Gas engine running rough

I have an 08 Prius with 191,500 miles on it. I bought it with 44k in 2010.

Around 5,000 miles ago, the engine began running very rough. When the engine kicks on, It makes loud clicking noise and the car bucks. When I'm driving under 30mph, and the engine kicks on it hesitates and sounds like it's going to stall (like in older cars) but it has not.

I brought the car in for a safety recall 2 weeks ago and asked about this... Dumbing it down for me, the mechanic said basically there's a clutch like mechanism that engages when the engine switches on, and it may need to be replaced but it will probably last around another 100K - so don't do it now. When it does go, it will be around $3K- so when it does go I'll be towing it to the junkyard.

Dos anyone know what this part is... Or maybe he lied and wanted me to just jump on it as preventive maintenance now.

I've changed plugs, one coil, air filter and the MAS recently.

 

I'm assuming that's a code?

It's not giving any codes, I'm also assuming with 191k miles, it wouldn't hurt to clean this anyway so I will give it a shot. It looks like it's just a 20-30 minute job

 

Oh haha ok.
Thank you for responding.

Yeah I used denso, and changed the filter. I'm going to do the throttle body now, and grab some fuel injector cleaner. I'll keep you posted. Hopefully this works!

Ok so I took it all apart, cleaned it, it was very dirty. I put it back together, turned on the car and it was running worse than before. In addition, a check engine light was on and the gas engine ran constant.

I unplugged the battery and plugged it back in, and it appears all problems have been solved. Thank you for your help.

I will drive it around 80-100 miles between tonight and tomorrow morning, so I will have a better gauge on whether it was a temporary fix/fluke or a permanent solution.