2014 Prius 3 bucking (serging)

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by Nashvilleguy, Dec 17, 2024.

  1. Nashvilleguy

    Nashvilleguy New Member

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    My Prius 3 with 214,000 miles is surging or bucking slightly under light throttle and at steady speeds. I have also heard this phenomenon referred to as trailering. It does not seem to do it under full or moderate throttle. It has also done the skipping while cold starting, maybe 3 times per year. I have had the car since 2018. The surging started maybe a year ago. I changed the spark plugs about 6 months ago.
    It has had the normal maintenance, oil changes etc.
    Any ideas are appreciated.
     
    #1 Nashvilleguy, Dec 17, 2024
  2. Tombukt2

    Tombukt2 Senior Member

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    Now's the time to consider how that's going to go Very costly
     
    #2 Tombukt2, Dec 17, 2024
  3. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Witness Leader

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    How long have you had it? Any history of head gasket failure? Exhaust Gas Recirculation system and intake manifold ever cleaned?
     
    #3 Mendel Leisk, Dec 17, 2024
    Last edited: Dec 17, 2024
  4. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    I would first clean the throttle body, the throttle plate might be getting stuck and is not moving freely
     
    #4 JC91006, Dec 17, 2024
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  5. Brian1954

    Brian1954 Senior Member

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    In post #1, he wrote that he has had the car since 2018.
     
    #5 Brian1954, Dec 17, 2024
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  6. Brian1954

    Brian1954 Senior Member

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    Clean the throttle body per post #4. If that does not work, I would lean towards the idea that you are having some misfires because of coolant leakage into a cylinder due to a bad head gasket. 214k miles is quite a lot, and head gaskets seem to go bad in these engines at 150k and higher.
     
    #6 Brian1954, Dec 17, 2024
  7. Nashvilleguy

    Nashvilleguy New Member

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    I must admit that other than oil changes, tire rotations, changing the spark plugs and replacing a couple of stuck calipers, = I have not had to do much. If coolant is leaking, it must be drops. I can see no change of the coolant level. I'm going to clean the throttle body, replace the pvc and look into cleaning the manifold.
    Thanks
     
    #7 Nashvilleguy, Dec 18, 2024
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