P3193 code

raspberry,

DO-IT-YOURSELF TEST PROCEDURE (thanks to jdenenberg):
- Without brake pedal, press the Power button once and release to enter ACC mode
- Press and hold the MFD Info button, then turn the headlights on and off three times to enter Maintenance mode; release Info button
- Press “Menu” (on screen)
- Press “Display Check”
- Press “Vehicle Signal Check” - the battery voltage is shown and should be about 12.4 to 12.8 Volts (normal for an unloaded battery)

The above is the way to begin the test and the end of above is the first voltage reading that is wanted to be known. Some folks refer to this as "Accessory Mode"

- Again without brake pedal, press Power button and release to put a current load on the battery - the voltage should stay above 12.0V (if less than 12.0V the battery is not well, or there is a fault or unusual load somewhere)

The second reading is above, and the voltage reading then would be the second reading that is wanted to be known. Some folks refer this to be "Ignition On Mode"

- Press brake pedal and press Power button once to enter "Ready" mode - the battery is now charging at about 14V (if less than 13.6V or more than 14.4 there may be a problem with the charging circuit)

The above is the last step in the test. It is commonly referred to as "Ready Mode"

- Turn car OFF to leave Maintenance mode

No one knows better about your finances than you do. However you can not ignore that your Prius requires gasoline to operate normally. If you are going to drive a vehicle that requires fuel, it is part of driving that vehicle that required regular maintenance is taken care of. That includes adding fuel as needed. I understand the money is tight. Most of us here including myself live on a budget. The thing is this, if you can't afford to put fuel in the vehicle you drive you either need to change your budget or drive less. I know this sounds stupid, harsh and all of that. But facts are facts, all gasoline powered engines require fuel to operate. They will not operate if there is no fuel in the tank.

You are not the first person to run out of gas in a Prius. The bladder creates problems when trying to calculate "range" which is what you are doing. The Prius doesn't hold 12 gallons of fuel, and furthermore does not use all of the fuel that is in the bladder. To complicate matters further, the volume of the bladder changes due to ambient temperature. Plus the MPG of the Prius will vary due to weather conditions. My best advice to you is to always add fuel to the Prius when two pips appear. If you can't fill it up, at least put a MINIMUM of three gallons of fuel in the tank and then refill at a later point. Just don't drive it when it is low like you are doing now and chances are you will not run out of fuel after that.

Try running the test above and report back the voltages you read in a format similar to the following.

Accessory Mode:
Ignition On Mode:
Ready Mode:

Make sure you run the test first thing in the morning. Also, when you run the test after you have flashed the lights three times like what it suggested, keep the lights off as well as the fan off with the climate control and also be sure that the rear defroster is off. Those three items will lower the voltage and make your battery appear weaker than it really is. Also, if you have "high intensity head lightlights", you can flash the lights by simply turning on and off the parking lights only rather than the headlights. This will put less wear and tear on the headlight bulbs.

Ron (dorunron)

 

May I suggest two scenarios that might change your belief about what is possible:

- The gasoline pump that you used had a bad metering device. You paid for 8 gallons but in fact received 5, or
- You believe you drove 200 miles but in fact drove 300 miles, or some combination of both of these.

The Prius engine ECU has internal logic that determines when it posts DTC P3193. Two things have to happen:

1) For 100 engine revolutions or more, and for six seconds or more, the engine has to either produce less torque than expected or be in a no-start situation AND,
2) The combination meter ECU has to report an out-of-fuel situation is present.

Is it possible that the Prius engine ECU logic is working in a faulty manner? Yes.

You will need to consider how firm you are in your belief that it was impossible for you to have run out of gas, and compare to the likelihood that the Prius engine ECU made a mistake.

If you are totally confident that you made no mistake, then you will end up spending money looking for reasons that the Prius erroneously reported being out of fuel, such as testing the fuel rail pressure, replacing the fuel tank, etc.

If you can be open to the possibility that some room for error on your part is present, then you will try something new. For example, keep your fuel gauge at 4 bars or more at all times, and see what happens.

Should you do that, and still get an out-of-fuel indication, that will give you greater confidence that something is actually wrong with your Prius (besides having a flaky fuel gauge which is a well-known "feature" of Classic and 2G Prius.) Good luck.

