NEW!!! Service Bulletin for Engine Knocking at Startup T-SB 0012-10

Another update. My car started without any issue after work today. Just for grins, I tried pulling codes with my torque app and OBD adapter, and it showed 3 codes:
P0300 - Random/Multiple Cylinder Misfire Detected
P0301 - Cylinder 1 Misfire Detected
P0302 - Cylinder 2 Misfire Detected

I didn't attempt to clear them. There is no MIL/Check Engine light shown, so it is absolutely possible for fault codes to be present without any MIL shown.

 

These misfires cleared themselves the next time i ran the car (and checked with the Torque app). Never did get a CEL.

Happened again a few days ago, the next day after backing up the car to make room in the garage to do something. As it often happens, when the engine starts up and runs for just a few seconds, a misfire can occur the next morning at startup.

Does anyone know what the source of this is? What is happening when the car starts and runs for a few seconds to cause this misfire the next day?

 

Good questions!

All I got: it would be running rich, dumping in more fuel than usual.

 

I thought I had read somewhere that the issue was moisture-related, so that was why i wondered where the moisture comes from in this "short-start" situation.

 

Perhaps condensation.

JeffD

 

The stuff I drained from my Oil Catch Can about a month back had a "latte" like quality, looked like a fair amount was water. With out OCC that would end up in the well at the bottom of the intake mainfold, directly below the throttle body. Maybe that stuff can get swirled, kicked up, airborne, up into the intake ports??

 

I read your posts
Is Toyota going to fix this for free?
I am in California?

 

I don't think they know what's going on, at least no better than anyone here.

Or they do know, but are hoping it'll blow away. They replaced some intake manifolds back a while, but IIRC that was not really helping?

 

Toyota absolutely knows what's going on. They just don't want to deal with it. And the reason is (most likely) it is very cumbersome to deal with it. They sold so many of these Gen3 Prius. It doesn't happen to all of them. How would they really address the ones they suffer from knocking? They would have to issue recall for all Gen3 Prii. Financially not a smart move for them. So they decided to ride it out.
I have a 2010 Prius. Bought it used past November (has 140+k miles on it). It did it once (actually twice. The second one being very short.) . I live in a hot climate and since it happened, I have never shut off the car when the engine running. It didn't happen again since then. Hopefully it will not happen. But I will clean the EGR cooler and the intake manifold soon. I will also install a catch can DanLatu recommended. (bought it already)

 

I tried to show this TSB to the Lexus dealership. They looked up my VIN and said there is nothing covered. Looks like all CT200h owners are out of luck and on their own

Over the weekend, I did follow the Nuts About Bolts youtube video, and cleaned out my intake mani and egr cooler/pipe

 

New poster here, hope this helps. I also had an issue with rough starting, but the weather was only cool, not cold. The engine was cold, though. I started getting a code for #2 cylinder misfire. Couple of weeks later, after changing plugs and coils, started rough in the morning. Then started rough sometimes after work. End result, it was the head gasket leaking into the #2 cylinder & exhaust gasses slightly pressurizing coolant reservoir. Not sure if you can name names here, but added a bottle of Blue Devil to coolant system and fixed these problems. 2,000 miles later and still good. BTW, car is a '12 with 245,000 miles on it. Anybody ever come up with a fix for the excessive oil usage that starts at 100,000 miles, besides a rebuild?

 

oh ya, see the thread by @danlatu

blue devil? is this spam?

 

No, and-i-am-not-a-robot! Really worked, and still working, i put on 750+ miles a week and check coolant every other day and hasn't changed. Now i am trying Certech Gels for oil usage after a mechanic from work recommended it. Car now has 248,000 miles.

 

[QUOTE="Hi-mileage, post: Anybody ever come up with a fix for the excessive oil usage that starts at 100,000 miles, besides a rebuild?[/QUOTE]

Just curious, for starters, what is your oil history?
Brand, type, viscosity and frequency.?

 

Deleted

 

Oil history just basic, 0-20 synthetic at 10,000 mile intervals, at local oil change place. Pennzoil, I think. Low oil light came on at about 100,000 miles, consumption steadily rising. Now 1 quart every 700-800 miles. 249000 miles on car now.

 

As long as you changed your oil as you stated with the Castrol synthetic oil 0w-20 at 10k miles religiously, you should not have wear that would cause your type of oil burning. I see cylinder walls with more miles than you have with the crosshatch marks from manufacturing still visible. This indicates little wear to the cylinders.

Check you PVC system for proper operation
A compression test both dry and wet would be next.
If it is within spec then either live with it or have it looked at.

 

As long as you changed your oil as you stated with the Castrol synthetic oil 0w-20 at 10k miles religiously, you should not have wear that would cause your type of oil burning. I see cylinder walls with more miles than you have with the crosshatch marks from manufacturing still visible. This indicates little wear to the cylinders.

Check you PVC system for proper operation
A compression test both dry and wet would be next.
If it is within spec then either live with it or have it looked at.

 

oil catch can?