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Red Triangle of Doom on Left Turns

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Scallywag, Mar 22, 2018.

  1. Scallywag

    Scallywag Member

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    2005 Prius
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    2005 Prius, 180k miles.

    So lately I have been experiencing a very brief "Triangle of Doom" when making relatively hard left turns. This happens mostly on certain highway ramps, but also occasionally when entering a parking lot (as an example). The red triangle only displays during the turn (usually only a portion of the turn), and the bar across the MFD says "problem" - the triangle is shown both on the MFD and the dashboard light. No other lights are generated, and I'm unable to find a stored code afterwards with Torque Pro and a bluetooth OBDII scanner.

    Any ideas what this could be? The car's handling is unaffected, and there is no slipping or sliding going on (I'd expect different lights for that anyway). The car is performing as expected otherwise.
     
    #1 Scallywag, Mar 22, 2018
  2. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    Check your oil level
     
    #2 JC91006, Mar 22, 2018
    m.wynn, dolj, Mendel Leisk and 1 other person like this.
  3. ericbecky

    ericbecky Hybrid Battery Hero

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    Yep. You are dangerously low on oil.
     
    #3 ericbecky, Mar 22, 2018
    dolj likes this.
  4. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk EGR Fanatic

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    Place your bets... :whistle:
     
    #4 Mendel Leisk, Mar 23, 2018
    exstudent likes this.
  5. exstudent

    exstudent Senior Member

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    All in on another driver who never checks the engine oil level.
     
    #5 exstudent, Mar 23, 2018
  6. exstudent

    exstudent Senior Member

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    Insufficient oil level, producing metal on metal wear.

    You should get in the habit of periodically checking the engine oil level of the vehicle on level groun; every gas fill-up, weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, etc. Doing so, you will likely catch a lower oil level, and be able to correct it, by adding oil to the top mark on the dipstick.
     
    #6 exstudent, Mar 23, 2018
  7. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    Plug-in Base
    :oops:
     
    #7 bisco, Mar 23, 2018
  8. frankv64

    frankv64 Junior Member

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    Happened to me. Had a nasty winter and I didn’t check the oil for a few months. I started to get the red triangle on left turns, I checked the oil and was 2.5 quarts low. I was so pissed at myself. Now I check it every week and hopefully there’s no damage done
     
    #8 frankv64, Mar 29, 2018
    Mendel Leisk likes this.
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