Check Engine / Triangle of Death / Exclamation Point

These are usually some sort of "P" code. Sorry, I can't help.

Bob Wilson

 

If you scan the car and get codes P3191 and P3101 thoroughly clean out the throttle body and liquid at bottom of intake manifold under the throttle body. That is often the case with "Engine doesn't start" errors.

 

I got the same car(pic) with an exclamation mark through the middle and was unable to keep the car running
although it would start up allright. Towed it to the Toyota Repair shop and found only a "no start related code"
after diagnosis and said they found some oil in the intake man. , performed a top eng. clean service , installed Toyota irridium plugs and replaced airfilter under hood , some of these things I could have done myself. However since I
was on the road I had it done, The car runs fine now, and I wonder if this is treatment will last .

 

Gary and all,
Just so you know, if you put the car in "R" or "D" b4 the engine starts, the car will give the symptoms indicated and revert to OutOfGas mode. It sounds like this is what might have happened. I have done this several times and it took a while for me to figure it out.

 

^^^
Personally, I would get the codes and post what they are here before spending time/money on blindly trying to "fix" problems.

 

I just about guarantee you that you put the car in D or R before the engine started. After driving this car for a while, you get so used to just turning the key to start then putting it in gear. Sometimes you actually beat the computers in the car and it gets in gear before the engine starts. This really freaks out the ECU's (probably due to an unexpected sequence) and it throws codes (TOD and CEL and Exclamation)and forces the car into OOG mode.

The way to know this happened is the codes and lights (obviously), the engine won't start and the car will only have electric power for acceleration. If you pull over, turn the car off, wait 30 sec's, turn it back on, let the engine start and then put it in drive, the car will function normally (all the lights will remain on). To clear the codes, four cycles of the ignition switch will clear all but the CEL and if there are no other problems, the CEL will clear with time.

This is an anomaly common only to the Gen I.

I do agree w/ cwerdna though that the best idea is to have the codes read b4 fixing anything. I've never been a fan of fixing things b4 I know their broke.

 

What is meant by "the triangle is persistent"? When you say it clears w/in a half day, is that 4 cycles of the ignition/key? Does the triangle clear?

 

While it is best to have someone with a hybrid capable scanner read all possible codes, you can have AutoZone or similar read the codes for free...Engine/emissions related codes can usually be read by the cheapo scanners and that is better than no scan at all.

 

I just noticed you're in California. You're SOL. For some reason CA stopped allowing parts stores to do free scans...you could buy a cheapo scanner at Autozone or Harbor Freight to have in your toolbox....like I said, a crappy scanner is better than no scanner. If you have an Android device with Bluetooth you could get Torque and a dongle like this one Amazon.com: Soliport ELM 327 Bluetooth OBDII OBD2 Diagnostic Scanner: Automotive

 

Don't forget there's also the ScanGauge II, which you can buy right here and support PriusChat. It can function as a standard code scanner, plus you can program it to extract Prius-specific codes and information from the HV and battery ECUs using XGAUGE codes you can find in this forum.

To use it in the Gen 1 Prius you need a slightly different cable, which the manufacturer will send you at no cost when you tell them you have a Gen 1.

-Chap

 

Allright, let's take a step back and make sure we have all the data correct in our (my) minds.

Here's the symptoms as I see them
1) When you turn the car on in the morning, you get, TOD, CEL and Exclamation (every day???)
2) Half way through the day, all 3 indications clear (how many cycles of the ignition?)
3) The next day the same thing starts over?

Regardless of whether or not this is the exact scenario, for us to properly troubleshoot it, we need to know 4 things

1) Are you 100% certain you are not putting the car in gear b4 the ICE fires up?
2) If yes on 1), then the codes need to be read and the results posted here
3) Are there any driveability issues at all (decreased mpg, decrease in power, missing etc)?
4) What is the voltage on the 12V battery at rest and under load?

 

Hey Gary,
Well, we're getting somewhere. When you answered question 1), you say

I wouldn't put my life on it, but I'm pretty confident that this is not the problem. I know that while the problem was happening I have cycled the car on and off several times, never putting it into gear at all and the problem would still present. ​

Regarding "the problem would still present", what would it present? Is the answer TOD, CEL and Exclamation but no driveability problems? If so, it is very likely you put the car in gear b4 the engine started.

 

Yes, if the errors (TOD, CEL etc) were not cleared by either unhooking the battery or 4 or more cycles of the ignition switch.

What I'm saying is, If you initially placed the car in gear prior to the ICE starting, you will get the error lights (TOD etc). If you turn the car off and back on, the lights will not go away but the car will operate normally. If you disconnect and reconnect the 12V battery, the lights will go away or, if you cycle the ignition switch 4 times, the TOD and Exclamation will go away (provided no "real" faults exist). The CEL will go away after 5 or 6 cycles of the ignition switch.

The possibility that you may have previously placed the car in gear prior to the engine starting (ie a month ago), would not cause the errors to display. They will only display right when you do it. If the errors are coming up without putting the car in gear, your problem is not related to this anamoly.