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Some tremors while driving

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by BishopMcKnight, Nov 13, 2015.

  1. BishopMcKnight

    BishopMcKnight New Member

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    I just bought a 2007 Prius from a reputable dealership, with low mileage, and attested by them to be in great condition (the dealership is very well trusted in the area and I did not do outside inspection.)

    I'm not sure if this is normal for a Prius, but I do feel some tremors while driving, especially at lower speeds. It is not severe, but, for comparison I recently drove a 2015 car and it certainly felt much smoother. The tremors happen during acceleration, and to a lesser extent during coasting (even on perfectly new/smooth roads). Maybe I'm just being very sensitive to the transmission changing gears "continuously"? Should the Prius feel very smooth while driving?
     
  2. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    The road conditions might be what you're feeling. The transmission does not have any gears that you can feel "changing", what you're feeling would be from the road/suspension/alignment/balance of the car
     
  3. johnnyb588

    johnnyb588 Member

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    Vibration under acceleration can be CV joints/axles. If it happens while coasting as well, you could be looking at an alignment or wheel bearing (the issue would intensify under turning if it was a wheel bearing). Depending on how much it happens to a "lesser extent" when coasting, I'd say you've got a warped CV axle.

    If you are a DIYer, you can slide under the car and check out the CV boots for wear/tears/grease spray, which is usually a good indicator that the axle needs to be replaced.

    For the wheel bearing issue, you can jack the car up (safely, of course) and check for play in the wheels by giving them good tugs and pushes from a few angles. FYI, I think this answer is unlikely, given your symptoms.

    For the alignment issue, I'd take it to a shop to have them check.

    Hopefully someone smarter than me will chime in with some other possibilities, but those would be the places I would start.
     
  4. Christopher De Leon

    Christopher De Leon Junior Member

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    I am having a vibration ONLY when coasting, if I push even the slightest on the gas pedal to engage the engine, the vibration goes away all together. Also, putting the car in neutral gets rid of the vibration. It doesn't happen every time I coast, but quite frequently. Do you think this could fall under the CV issue as well?
     
  5. johnnyb588

    johnnyb588 Member

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    IANAM, but that doesn't sound like a cv issue to me. Unfortunately, I'm not sure I can help you on that one. Perhaps someone more knowledgeable than me might be able to diagnose your problem.
     
  6. Christopher De Leon

    Christopher De Leon Junior Member

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    Thanks for the quick response anyways, I went ahead and made a post about it.
     
  7. RRxing

    RRxing Senior Member

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    Motor mounts???