First start up in a week.. Ah!

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Aaron Vitolins, Aug 2, 2015.

  1. Aaron Vitolins

    Aaron Vitolins Senior Member

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    Well my family and I just got back from a week long vaction in SC last night, this morning a went to start my lovely little prius. I got in and it powered right up (yay! i didn't have any doubt it wouldn't.. i mean come on its a toyota! :) ) but after 7 seconds the ICE fired up like normal except it sounded AWFUL!

    The gas engine sounded like a wild mustang bucking back and forth and loud knocking sound for the first 15 seconds or so. it was truly awful sounding! I just imagine scaring on the cylinder walls and such, in a way i feel guilty for starting it up, but it had to be done.

    i let the car warm up for about a minute or two before i drove away. the oil i at the proper level and the car was fully warm when i parked it, so the engine had stopped on its own before the week long sit.

    i can only imagine if this was in freezing weather and it had sat for more than a week. my oh my!

    Just wanted to share and see if anyone has had anything similar happen/or any advice maybe?
    it sounded like the mysterious engine knock on the gen. 3 Prius, maybe only worse
     
    #1 Aaron Vitolins, Aug 2, 2015
  2. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    Your car probably had an engine misfire in one cylinder, due to a slight amount of moisture in a spark plug well. If it went away and does not come back then I would not be concerned.

    If it does come back, then check the tightness of the wiring harness connectors to the spark igniters and the fuel injectors.
     
    #2 Patrick Wong, Aug 2, 2015
  3. Aaron Vitolins

    Aaron Vitolins Senior Member

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    Thanks! You know now that you say that, that's what it sounded like (running on 3 cylinders). But I have noticed when I start it up daily there is a ever so slight misfire right at first I think. Not real sure. It doesn't really run very smooth on initial start up.

    I use fuel injector cleaner and it got new spark plugs 30,000 miles ago
     
    #3 Aaron Vitolins, Aug 2, 2015
  4. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    If you want to know what running on three cylinders sounds like, remove the connector to one of the spark igniters as the engine is running.
     
    #4 Patrick Wong, Aug 2, 2015
  5. Aaron Vitolins

    Aaron Vitolins Senior Member

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    I've seen a video on YouTube of a Prius running on 3 cylinders, and I must say it sounded pretty similar
    merged

    merged
    Sounded like that maybe more violent due to built up moisture from sitting for a week
     
    #5 Aaron Vitolins, Aug 2, 2015
    Last edited by a moderator: Aug 6, 2015
  6. geekwithoutacause

    geekwithoutacause Junior Member

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    Get mini-vci and see if any misfires are reported. If the plugs were replaced 30k ago it might be a coil.
     
    #6 geekwithoutacause, Aug 6, 2015
  7. Aaron Vitolins

    Aaron Vitolins Senior Member

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    I have thought about that but I don't have a PC or a laptop. Only have an iPad, android tablet, and android phone
     
    #7 Aaron Vitolins, Aug 6, 2015
  8. JTM2955

    JTM2955 Active Member

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    Your Prius is suffering from "lot rot". Did you move the Prius shortly before parking it for a week? It is possible that the catalyst filled with vapor which condensed into a liquid.
    It started and shook because it needed to warm up and clear the cat.
    We all forget that the engine is an air compressor and pump. It can pull air in but if it can't push the exhaust out the tail pipe, it will run "funny" and possibly stall.

    Always drive your car, if possible, at a minimum of five miles ten miles is even better. Just my opinion, an old technician that did drivability for years.

    se
     
    #8 JTM2955, Aug 6, 2015
  9. geekwithoutacause

    geekwithoutacause Junior Member

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    Get torque pro and a bluetooth dongle. I think it also shows misfires. Add the prius pid settings to get a ton of readings.

    Thinking of that , it could also be a leaky injector that leaks fuel into the combustion chamber after it is parked. Who knows. It could be a million things.
     
    #9 geekwithoutacause, Aug 6, 2015
    Aaron Vitolins and JTM2955 like this.
  10. gdanner

    gdanner Member

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    How much misfire needs to happen before Prius throws a DTC code?

    I've occasionally felt some "rough running" from my ICE but it always resolves itself very quickly.

    My 2005 Prius with 83k miles still has the original OEM sparkplugs. Should I change them before too long?
     
    #10 gdanner, Aug 6, 2015
  11. geekwithoutacause

    geekwithoutacause Junior Member

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    It won't set a code right away, but with the proper diagnostics you can see the counters.

    83K it shouldn't be needed yet but you never know. It's an easy DIY job and doesn't cost much in parts. Use oem plugs and not some fancy advertised plug. Prevents possible issues.
     
    #11 geekwithoutacause, Aug 6, 2015
  12. Aaron Vitolins

    Aaron Vitolins Senior Member

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    The engine was hot when I parked it. I had read about this issue over the last year or so on here so I made sure not to do that. Still sounded horrible
    Merged
    I think I'll do that!
     
    #12 Aaron Vitolins, Aug 6, 2015
    Last edited by a moderator: Aug 6, 2015
  13. Aaron Vitolins

    Aaron Vitolins Senior Member

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    Got a Bluetooth obd2 and torque pro app. Still learning how to work it. Can't figure out the custom Prius PIDS though...

    No codes or anything, just had some fun looking at engine rpm while driving! Pretty cool
     
    #13 Aaron Vitolins, Aug 10, 2015
  14. Aaron Vitolins

    Aaron Vitolins Senior Member

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    Amy ideas for things to do or look for? Thanks!
     
    #14 Aaron Vitolins, Aug 10, 2015
  15. geekwithoutacause

    geekwithoutacause Junior Member

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    definitely get the custom prius pid's working, they give you a TON more data to look at.
     
    #15 geekwithoutacause, Aug 11, 2015
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