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2008 Prius losing power - Need troubleshooting help.

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by SWprius08, Nov 25, 2014.

  1. Easy Rider 2

    Easy Rider 2 Senior Member

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    Based on that, I think you need a professional assessment......by a mechanic who knows more about how cars work than just looking for trouble codes. Good luck.
    I don't see any mention of the plugs being changed. At 90K that really should be done if it hasn't been recently.
     
  2. SWprius08

    SWprius08 SoCalprius

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    Yes the spark plugs were changed 200 miles ago.

    I doubt Avi's are in business anymore, I called them left them a voicemail, no response, their website does not work, on their PC member page another member has a note that they are not present on Tujunga anymore, do you happen to know any other professional place like this?
     
    #22 SWprius08, Nov 26, 2014
    Last edited by a moderator: Nov 26, 2014
  3. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    If you have the time, go to a dealership and drive a used Gen2 and compare it to yours. You might be getting used to the effects of the better performance associated with adding gas additives. Without the additives, the car may actually be "normal" but with additives, it's probably driving better.

    If I were to add a bottle of additives to my gas, surely I would feel a little better performance. You probably just liked the added boost from the additives......however I'm not sure if constantly using additives could have any negative effects on the car.
     
  4. SWprius08

    SWprius08 SoCalprius

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    if you are not too far from sfv i can maybe drive bu and have you test it. :)
     
  5. Easy Rider 2

    Easy Rider 2 Senior Member

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    No you wouldn't.
    If the systems are operating normally the "additive" would have no noticeable effect at all.......especially not one designed to be a cleaner.
     
  6. Former Member 68813

    Former Member 68813 Senior Member

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    Bad advice. MMO contains about 1000 ppm P. More that regular engine oil (800 ppm P). Would you pour engine oil in yout tank? No, I didn't think so. MMO is great in oil for cleaning and not so great for catalytic converter when you put it in gas. The OP should stick to Techrone concentrate that is safe and effective. Even that should be done immediately before oil change.

    Exactly. It's the driver's responsibility to check the vital fluids and not assume they are fine because someone said so some time ago.
     
    #26 Former Member 68813, Nov 26, 2014
    Last edited by a moderator: Nov 26, 2014
  7. SWprius08

    SWprius08 SoCalprius

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    top.jpg Bottom.jpg
    This is how the filter looks like, unable to have the sunlight pass through, I went ahead and changed it by an new OEM filter for $ 32.
     
  8. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    Any difference in driveability symptoms with a clean air filter?

    If not, I would have the fuel line pressure checked (should be 43 psi or more at idle speed) and if that is good, the injectors themselves should be checked. Good luck getting your issue resolved.
     
  9. alekska

    alekska Active Member

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    Another thing that comes to my mind is to do an engine compression check
    Alex
     
  10. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    that is one dirty air filter, when was the last time you change it?
     
  11. Easy Rider 2

    Easy Rider 2 Senior Member

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    Would the sunlight show through the new one ? I kind of doubt it.
    I wouldn't give a seconds thought to changing out the filter in the picture, unless maybe the picture doesn't do it justice.
    If the new one didn't really make any difference and you still have that old one, I think you should put it back in and keep the new one for use in another year or so.
     
  12. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    When a new paper air filter is held up to the sun, you will see that the paper is translucent and therefore will be lit up. I am not saying that you will actually see the sun through the filter.

    An excessively dirty paper filter, having trapped dirt in the paper fibers, will be dark. See for yourself.

    This is a reasonable test for owners who do not observe the maintenance schedule which requires replacement of the engine air filter at 30K mile intervals, or who live in areas where the air is unusually dirty and the air filter therefore needs more frequent replacement.
     
    #32 Patrick Wong, Nov 27, 2014
    Last edited: Nov 27, 2014
  13. SWprius08

    SWprius08 SoCalprius

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    This is the first time I checked the filter myself and yes it looked very dirty, since I always get the servicimg done at dealers I was under the impression they would check this under the "world class inspection". I have only driven about 20 miles with the new filter and have not seen much difference.
     
    bisco likes this.
  14. Easy Rider 2

    Easy Rider 2 Senior Member

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    It's whole purpose in life is to collect dirt; it probably looks "very dirty" when about 20% of it's capacity has been used.
    But changing it out certainly won't hurt anything and is a small price to pay for piece of mind.
     
  15. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    at 25,000 miles, mine looks like your new one. but hey, i'm not in l.a., imagine you breath that all day long?:eek:
     
  16. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    In post #27, I believe the OP's first photo shows the top-side view of his old filter while the second photo shows the bottom view.

    In any event, when I lived in south Orange County I changed the engine air filter at 15K mile intervals due to the relatively poor air quality. Now that I am located in rural southern AZ the filter looks pretty good even after 30K miles so I use the "light passing through the paper filter" test to decide when to replace it.

    At least the air quality in southern CA has come a long way from the 70's when you frequently would see an orangeish smog haze on the horizon and feel your eyes burning from the excess HC floating around in the air, for example on I-5 passing through downtown LA. Now the air generally looks pretty good via casual observation, but the engine air filter shows how many particulates are still floating around.
     
    #36 Patrick Wong, Nov 28, 2014
    Last edited: Nov 28, 2014
  17. edthefox5

    edthefox5 Senior Member

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    What is the state of the Hybrid battery when you have poor power? Is it in the purple all the time?
     
  18. SWprius08

    SWprius08 SoCalprius

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    Nope the battery looks strong, blue and green most of the time.
     
  19. SWprius08

    SWprius08 SoCalprius

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    Yup one is the top side and another the bottom side, already in trash now.
     
  20. SWprius08

    SWprius08 SoCalprius

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    So after doing some more research I also found that along with throttle body clean up one should also clean the MAF, since it was never cleaned in the past, I decided to DIY considering the steps to be fairly simple, here is what it looked like, one side had thick layer of carbon but the other side looked fairly clean. Along with a tank of Techron (Progard Concentrated), MAF cleaned up and new Engine Filter things do seems to be a little better. I am planning to drive my next tank with Techron Progard Fuel Injector cleaner. Hopefully after that tank the car would still run fine without additives. If not I will have to find Avi's in Inglewood, by the way I drive up yesterday to Avi's address shown in Yelp and indeed the body shop next door told me that he has moved to Inglewood. Untitled1.jpg


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