Helicopter Sound and Shaking Like Harley Davidson When Gas Engine turns Inverter

Give the radiator hose coming from the ICE a squeeze while running. If this is hard and you cannot squeeze it I would bet it is your head gasket. I have had this exact symptoms on 4 Prii now.

A blown head gasket on a Prius will usually be hard to detect because you will NOT see coolant in the oil or oil in the coolant. You may see air bubbles going into the ICE coolant overflow tank.

If this is the case you may be able to tighten head bolts to repair. I have always just sourced a use engine and replaced. I can usually find a nice low mileage one for about $200.

 

1. Return the code reader if you can.
2. Buy Mini VCI and run that on a Windows XP or Windows 7, 32 bit OS laptop.
3. There is no alternator, instead a DC/DC converter within the inverter maintains ~13.8V on the 12V bus when the Prius is READY.
4. TampaPrius offers a reasonable scenario. I would augment that by doing a cylinder compression check which you can perform once you have Mini VCI to issue software commands to the engine ECU. Then you can spin the engine at an appropriate speed for the compression check.
5. Subscribe to techinfo.toyota.com for access to factory repair manual information.

 

I'm not sure why you would think that. If it sounds like it's misfiring, and shakes like it's misfiring, and gets MPGs like it's misfiring, and the computer tells you it's misfiring, it's possible you've got a misfiring issue.

Misfires that are prevalent at some RPMs and loads and go away at others have always been a thing, way before hybrids. Charging the battery just means adding a bit extra load to the engine at relatively low RPM, nothing else. Some of your ideas about when the system "is charging the battery" or "running on engine only" etc. would probably get clearer if you had a better grasp of how the system worked - really the electric and mechanical power flows are not that clearcut, and the computer varies them instant to instant. A great resource for you is the New Car Features Manual (one of the manuals you can find at techinfo.toyota.com) which does a fantastic job explaining how your car works. The major NCFM is published for each model introduction, which means you'd want to read the 2004. There were a bunch of equally good Toyota hybrid training PDFs online over at autoshop101.com but the last time I looked I couldn't find them any more.

But really, what it looks like you've got here is a misfire problem. Along with the codes, your reader might be able to pull the "freeze frame" data for each code, which will include the RPM, temperature, and load conditions at the instant the codes were logged. (That information is all part of the OBD-II standard, so even a generic reader should be able to get at it.) Those are typical starting points for tracking down misfires.

Whether the vibration sounds like it's coming from engine or transaxle can be kind of deceptive because they are bolted together. There is some gearing in the transaxle that has backlash, so any unevenness in the crank rotation might make a racket there.

-Chap

 

one little note, a "cylinder leakdown test kit" provides an interesting alternative to the old-fashioned compression test. Cons: you need a compressed air source, but Pros: you don't need an OBD tool to command the engine to crank, and in fact the engine is off and silent for the test. You can do things like leave the air on and just plain listen for bubbles in the radiator (start by taking the cap off!) or hissing sounds in the intake or exhaust.

-Chap

 

There is no part known to wear out. However it might be possible that the transaxle has developed a mechanical problem, and if so the solution would be to install a used unit from a salvage vehicle.

No, the Toyota hybrid system must be in perfect condition or it will be in limp mode at best, perhaps not operational at all. This is not a Honda hybrid.

So, I assume that you can shift into N, and rev up the engine, and it all sounds nice and smooth?

 

Good work getting the service manual. Your car is a really interesting piece of engineering and I think you'll enjoy the aha! moments that come while learning about it.

You might also find this article quite thought-provoking.

One summer when I was home from college, I got a surprise visit from a college acquaintance who was making a cross-country trip in her VW bug. She was on the highway when it started shaking like a helicopter and seemed ready to throw nuts and bolts across the road, so she looked in our student directory and realized she was within a few miles of me, and got on the phone. When she drove up, the car was making such a horrendous display of racket and vibration that I took one look at it and said "there's no way this can be anything I could fix". So we got back on the road, me following along in another car to mop up if the doors and wheels shook off, and drove down to an actual VW specialist ... who changed the points and rotor and plug wires and left it purring like a kitten.

If when you think of "misfiring" you only think of light innocuous misfiring, there are wide vistas of experience out there waiting.

One of the helpful things on the Prius is that it has so many computers keeping such close watch on things. I find I set a very high bar on how certain I have to feel before I choose to ignore what they are trying to tell me.

-Chap

 

noob talking
if in N the ICE runs well
and on EV mode(MG2) the cars drives well
and only wen charging the HV battery (MG1) it shakes
then perhaps the MG1 is developing a fault? a broken hinge?
considering what i know abut mechanics and prius you can ignore my suggestion

p.s.
i used this vid to learn how the hybrid drive works

 

Please help!!!! My car is shaking violently when I start it up!!! Only the left front end and sounds like a mad dinosaur!!' I drive it for two minutes and it's fine. The check engine light stays on. This is the 2nd day of shaking and first day with check engine light on. Going to the dealer tomorrow.

 

you might need an egr cleaning. how many miles on her?

do you ever start her, move a few feet and shut her down right away?

 

Gen II does not have an EGR.

 

2010 is gen 3 here.

 

And here too, missed that being this is the Gen II forum. Perhaps the poster should post her question in the Gen III forum to be get a more targeted response.

 

ya, poster looks like a hit and run...