Suddenly getting a Check Engine light and code P0011 on my 2008 Prius. Any cheap/DIY suggestions?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by wowbobwow, Jun 18, 2016.

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  1. wowbobwow

    wowbobwow Junior Member

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    Took my family on a nice long drive into the redwood forests of Northern California early this morning in my 2008 Toyota Prius Touring Edition (the sexiest version of the worlds least-sexy car), and all was well until we were headed for home a couple hours ago. I got a Check Engine Light while at a drive-thru, and my "Automatic" adapter reports this:

    [​IMG]

    I drove the remaining ~60 miles home without incident, and the engine seems to be running smoothly and I don't notice any loss of power or rough idling or anything along those lines.

    Going by the first few Google results, a P0011 error could indicate a few things:

    • Incorrect camshaft timing
    • Wiring problems (harness/wiring) in intake timing control valve control solenoid system
    • Continuous oil flow to VCT piston chamber
    • Failed timing valve control solenoid (stuck open)

    I've had this car for ~3 years and have always been super careful about regular oil changes and maintenance, including dropping an ungodly amount of money getting the "full 100,000 mile service package" at the dealership ~6 months ago.

    I'm no greasemonkey, but if there are any things I can try doing myself before I resort to paying a mechanic, I'd really like to try - money is pretty tight these days. Anyone have any suggestions or guidance on what I should do next?

    TL;DR: Suddenly getting a P0011 error code and Check Engine light on a well-maintained 2008 Prius w/ 112,000 miles. Any DIY or inexpensive things I can attempt before I resort to taking it to a mechanic or dealership and (potentially) going broke?
     
    #1 wowbobwow, Jun 18, 2016
  2. S Keith

    S Keith Senior Member

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    From the repair manual:

    HINT:
    *: DTC P0011 or P0012 is output when a foreign object in
    engine oil is caught in some part of the system.
    These codes will stay registered even if the system returns to
    normal after a short time. Foreign objects are filtered out by
    the oil filter.

    Based on that and the lack of other symptoms, I would disconnect the large white connector from the 12V battery for a few minutes, reconnect and see if it returns.
     
    #2 S Keith, Jun 18, 2016
    Last edited: Jun 18, 2016
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  3. wowbobwow

    wowbobwow Junior Member

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    That's a great tip - thanks! I'm going to run downstairs and give it a try - please cross your fingers for me...

    :)

    Huxley
     
    #3 wowbobwow, Jun 18, 2016
  4. wowbobwow

    wowbobwow Junior Member

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    Well, I gave it a shot and so far, so good. I pulled all three "white" plugs (two from the battery, one from the black box next to the battery) and let it sit for ~20 minutes while I applied some fresh Rain-X and wiper blades. When I reconnected everything and fired her up, the Check Engine light was off and stayed off during an 11-mile test drive, during which I did a few cautious hard accelerations and brakes.

    I know the CEL might turn on again if the issue isn't solved, but at least I feel better than I was able to try this approach as a starting point. Thanks again!

    Huxley
     
    #4 wowbobwow, Jun 18, 2016
  5. ILuvMyPriusToo

    ILuvMyPriusToo Senior Member

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    Good luck! Hope it stays away!
     
    #5 ILuvMyPriusToo, Jun 18, 2016
  6. S Keith

    S Keith Senior Member

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    The single large white plug is the only one that matters.
     
    #6 S Keith, Jun 18, 2016
  7. ccdisce

    ccdisce Active Member

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    My experience with a device that stays connected to the OBD2 aka DLC has not been exemplary over the past 5 years.
    I no longer leave a unit attached there as the potential of bad things happening as a consequence, I am not willing to deal with.
     
    #7 ccdisce, Jun 20, 2016
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  8. DonDNH

    DonDNH Senior Member

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    If there was something circulating in your oil that caused these codes, it might be a good time to have the oil and filter changed.
     
    #8 DonDNH, Jun 21, 2016
  9. wowbobwow

    wowbobwow Junior Member

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    Hi everyone!

    I was out running around town last week taking care of last-minute stuff before a business trip, and when I pulled into a grocery store parking lot and took a parking space, I noticed that my engine was running very strangely - a strong shudder or surge every couple seconds until I turned the car off. When I turned the car back on to drive home, the shuddering was gone but the Check Engine light was back, and my Automatic is once again reporting the same error code (P0011) that prompted the original post in this thread last year. I'm going to get it checked out by a local hybrid specialist, but I'm curious - the last time I got that code I was on a road-trip and had zero noticeable issues with the car (no shudders or surges, no drop in mileage, etc.), and after clearing the code the car has performed beautifully ever since last week.

