Wavy rear tires... second set.

I have to call Toyota on Monday. That's what the dealer wants me to do next. It will be the third communication with Toyota. First one was to get someone to seriously look at the car and the problem. The second was a call back from them for clarification and to instruct me to take it to the dealer and have them look at it again.

After all that, we were supposed to have the car looked at by a "regional tech", but that hasn't happened. On Friday we got a call from the dealership, asking us to call Toyota again. So Monday morning I will call and see what's up.

At minimum, after the call and whatever Toyota decides to do or not do, I will take the car in to have all shocks replaced, rear bushings replaced and have a complete alignment again. I hope I can get them to examine all the rear suspension bits at that time, to make sure there is no damage or defect. Replacing the hubs would be around $850 or more, and unless Toyota agrees to absorb some of that cost, I probably won't have it done.

At that point, I'll buy one more set of new tires and go from there. If the rears start to ripple up again like all the other sets of tires have done so far, I'll probably give up and trade it in. I won't be able to justify another 5 sets of tires for it, since it's not quite through to the half way mileage point we were aiming at yet. This is a Toyota, and we had intended to keep it at least well into the 200,000 to 250,000 mile mark. I normally sell my cars and then buy a new one, but if this one isn't fixed properly, I wouldn't want to pawn it off on someone else.

We'll see what Toyota says on Monday and then take it from there.

 

The tire pressure I maintained on this car was 39-40 front and 37-39 rear. All the sets of tires we put on this Prius ended up looking pretty much like the pictures, but rear only. And all during this time, the car tracked as straight as a 2nd Gen Prius could!


End of the saga... Toyota Customer Service and Dealer were stuck in an endless back and forth, with what appeared to be a long stalling strategy. It seemed that no one could come up with an answer or decision on what to do about the problem, so I capitulated.

We decided to trade the car in on a Gen III and try our luck again. I wish I could have kept our Gen II, but that whole fiasco was dragging out and I finally lost patience. They were probably counting on that anyway!

Other than the eating of the rear tires, the car was a very good performer. It got over 49 MPG on it's last trip (moderately cold temperatures and head wind), and was still immaculate inside and out. That immaculate part they liked, but I hope that they investigate and fix the problem before they decide to sell it. They said they would.

Thanks to all that pitched in to help figure out what was causing this rear tire wear. It was perplexing, to say the least, but it did start within a few thousand miles from new on the original tires. I still check all tires on a frequent schedule, since I really don't like under inflation... it robs fuel efficiency.

Again, thanks. Just hope this new car will behave. It was one of the last 2011's around for sale in our region. Wife found it and picked it out. We'll see how this goes!

 

Thanks! The '05 Prius that I left at the dealer was cleaner inside and out, than the new car we pulled out in. They brought everyone out to look at our old car and then the manager offered me a detailing job. My wife thought that was pretty funny!

Found the new tires at 32-33 PSI in front and 30 PSI rear the next morning after purchase. I inflated to 40 PSI up front and 38 rear. We'll see how it goes.

The '11 drives a lot better than the '05. The steering is weighted much better and feels more natural... a little less boost perhaps? Seems like they figured out the electric steering pretty nicely. It tracks extremely well.

Interior is a quantum leap up the ladder in ergonomics over our Gen II. Love the console. Everything falls to hand very nicely. Absolutely brilliant interior. Now if they would just put some soft touch materials on the dash and doors! Can't have everything.

So far, so good!