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Engine shaking

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by Dan05979, Feb 17, 2019.

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  1. Dan05979

    Dan05979 Member

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    Hey guys, so let me share my problems that i'm having now.
    2010 178K miles 2.17.19:
    In the summer of 2017 I cleaned out the intake manifold, egr pipe, changed the pcv vale & spark plugs. In the summer of 2018 I changed the front struts and since i had the wipers off and the whole cowl assembly I changed the spark plugs again just to get them out of the way since they were accessible. Now Feb 2019 I'm noticing a small shimmering from the engine when i'm accelerating slightly on highway speed. When I accelerate more to gain some speed everything is fine, when I let off the gas everything is fine. I'm not getting an engine light yet.
    I recently took the car to the dealer for an oil change and they needed to do some type of software upgrade to the hybrid system. They said my air filter was dirty and showed me a pic of it while the car was in the shop. I figured the shaking shimmering was a result from a dirty air filter. So I changed the filter and still the same problem.
    Also sometimes at startup the engine rattles hard then goes away, sometimes when the engine fires up when I'm idle, that motor wakes up kind of hard and the whole car and move forward a little.

    This car is burning a lot of oil too. So much I have to keep buying a 5 litre container of oil, keep it in the back so I can keep adding when i check it every so often. I'm using liquimoly 0W-20 I buy from Amazon for about $30. This is my daily driver and I average around 150 miles a day 5 to 6 days a week.
    I take care of the car I don't abuse it and i keep the fluids topped off. I just did some reading on this forum about head gasket failures which have me concerned. I think I'm at the end with this car, & just pay off what I owe and I'm looking at a 2018 Camry SE or XSE 4cyl or a '18 Accord, not sure yet.
    I feel like having the hybrid is not benefiting me since I do mostly highway driving 70-80 mph and I fill up the tank every 2 days around 280 miles with around 1/4 of a tank left.
    Any thoughts? I'm worried about this shimmering coming from the engine right now and eventually a head gasket. Thanks.
     
    #1 Dan05979, Feb 17, 2019
    Last edited: Feb 17, 2019
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  2. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

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    Did you clean the egr cooler when you did the intake manifold?

    Is it consuming any coolant?
     
    #2 Raytheeagle, Feb 17, 2019
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  3. Dan05979

    Dan05979 Member

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    I'll be honest with you I didn't remove and clean the cooler because getting to those nuts in the back by the exhaust manifold was looking like a pain in the a$$, so i went the lazy route and just cleaned the pipe from the cooler to the intake. As far as coolant goes, everything seems to be at the correct level and still pink.
     
    #3 Dan05979, Feb 17, 2019
  4. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

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    You haven’t cleaned the cooler, so while the downstream components are clean, there is still the cooler left;).

    Not dealing with it still leaves the circuit in the same condition :cool:.

    Have you installed an oil catch can?

    Good luck and keep us posted (y).
     
    #4 Raytheeagle, Feb 17, 2019
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  5. Dan05979

    Dan05979 Member

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    No catch can, and yeah the 1st thing i thought of was the egr cooler, if the car can be good till it gets warmer I'll probably take care of that. If not I'll have to find someone who can do it without killing me. I'll keep this updated.
     
    #5 Dan05979, Feb 17, 2019
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  6. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

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    Where in upstate New York?

    Or if willing to travel some, there maybe other members might be willing to help. What would you be willing to travel to?
     
    #6 Raytheeagle, Feb 17, 2019
  7. Dan05979

    Dan05979 Member

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    Orange county, Middletown NY
     
    #7 Dan05979, Feb 17, 2019
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  8. Dan05979

    Dan05979 Member

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    I'll travel around 100 miles, since I do 150 every day.
     
    #8 Dan05979, Feb 17, 2019
  9. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

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    @m.wynn is about 3 hours away and has done this exact job twice:).

    @Bay Stater is also not too far away and has also completed this job once;).

    You could check with them and if you talk nice enough to them, they might offer some advice or assistance (y).
     
    #9 Raytheeagle, Feb 17, 2019
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  10. Dan05979

    Dan05979 Member

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    Help! lol
     
    #10 Dan05979, Feb 17, 2019
  11. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    I would actually do a piston soak on the car and move to thicker oil. The oil burning will be an issue too
     
    #11 JC91006, Feb 17, 2019
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  12. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    You can do the EGR cooler. It's not a lot of fun, and there's one nut on the underside that is maddening*, but yeah. Get a torx socket set (E8 you'll for sure needed for EGR cooler stud removal, and E6 is needed if you ever get the notion to remove the throttle body studs), and a ratcheting box wrench is nice for the bolts at the exhaust end.

    Watch @NutzAboutBolts videos, pinned at top of 3rd gen maintenance forum, and have a read through this thread:

    EGR & Intake Manifold Clean Results | PriusChat

    Second the oil catch can too:

    Oil Catch Can, Eliminate that knock! | PriusChat

    * Once you get that nut off, you can probably leave it off; there's plenty still holding it. I should have, will if I ever revisit.
     
    #12 Mendel Leisk, Feb 17, 2019
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  13. padroo

    padroo Senior Member

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    Did you clean the MAF sensor and throttlebody?
    Do you have any codes?
     
    #13 padroo, Feb 17, 2019
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  14. tankyuong

    tankyuong Senior Member

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    Time to trade that sucker in before the engine blows
     
    #14 tankyuong, Feb 17, 2019
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  15. Dan05979

    Dan05979 Member

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    no codes & didn't think about that MAF, I'm going to clean that out as my next move thanks.
     
    #15 Dan05979, Feb 17, 2019
  16. Dan05979

    Dan05979 Member

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    you not kidding
     
    #16 Dan05979, Feb 17, 2019
  17. Dan05979

    Dan05979 Member

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    I watched his videos last time i did the intake job. I guess that's my next move to clean it out again. Just saw another video on how to clean that sticking egr valve, so if i can get her till april when it gets warmer i'll do the job all over again.
     
    #17 Dan05979, Feb 17, 2019
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  18. tankyuong

    tankyuong Senior Member

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    Mine did the same even after the egr cleaning, then the engine blew
     
    #18 tankyuong, Feb 17, 2019
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  19. Dan05979

    Dan05979 Member

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    wow, nice. so what did you do replace the engine?
     
    #19 Dan05979, Feb 17, 2019
  20. Bay Stater

    Bay Stater Senior Member

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    To get at the EGR System, cooler and valve, a lot of the engine componentry has to come off. Also the windshield wiper cowl too.

    Find a garage and plan on a weekends worth of work to be safe. Most importantly, be patient.

    While everything is off, best time to install an OCC. Use automotive vacuum hoses for the job. Good luck and keep us posted. ;)
     
    #20 Bay Stater, Feb 18, 2019
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