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2009 PRIUS handles badly

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by harmonylife, Jul 4, 2014.

  1. harmonylife

    harmonylife Junior Member

    Joined:
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    Location:
    charlottesville, va
    Vehicle:
    2009 Prius
    Model:
    II
    purchased one owner Prius from Honda dealer May 2014 with 92000 miles.
    Now 2 months later 94000. Both service departments of Honda and a Toyota dealer
    said my car handles normally for a Prius.
    The car dips from left to right while driving at slow and highway speeds. It feels
    like a boat moving through water.
    The suspension was said to be good.
    Driving it feels unstable, like a Montero Sport or a stage coach.
    Any suggestions. I wanted
    Needing help in Charlottesville.
     
    #1 harmonylife, Jul 4, 2014
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    welcome to prius chat! i would start with the struts. test drive another one so you understand how it should feel. it's not a honda, what car did you come from?
     
    #2 bisco, Jul 4, 2014
  3. northwichita

    northwichita .

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    What are your tires and their psi? Low tire pressure can cause sloppy handling.
     
    #3 northwichita, Jul 4, 2014
    GrumpyCabbie likes this.
  4. xpcman

    xpcman Senior Member

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    What brand and model tires are on the car? Some tires can give the car a floating feeling. Perhaps to a very flexible sidewall.
     
    #4 xpcman, Jul 4, 2014
  5. edthefox5

    edthefox5 Senior Member

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    So your the guy that bought that Montero Sport lolo....

    2009 Prius is very tight car. In fact hits bumps really hard. The tires must have 18 lbs in them to feel like that.

    Btw, what brand tires are on the car? Please don't say GoodYear Integrities....

    Pump up the tires 40 front and 38 rear. You'll achieve the best mileage at that pressure.
    Its a trade off between great mileage and rough riding.
     
    #5 edthefox5, Jul 5, 2014
  6. JimboPalmer

    JimboPalmer Tsar of all the Rushers

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    #6 JimboPalmer, Jul 5, 2014
  7. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    I think you should replace the front struts and rear shocks.
     
    #7 Patrick Wong, Jul 5, 2014
  8. sfv41901

    sfv41901 Masta S

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    If ur Prius is still on the original struts/shocks at 94k miles, u should look into replacing them. They are fairly inexpensive.
     
    #8 sfv41901, Jul 5, 2014
  9. harmonylife

    harmonylife Junior Member

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    Vehicle:
    2009 Prius
    Model:
    II
    It was the COOPER RESPONSE MUD/SNOW new tires that caused the handling problem. You were SO RIGHT.
    I dismissed the tires because they were NEW when I bought it used. In Nov 2015 I replaced them with CONTINENTAL TRUCONTACT tires and the lateral dipping went away. My current mechanic said, anytime you get "free tires" they're not the best quality. True in spades.
    About 5 competent mechanics had told me that was the way PRIUS' handle. However, I knew that couldn't
    be true. I spent about $1700 trying to fix the handling problem, which no other Prius owners had.
    One failed try included the Rude person's chassis stiffener ($70 + installation). This did nothing, but over
    time caused a popping sound which diminished when I restored the original crossbar.
    Owning this car has been a money drain. In addition chasing down the P1116 and P1121 codes which have to do with the coolant valve. P1116 appears intermittently. I ignore it now.
     
    #9 harmonylife, Mar 12, 2016
  10. 69shovlhed

    69shovlhed Surly tree hugger

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    sounds like the 5 mechanics aren't competent about prii, even if they are competent in other cars. or maybe they just talk a good game, but aren't competent at all.
     
    #10 69shovlhed, Mar 13, 2016
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