Hello All, I've been a happy 2008 owner until a recent on going and going and going...Get my point. My car has 38k on it and i purchased new in Jan 2008 my problem started 7 weeks ago when i went to start my car and the only thing to start were the problems. All my warning lights came on and all the dash lights were blinking the car would do nothing. so i did the first thing looked at the owners guide thought it was the battery and after reading on this site decided to call the dealer...Tow truck came (At my expense no offer from the dealer to tow) Took the dealer 1 week to fix said it was indeed the battery..Had the car back for 1 day and the exact thing happened agian.....Tow back to the dealer had the car for another week this time it was a computer part? no details on the invoice. The very next day it happened agian so tow to the dealer agian.. .Had it for another week this time a fuel valve? you guessed it next day exact same thing so back to the dealer on a tow truck....This time they have it for 3 weeks yes 3 weeks and i was only contacted once saying they were trying to figure out the problem...also mentioned someone from toyota flying in to fix....anyway they call me and say it's fixed when i showed up at the dealer they did not have the invoice ready and said it would be mailed? I asked what was done in 3 weeks? he went to his computer screen and showed me the parts a couple of computers and they replaced the information screen he did not know why and said when i get the invoice i will see the details....anyway had the car back for you guessed it...1 day this time it came to a stop while I was driving (In the middle of no where..same issue every warning light blinking ) once agian back to the dealer on a tow truck....it has now been 5 days and no calls or nothing>> I now dealing with Toyota customer service and it's a joke...Called them 3 days ago and i do get a call each day saying that me case worker is "Working" on it needless to say I never talked to him....and im very angry PS..I live in Pittsburgh Pa Any ideas?
To me it sounds that the dealer needs to educate their staff. In this case it seems to me that the car is able to boot up, but the ICE is unable to start. (if I understand everything correctly) First thing is YOU NEED TO KNOW THE CODES THEY FOUND. You may have paid to replace several unnecessary items. Without the codes it would be nearly impossible to diagnose properly. I would also start with some obvious things like does the car have gas?(regardless of what the fuel gauge reads). Are your 12v battery connections tight as well as having sufficient charge? Is there any sort of debris blocking the butterfly valve at the front of the throttle body? (take off the air filter and look down) Ignition coils I guess could be another possibility.
Don't forget about the lemon law in Pa. I think after 3 attempts to fix the same problem they are supposed to get you a new car.
I did check this out the lemon law has to be while it's still under the bumper to bumper protection + the problem had to start during the first thousand miles. It does however quailify for the Magnuson - Moss Warranty Act. I really dont want to pursue but I think I need to start. Thanks, John
I did check out the basics I'm somewhat handy on other cars and have done several award winning ground up nut and bolt restorations on classic cars so I'm not in the dark on basics actually this is the 27th car I've owned (my 10th new car) i normally do most of the basics without taking it to a dealer but not with the prius....Car is full of gas, checked the conections i will check the throttle body and as far as the codes i will ask but you would think with flying a tech in from Toyota they would be on top of this. Thanks, John
If you get the codes please post them here, there are some smart people on Priuschat that may be able to tell you what each code means.
agree with the above. Get a new dealer, get the codes, and enlist the help of this forum notable members (galaxee, hobbit, bob wilson, pat sparks, etc) to shine some light on the problem.
