NEW!!! Service Bulletin for Engine Knocking at Startup T-SB 0012-10

You really need the entire overhaul gasket kit to do the job properly. There are a lot of o-rings and gaskets which will need replacement. All of the internal o-rings were rock hard for me. Toyota #04111-37315 was the kit I used.

 

This was just an example of relative pricing, Toyota vs. aftermarket. Not intended to be a complete parts list for the job. For the gasket set, it's $130 aftermarket at Rock Auto vs. $172 Toyota. That's pretty much a no-brainer to spend the few extra bucks on parts that will reliably fit.

 

My priority was to find something same day that I could return if theres a problem. Rockauto takes close to 10 days for me to get parts, although they are usually the cheapest.Toyota wanted 218 for the head gasket kit and had to order it, where napa had it in stock and was like 127 with their second saturday discount. Bolts were 44 versus 89 through toyota, also had to order. What happened to dealers having parts in stock? I never had to special order anything at honda...and its not like the prius is a rare and old car.

So the bolt range says between 5.78 to 5.82, replace above 5.87 inches. 0.09 inches is a lot! I dont know how that compares with other cars. Fyi, the felpros are around 5.72

Another fyi, the car has 213k miles, but all the rubber is pretty soft. Its harder than the new seals im replacing, but not by much. Im impressed how new they feel...probably wont leak till 300k. My lexus had rock hard seals at 100k and 6 years of age.

 

Another good reason to buy the Toyota parts - good quality stuff there.

In my experience, they can get them quickly in most cases. If they are working on your car and using Toyota parts, they aren't waiting a week. They get them next day. Perhaps a different dealer might have better response.

I sympathize with you though. Car is down, you want it running again, can't get the parts you want, sometimes have to go with the parts you can get. If these parts last you 100K, that's pretty much end of life on that car anyway, so you're set.

 

I found a dealership here in Dallas which has good online prices, an online store and has a 'pick up in store' option; toyota of dallas:

Online Parts Shop | Toyota of Dallas

I hope this helps anyone here in town, as it sure could have helped me if Id have known last week.

 

Total of 5000 kilometers

 

So I replaced the head gasket myself with the diy posted on YouTube , the car is running good

 

With the diy youtube video , I found a few easier steps. Do not remove the fuel rail. Just disconnect at the fuel wall . Also disconnecting the exhaust manifold right before you pull the head is a easier access. Also disconnecting the bottom radiator hose is easier then removing the thermostat housing. The job was not that hard if you are mechanically inclined.

Also having Milwaukee electric tools made the job even faster.

 

Thank you for the video. I have a 2011 with 245k miles and mine sounded just like this during start up this morning. Outside temp was about 38 degrees this morning. Looking through this thread, I'm still confused on what the issue could be? I just had recent oil change oil level was right in middle, coolant looks clear and within normal range as well. I have about 40k miles on current spark plugs.

Other notes - Original 12V battery still, No smoking when driving, shuddering stops after about 10 seconds, and no codes have been thrown that I'm aware of / no "warning" lights or check engine lights have been displayed on the dash.

Any suggestions? Thank you in advance.

 

Join the lawsuit thread and be part of it. You’re experiencing the same thing

 

EGR cleaning?

 

This is starting to remind me more and more, of some support group, where people stumble in, only to find it's join the queue time.

 

Really? 245k miles and the engine starts making some noise, and that's lawsuit territory?

You should see what engine defects in Porsche Cayennes and 911s (newer ones) do, costing much more $$$, with no help from Porsche. And the industry is filled with defective designs that really have no manufacturer liability. Personally, I'd be happy with 245k from my Prius, but I do read up on here to see what I can do to get it to infinity miles.

 

Will give it a try. A local hybrid shop wants 135$ just to take a look at my car. I'm kinda partial to this thing it's been fun putting all these miles on it. It looks like brand new still. Should I try replacing plugs, ignition coils, and other things just as a preventative as well as cleaning the EGR?

 

can someone please edit the thread title to: OLD!!!

 

EGR, PVC, and Catch Can should be your first items. Plugs if they been in the car over 120k miles.

 

OH, my gosh! Glad I read this thread. I just realized that I had my car through the carwash the day before! Maybe that could have caused the rattling when I started next morning. It wasn't that cold, maybe 40's.

 

Just to be clear, it's not the wash that was the problem, it was the fact that the car was started and stopped without allowing it to warm up fully in between (possibly combined with the lower temps). The problem showed up for me when I was backing the car out of the garage (cold), shutting it off (still cold), and then firing it back up and pulling it back into the garage an hour later without ever letting the engine reach operating temperatures. Boom. Engine shaking commences for a while, and not knowing what it was, I just kept driving it without cleaning any exhaust-related items. Fast forward to me replacing the head gasket, adding a catch can, and being a lot more careful to only run the car on the electric motor when I'm doing a quick garage-to-driveway move!

 

I know this thread is old, but I wanted to see what you guys think. I took my car in for warranty/recalls back in February, and I asked about a recall for engine knocking. They told me they had something in the system for the EGR valve, but they would have to perform a diagnosis before they could approve the service. They ended up replacing the valve. I don't remember if they did anything else.

Anyways, my car has been sitting for a while recently, with the front end jacked up while I slowly do some work on it. I started the car up, and I hear loud rattling/knocking. Should I take it in to the dealership, or figure it out on my own? Would the dealership do anything further without cost to me, considering they did the EGR valve earlier this year?

 

They probably didn't do any cleaning to the EGR cooler, or the EGR passageways in the intake manifold. Getting these "professionals" to do anything is an exercise in frustration, too little, too late. It sounds like you've got the ability, space and tools to DIY; I would go for it.

How many miles on it btw. If the miles are getting up, it "may" be beyond just clogging, head gasket failure commencing. But yeah, start with the cleaning, see what you've got.

Some info, just in case I haven't posted it for you before:

The simplest way to see where you're at, is to check the degree of carbon build up in the EGR pipe, a stainless steel connecting pipe between the EGR valve and intake manifold. Watch @NutzAboutBolts video #16 here:

Nutz About Bolts Prius Maintenance Videos | PriusChat

Two or three other videos linked there too, for the full cleaning of the intake manifold, full EGR clean, and Oil Catch Can install.

Good thread:

EGR & Intake Manifold Clean Results | PriusChat

Another:

Oil Catch Can, Eliminate that knock! | PriusChat

Some tools worth having:

E8 Torx socket (mandatory)
E6 Torx socket (optional, but good to have, to remove the throttle body studs from intake manifold)
3/8" ratchet wrench, regular and long handle, flex head, you can never have enough (or 1/2 plus reducer)
1/4" ratchet wrench, or 3/8" to 1/4" reducer
Ratchet extensions: you can never have enough
Long needle nose piers, straight and bent tip
Ratcheting 12mm box wrench (optional, but makes disconnection of the EGR cooler from exhaust easier)
Torque wrench (3/8" and 1/4" both good to have)
Floor jack and safety stands (or ramps): basically some method to raise front, if you need to take underpanel off, which you may need to, both for access and to recover dropped items.