 

What we have here is a failure to follow procedure. ​

BTW raspberry. Don't worry, I didn't see your post as particularly abusive either. Just as being adamant that you didn't run out of fuel and a bit frustrated with the whole thing.

Now, have another go at testing the battery and follow the procedure carefully. You should end up with three different voltage readings, all of them important. Start the test after the Prius has been off for at least several hours (preferably overnight) and make *sure* you don't put your foot on the brake when you push the power button until you're ready to take the very last of the three readings.

 

I would leave it be and see if the light comes back. You could spend a lot chasing a mystery.

 

Hmmm. I am beginning to think that folks have selective reading.

12 volts at what part of the test?

Remember there are three parts to the test.

12.0 volts depending on which part of the test could be ok or not so great.

So which mode is 12 volts?

Accessory Mode: ?
Ignition On Mode: ?
Ready Mode: ?

 

Ok, so we know your voltage for accessory mode is 12.0 volts

We also know that in ready mode the voltage is 13.9

What is the value for ignition on mode?

As stated more than once all three (3) values need to be known.

I never said the value for ignition on mode is not what I was looking for. I did however say that 13.9 volts only tells you that the charging system is working properly. And that the 13.9 volts does not give you an idea of the charge in the battery itself.

You asked what's the difference between ignition on mode and ready mode. Very simple. In Ready Mode the car will display Ready, and you can drive the car normally. Also you should see no warning lights on the dash. In Ignition On Mode, you can not drive the car - you will not see Ready on the dash - you will see several warning lights on the dash - and the voltage will read significantly less on the 12 volt than it would in "Ready Mode".

I am going to ask you one more time.

Please run the test at the top of this page and post all three values in the correct format. It is as plain and simple as that. The instructions are very clear. If you can't do that, then we really can't give you sound advice.

 

Please carefully read post #21 which provides instructions. Start with the car IG-OFF, where the instrument panel is dark.

Notice that the concept is that you press the POWER button once without pressing the brake pedal. By doing that, you will first enter ACC-ON mode. Take a voltage reading as explained in post #21.

Then press the POWER button again without pressing the brake pedal. That moves the car to IG-ON mode. Take another voltage reading.

Finally, press the brake pedal while pressing POWER. That moves you to READY. Take a third voltage reading.

Hence, you can see that it is possible for you to cycle the car through the three possible "on" modes, one at a time.

 

Yeah that's true. The other post you're referring to has the best way to get into the service menu, but just about everything else there is less than ideal (like the advice to do the test straight after driving - that's wrong). So use the method from that other post *only* to get into the service menu, but otherwise follow all the steps from the original linked post.

 

raspberry,

Humor me please. If you push the info button on your MFD, does that button make the screen change?

And can you please explain what part of the instructions in post #21 are incorrect and will not work with your Prius?

Either you are not following the detailed instructions there, or a part of your car is malfunctioning. The test should work on your Prius if you follow the instructions in post #21.

 

So, did you finally sort out the problem?

 

I got that error message too, I also got some other associated check engine codes P301, 302, 303 & 304.
I change the spark plugs and the coils and yet I still got these error messages.
Then I remembered that this happened to me in the past and the issue was the fuel injectors needed to be replaced once I did that the misfiring issue and the shaky car issue disappeared so I’m going to order new fuel injectors and replace them, Make sure to order the 16 hole injectors I’m thinking this is why you get the ran out of fuel error code because I know for sure my tank is full more than half full

 

It's 2020 and I also got P3193 on the second day after I ran out of gas.

Quick solution is:
1. Fill 4.36 Gallons of Chevron Gas.
2. Reset you ECU to get rid of red triangle with either method:
a. via ODBII reset
b. driving 50+ miles
c. disconnect / 33 sec wait / Connect 12 V batter in you trunk.

*

 

I get the same code when I park on a steep grade facing uphill with less than a 1/3 tank of fuel. Triangle of death, check engine, that weird car symbol with a spike through the roof on the MFD. Face the car downhill and clear the code with Torque and all is well. Weird code producers, our Prii!

 

If that's happening to you regularly, it might be worthwhile to change something about that parking practice. The hill is probably hard to change, but making a habit of filling the tank earlier so it won't be that low when you park there would be easier. Or just always park downhill at that location. Just so as not to put the engine through fuel-starved starts any more often than necessary.