Clicking Sound on Regen Braking

I thought I posted a follow-up. My service advisor was able to get them to do the alignment before I picked up the car (the service manager was not authorizing the alignment even though it s listed in the repair manual for replacing the axle). The next day I received a communication from Toyota National that the dealership will do the alignment as part of the TSB repair. It wasn't needed as the alignment was already completed. I can't imagine the service manager is very happy with me, but oh well...

 

Following on from my post #230 on 23 Jul above, here is an update.
The Toyota dealer replaced the front left drive-shaft today, with the car on about 21,000 miles.
I've had time to test it on a short drive (about 9 miles) and it appears to have fixed the clicking noise.
The warranty invoice only shows "replaced front driveshaft" and the part number for "shaft assy, f".
Now I hope to have many quiet miles in the Prius (apart from the blasted tyre-noise, of course!)

 

They are going to replace the second CV shaft!
After a week in the Prius I was sure I could hear some regen clicking noise again. Wound the driver's window down (it's a right-hand drive UK model) and sure enough you can hear it from outside. Not as loud as the old left-side shaft was, but the same noise.
I demonstrated it to the Toyota tech today and they are ordering a new right-side CV axle assembly. Once again the dealer was very good and made no fuss at all, they said they were happy to do it.
Update to follow when the rh shaft has been replaced....

 

Finally after 4 months of clicking sound i found the problem(xaxaxaxaxaxa) it costs to me 10€ for the 30min of my mechanic.. it was very annoying for 4 months because the prius is for taxi use. All begins to the insufficient lubrication of the outer cv joint. So the mechanic open the outer boot and filled in with some lubricant for gearboxes(sae75-90).. all these was for test.. after i went for a test drive and the ANNOYING SOUND was gone.. that’s the reason for them who replace the axle and after a few klm the sound was back. I m gone do it ro the orher cv joint next week

 

Update
The right side drive-shaft assy has now been replaced at about 22,400 miles by my dealer, so that's both of them done now. All under warranty and no fuss.
I've taken the car out for a test drive and could not hear any of that horrible clicking at all. So now I'll keep on driving as normal and hope that the problem is finally resolved.

 

You guys keep replacing etc. Might be just a waste of time as it will just come back. I have 115k miles on my 2016 and the clicking noise has been there since 22k. No issues other than "noise." I dont think it will break. Ill just deal with it.

 

I did have my left front CV axle replaced approximately 50,000 miles ago and the noise has not returned since. I believe that there is a manufacturing error or specific bad batch that works fine initially and then produces the noise after approximately 25,000 miles. I have gone much further than that now on my replacement and the noise has not returned.

It does appear that there are some people who get replacements that then exhibit the same problem, but it seems like more never have the problem again and there are plenty of priuses that have not ever exhibited the problem.


It would appear that this problem does not progress beyond just making noise while regen braking.

 

Here's an update since my posts #242, 243, 245.

I've now done over 5,000 miles since the second axle was replaced.
Since then I have not heard the clicking sound at all, not even once.

Of course it will take me over a year more to cover the 20,000+ miles that
it takes for a bad axle to wear enough to show up the problem. Hope
it will be fine now...

So far, so good

 

hello,
Mine was replaced using the TSB. However, the clicking has restarted. I read that here that the TSB was no longer valid? Glad to read some dealers were easy to work with and fixed without a fight. That wasn't my experience. Not sure if I have energy to go back and make them fix it again. It's just too much hassle. I haven't had good luck with Toyotas in general - I know many people who love theirs. Likely at some point in the near future, I'll trade her in for something else - perhaps a Honda Insight or a Ioniq...

 

Ugh...Do I have to read 13 pages to learn what the final solution is to this sound?

All the posts refer to "axle" or "drive axle" replacement. The SOUND everyone describes seems like CV joint clicking. The latest posts talk about a CV joint lubrication issue. Is it insufficient quantity, or improper quality of lube?

What's the verdict? Do "all them Prii" make this sound, and therefore it isn't indicative of a CV failure? We all know that a clicking CV joint is high-risk for failure, but NOT these cars??

I'm confused. Please clarify. Thanks!

 

I summarized the service bulletin in post #173 and mentioned its withdrawal in post #224; the latter post has a link to NHTSA’s copy of the original bulletin.

I speculated about this in post #181, but the situation is unclear. I haven’t seen anything explaining why Toyota issued the original bulletin, nor why they made it obsolete.

