' started by KTMracer302, Mar 26, 2019.

  1. KTMracer302

    KTMracer302 New Member

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    Long story short I have a horrible leak in my inverter. Either the inverter coolant reservoir, the inverter itself, or the bleed hose is leaking. I have to drive about 15 miles to be able to get to where all my tools are and a place to work on the car.

    Is it going to be a huge deal if I drive the car 15 miles to get this fixed?
     
  2. oldtechaa

    oldtechaa Active Member

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    Why not just get a jug of (the proper) coolant, fill, and keep checking and refilling on your way?
     
  3. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

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    Or get it towed there.
     
  4. KTMracer302

    KTMracer302 New Member

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    It will be leaked out before I make it out of the parking lot. It's a LARGE leak
     
  5. KTMracer302

    KTMracer302 New Member

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    That's my last resort. I can tow dolly it over there behind my truck if shit hits the fan.

    Just curious how hit it will actually get in 15 minutes. Take 15 minutes for my truck to get to operating temps so curious if 15 minutes would get that inverter too hot. I can't imagine it would.
     
  6. AzWxGuy

    AzWxGuy Weather Guy

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    Compare the cost of a tow to an inverter replacement.
     
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  7. KTMracer302

    KTMracer302 New Member

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    I already have an extra inverter if it dies.

    Just want to know if it can handle 15 minutes. That's all.
     
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  8. ski.dive

    ski.dive Active Member

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    Replace the inverter.
     
  9. RRxing

    RRxing Senior Member

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    If it doesn't destroy the inverter, let us know.
    If it destroys the inverter, let us know.
     
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  10. Skibob

    Skibob Senior Member

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    If the pump fails you still have fluid in the inverter to help keep it cool. In your situation you have no fluid at all to help. My money is on you destroy the inverter. You would drive your truck 15 minutes if it had no coolant in the engine?
     
  11. KTMracer302

    KTMracer302 New Member

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    If I was only driving the truck 15 minutes to he shop to replace the motor with a new one - probably.
     
  12. TMR-JWAP

    TMR-JWAP Senior Member

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    It sounds like your mind is already made up. Roll with it. Just try to minimize hard acceleration and keep a reasonable speed. If the inverter gets hot, it WILL let you know. Just pull over, pop the hood and hang out for an hour to let it cool and then continue on. After you get where you're going, fix the leak.

    The only problem I foresee is that every time you drive the car, you'll have that question in the back of your mind if it's going to leave you stranded due to an eventual inverter failure. I've seen several high power IGBT failures in some 1500 hp water cooled SIEMENS variable speed drives (some due to loss of cooling and some due to water leaks). Like a hand grenade going off in the cabinet. A prius should be nowhere near as spectacular, but if it does pop, post some photos.
     
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  13. Skibob

    Skibob Senior Member

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    In my experience since driving starting in 1978, anyone who has ever driven a car with no coolant in it for 15 minutes has destroyed their engine. Best of luck.
     
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  14. edthefox5

    edthefox5 Senior Member

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  15. Skibob

    Skibob Senior Member

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    OP. So what happened?