Twice now, when parked on an incline, after releasing the parking brake, foot brake and engaging the drive nearly simultaneously, the dashboard lit up with various symbols, the check engine light came on, and the engine shut down. After restarting the car runs with all the lights on. The first time this happened the Toyota Dealership simply cleared the computer and sent me on my way. The second time this happened, all the trouble lights and check engine light went out on their own after an hour or so. I'm curious to know if anyone has an explanation.
If the check engine light came on, a code would have been logged in the computer. There are myriad causes of a check engine light, not all relating to the engine, and it's simply impossible to know which one it is without knowing the codes. Some codes may be accessible with a generic OBD-II scanner (with CAN bus attachment, if you have the 2004-2009 Prius) but a full dump is I believe only accessible with Toyota's own scanner. An independent may have this if they work on Toyotas.
How full is you oil? If it is all the way full to the top mark or close to it, it may be possible that you are getting oil into the intake manifold while parked on an incline. This is pretty common on the gen 1 prius. AutoZone can read the codes for you. Mine has done this a few times. But now I'm having a different problem I'll post that in a new thread. Mike
There are many reasons this can happen but having the engine go off is a symptom often found when the throttle plate needs cleaning. I typically clean the throttle plate in the fall, before the cold and damp weather but it can happen anytime. Bob Wilson