    Given the update above, do you guys think I'm facing a serious / expensive repair, or does this still sound consistent with some crud being stuck in the oil filter? I'm getting nervous about the possible costs of a timing-chain replacement or something similar...
     
    #9 wowbobwow, Mar 2, 2017
  10. edthefox5

    edthefox5 Senior Member

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    I suspect your having oil related issues. This may have something to do with the VVT system and it's associated filter. If poorly maintained the vvt oil filter may be clogged.

    Answer these questions:

    How long have you owned the car
    How often is the oil changed and what viscosity and by who. The by who is the most important to me
    How often do you personally check the oil
     
    #10 edthefox5, Mar 2, 2017
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  11. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

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    You always pay to have your maintenance done, so you're kinda at the mercy of the tech that you go to or have BEEN to.

    You mentioned in the OP that the dealership charged a lot of money to do the 100,000 mile maintenance, but they may have "forgotten" to replace the oil filter cartridge, or or replaced it with a defective filter element.
    Have you been checking your oil about once a month?

    Since the code is repeatable I'd be tempted to have the oil changed immediately (not at a dealer!) and clear the code again as you did 6 months ago.
    Remember.....your car has over 100,000 miles on it now!
    There's no shame in that, all of mine do as well, but that means that you have to be more careful about monitoring fluids.

    Good Luck!
    Let us know....
     
    #11 ETC(SS), Mar 2, 2017
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  12. ccdisce

    ccdisce Active Member

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    You may want to contact Automatic tech support, if you have not done so already, to see if any other Prius Gen2 user has reported a similar issue.
     
    #12 ccdisce, Mar 2, 2017
  13. edthefox5

    edthefox5 Senior Member

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    What is automatic tech support?
     
    #13 edthefox5, Mar 3, 2017
  14. edthefox5

    edthefox5 Senior Member

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    Why are you calling it your automatic? This car does not have an automatic transmission.
     
    #14 edthefox5, Mar 3, 2017
  15. ccdisce

    ccdisce Active Member

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    you may want to visit http://www.automatic.com as it seems to be a 3G telematics dongle that he has placed on the Prius DLC3 port.
     
    #15 ccdisce, Mar 4, 2017
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  16. edthefox5

    edthefox5 Senior Member

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    oh thank you first I have heard of it.
     
    #16 edthefox5, Mar 4, 2017
  17. johnjohnchu

    johnjohnchu Active Member

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    After a major engine rebuilt a few years ago, the tech did not install the oil control valve filter. I started to get P0011 once in a while without any noticeable performance degradation. This usually occurs during a multi-hour long drive in a hot day. I then installed a new oil control valve filter when the code first showed up. However, it did not really resolve the issue and the error code always come back once in a while. I normally just clear the code or sometimes it would just clear by itself. Do not know if this is something that I need to be concerned.
     
    #17 johnjohnchu, Jul 27, 2017
  18. edthefox5

    edthefox5 Senior Member

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    Answer post #10.
     
    #18 edthefox5, Jul 27, 2017
  19. dvancleve

    dvancleve Junior Member

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    Old thread, but seems most applicable to my situation...

    One owner 2006 with about 173K miles on it, CEL came on this afternoon with no discernible change in the car. I stopped by O’Reilly on my way home, they said P0011 was the only code. They said replacing the camshaft position sensor should fix it, but after an hour plus of Googling and reading I’m not so sure...

    I was surprised that there is not much here on PC about it, and this thread doesn’t seem to have any resolution posted. I have done all the oil changes on the car, I don’t think it’s ever gone over 7500 miles between changes. It’s had full synthetic or semi-synthetic 5w20 or 5w30 most of the time, usually with a better than average filter, some conventional here or there because most of what I read said this engine is very easy on oil. The car has never used any consequential amount of oil and doesn’t leak at all, so most of the time I only check it when I’m changing it, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen it even a bit low on the dipstick.

    Any thoughts, or did I miss something good here on PC? Also, should I worry about continuing to drive it?

    Thanks, Doug
     
    #19 dvancleve, Dec 4, 2018
    Last edited: Dec 4, 2018
  20. timespell

    timespell Member

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    Hi Doug, how did you make out?
     
    #20 timespell, Dec 30, 2018
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