 

Thanks for the quick response.

 

My 2016 fourtouring has this clicking noise when slowing and turning right. I had previously posted a thread asking the forum about this issue; replies suggested I had rocks or pebbles in my tires. Sounded plausible and I have not done anything about it. The sound is still there, intermittently

Regarding dealer experiences – – my vehicle has been in for warranty repairs three times! My experience at three different dealers has been like owning three different cars

1. Cracked windshield and sensor calibration - Very expensive, dealers are snakes

2. Clunking in rear end due to loose suspension bolts - dealer kept my car for a week and never repaired it

3. Inoperative grill shutter - Dealer very helpful and cooperative, repaired within hours, and offered amenities. However complimentary car wash tore off my rear windshield wiper and messed up both front door handles.

Take away – – don’t bring your car in for repair unless you absolutely have to!

 

Thank you guys for all the pertinent information. I am at 59K+ miles and I have heard that clicking noise for at least a year now. I seemed very mild/soft and didn't impact drivability, so I have been ignoring it. Since I was coming to the end of my powertrain warrantee, I decided to see if this was something I should be concerned with, and found this thread. I took my 2017 Prime to the dealer today and I printed out a copy of the TSB (I didn't realize that it was withdrawn). The dealer just called to thank me for providing the TSB and making their research easier, and to inform me that the part will be replaced under warrantee, once they get it in stock tomorrow. I guess, we'll have to see what happens tomorrow.

 

HAHA! I've had countless dealer service depts challenge my research, and get downright nasty that I'm trying to tell them their business.

I'm now firmly committed to a dealership (Vandergriff Toyota, Arlington, TX) whose service director respects and encourages my research (as any service director should: they've got a ton of variables that they're dealing with, much like anyone in the medical profession).

I hope your axle replacement goes smoothly. Keep us posted. (You might want to post your dealer's name)

 

So, I’ve had major issues with this dealer and long conversations with the General Manager to resolve the issues. The last straw was then they filled it with oil without draining the dirty batch during an oil change. I always add a BG oil additive and that saved my engine. I popped the hood and the oil level was off the chart. The explanation was that the oil filler pump malfunctioned and overfilled. That didn’t explain the dirty oil, however. I didn’t have a chance to check if the filter was changed, but I have my doubts. So, I got no love for this dealer and going back was a necessary evil.


iPhone ?

 

Update on my dealer visit. They did replace the driver side axle under warrantee, but refused to do a front wheel alignment, even though the procedure called for it. Anyhow, I didn’t feel like wasting my time and I do have lifetime alignments with Firestone. Got that done today. So glad I don’t have to go back to the dealer ever again.


iPhone ?

 

Hello Dmitriy, when my front axle was replaced (thanks to this thread, I had a copy of the TSB that I brought to the dealer), the dealer I went to also initially refused to perform the alignment even though it is specified in the manual for replacement of the front axle. A kind soul on here posted a copy of the service manual page. I ended up calling the Toyota Regional office and filed a grievance and quoted the page and item number of the repair and required alignment. My point was that if brought the vehicle in for replacement of the axle, would an alignment be performed? As I knew the answer was "yes", I asked them how this was different? In the end, the service person I worked with was able to convince the Service Manager to agree to do the alignment. The next day, I received an email from Toyota Regional that the dealer "agreed" to perform the alignment and I should bring the car in for this service. Since it had already been done, I didn't bring it back, but if it hadn't been performed while the car was there, I would have been inconvenienced (and really pissed) that I would need to bring the vehicle back again for something they should have agreed to and done while the car was there, without any pressure from anyone!

Anyway, after a few months, my Prius started making the same clicking noise as prior to the repair, and since the TSB was already withdrawn, and I was already done with spending so much time with this problem, I didn't do anything. But I would be sure to monitor it as time goes by to see if the issue re-occurs.

 

It seems that I have the "Clicking Sound on Regen Braking." So based on the obsolete TSB and this thread, apparently a new axle is required because of a faulty CV joint, or insufficiently greased CV joint. If this is the case, then why does it make noise ONLY when regen braking is being used??? Shouldn't it make noise with regular driving, and non-regen braking? [In addition to the clicking, I experienced some pretty bad vibration/steering wheel shuddering one time on a moderate downhill while applying the brakes hard a few times.]

 

Start with a thorough brake service: disassemble, clean, inspect and relube.