Anybody feel little kicks, with the ICE running?

Generally speaking where are you? What are your temp's like? In backing up the ICE is providing no power to the wheels and will start briefly then shut down. If any of the cylinders misfires you would get a check engine light. Give us a bit more information and we can give you an idea it your car is behaving with in normal limits or not.

 

When the ICE is cold, it usually feels "rough" when start/stop.
After it warms up, it's pretty "smooth".

 

I'm not sure if this is what you're refering to, but there is a bit of a "shudder" when the ICE shuts off (at least in the 2005). From what I've read, this comes from the HSD system trying to eek as much power out of the gas engine as it can. I've definately noticed the car shudder a bit when we've pulled up to lights and the ICE has shut off.

OTOH, your problem sounds a little more severe? The fact that the car lurches distinguishes your problem from this one, I think.

 

I have sometimes noticed a slight shudder when the ICE shuts down but only when the car is coming to a complete stop - and then only sometimes. When the car is moving and the MFD shows that the ICE just shut down I would never have known were it not for the display.

 

I think I may be experiencing what the OP's talking about (which isn't the shut-down shudder).

I've recently had the engine seeming quite rough during warm-up. It's not idling smoothly - it keeps giving little kicks that can be felt through the drivetrain.

I think this may have started since its recent 1-year service.

 

I get the SAME thing. BOTH: sometimes "rough" shutdowns, and the little "misfires", just like you said, at intersections it's particularly noticable.

Thing is, it only happens occasionally, and typically only when it's cold. IMO, I'd only be concerned if this is the way it was ALL the time.

 

You're right. It's not broken in at all - only about 450 miles total. So all of this is very new to me. The slight shudder is hardly noticeable and I don't consider it a problem although it IS noticeable. We are moving from NY to Florida in 4 months so ET will be living in warm weather all the time. I'll be watching to see if this goes away with a few extra miles and the warm weather. Thanks for the information.

Richard

 

Not knowing what part of the country you are in makes it difficult to compare. I have an 05 and living in Sacramento I have had only very mild symptoms comparable to yours. The slight shudder I put down to normal Prius design. As for reverse op, my engine never apparently comes on and backs up entirely on HV, as designed. If you had any real misfiring it would usually occur at high speed for a prolonged period. Basically I would ignore all the problems you described and get used to the cars normal, or somewhat paranormal operation. The Prius is an entirely different concept and I am actually amazed it works so good. IF, you think you really have a problem, by all means take it to the dealer. Andy. AMPG Trip= 54MPG

 

Rarely will my ICE run roughly. Usually, it has just started and appears to be transitioning from charging the HV to "freewheeling," at least according to the MFD.

In winter city driving, now that I have the winter front, the ICE will shut down even at -30 C. Though it will usually shudder at those temps if driven in city traffic.

If I'm on the highway for 1-2 hours, then upon entering the city the ICE will *always* shutdown smoothly at red lights with no shudder.

If it truly was a misfire, the MIL will turn on and a misfire code will be set.

 

An engine that is misfiring and one that is just shuddering at shutdown are two completely different things. A misfire is pretty violent, and fairly loud. The ICE shudder is very non-violent and quiet. You feel it less than you hear it. My Prius is over a year old now and it still shudders at its first shutdown when cold and the vehicle finally decides it can turn off the ICE at a light. Also, when at a light and the ICE is running to warm up there is a bit of engine shake, what I believe is the shudder some of you are experiencing, and that is mild and goes away when the vehicle is up to temp. There is a lot of fuel air metering going on with the Prius and it doesn't surprise me that there is a bit of idle shake if the vehicle is running the F/A mixture as lean as possible.

By far this 4-cylinder is one of the tamest and refined ones I have ever driven. It isn't particularly loud, and it is very smooth when operating at cruise speeds. My frame of reference is the very "agricultural" 4-cylinders built by the domestics 20+ years ago. They were good 4-cylinders, but very low RPM, lower HP and moderate torque. It doesn't help that they were predominantly cast iron, timing chain, and pushrod designs. That tends to put a lot of drag on the internal workings of the engine reducing efficiency and potential for performance.

 

yep. and this is how you know your engine isn't misfiring.

 

Well as I understand it can get a bit cold. I don't know how far north you are but with a new car and cold temps you are going to get a shutter.

 

My new '06 with 155 miles on it has what I would consider a misfire while idling during warm up. Sitting at a light with the ICE running, I'll feel a slight shutter through the whole car. The engine is still running and continues to run when this happens. It does it semi-regularly like every 10 seconds or so. There are no warnings or other indicators.

I say "misfire" because if any of my other cars were doing this, I'd take it to the shop and tell the mechanic that it's misfiring or running rough.

Hopefully, this will work itself out after a little break-in.

I'm in mid-missouri, usa and the high temp two days ago was about 22F, today it was 55+. That's missouri for you.

 

definitely not a misfire. you'd get a whole set of warning lights if it was.

sounds like it's trying to decide whether to kick the engine off or leave it on.

it does take some getting used to- it's not one of your regular cars that's for sure!

 

we do have a few people here with canview/scangauge and my husband has all the toyota diag stuff at work- but most of us have cars that are already well broken in. we'd need a "tester" vehicle.

the prius has a programmed "idle creep" and i'm not sure if that would consitute the lurch you mention. probably not.

also don't know if this was mentioned before (just glanced over the thread to remind myself) but when the engine decides to shut down it does burn off the last bit of gas so as not to send it on through the exhaust (emissions and such) which makes it run rough for a second before shutting down. if it then decides to start back up again it could very well feel really funny to the driver.

just brainstorming...