Replacing the HSD

Has anyone had to have Toyota replace their HSD? What were your car's symptoms?

My mechanic told me the weird noise I'm experiencing when I accelerate (and only when I accelerate) is being caused by something in the hybrid engine.

It's at Toyota of Downtown Oakland now.

 

Actually, I went to "my" mechanic over the weekend to check out the noise and its source (and he did it for free...imagine that, dealers!). He's the one who told me to take it to the dealer because he says it's the hybrid. I'm in California, so my 2008 with 86k miles on it is still warrantied if its the hybrid. *crossing fingers its the hybrid*

The noise started about two weeks ago and I think it's getting worse. A wah-wah-wah-wah noise that gets faster and faster until it turns into a drone or is covered up by road noise at around 50 mph. There are no warning lights on.

Another "symptom" is that when I first start driving in the morning, it takes several miles (maybe 5-8) of freeway driving before my current MPG goes above about halfway between 0 and 20 MPGs. Even when I'm decelerating, braking, or going downhill. This started about a week ago.

I'm not the original owner, but my mom was and I bought it from her when her lease expired. So I'm as good as the original owner.

Yesterday, it was warm out and when I turned on the car, with the climate control turned to AUTO at 72 degrees, hot air was blowing out of the vents for the first few miles. Then the A/C finally kicked in.

My poor lil car!

 

What was the bad experience that led to your boycott of this dealer?

 

That's what I thought at first, but the noise goes away when you're doing anything other than accelerating. If it were a wheelbearing, you'd hear the noise when you were braking or cruising.

 

I just got a call back. The technicians were able to reproduce the noise and isolate it to either somewhere inside the hybrid engine/motor housing (?) or inside the differential case...I guess they're close together? Please pardon my ignorance: I am only just starting to read up on how exactly my car works, what with the continuously variable tranny and all.

(On a side note, my last car was a 1994 Land Rover Range Rover County LWB, which was constantly in the shop. I used to take home the old components and take them apart to see how they worked. I actually replaced the rear diff on that car after it started making such a hideous noise that I was afraid to drive it and had it towed 30 miles to the dealer. Ouch. That was a very different noise but also a very different car.)

In any case, no one at Toyota of Downtown Oakland has ever encountered this noise or this problem, so they've put in a call to the regional specialist. The service rep I've been working with said that even if it turns out to be the differential and not the HSD, he thinks I have a good chance of getting it repaired by Toyota for free because I only just passed the five-year mark (although I'm well above 60k miles at 86k) and I'm effectively the original owner.