Engine Vibrating at certain ICE RPM

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by Geschwindigkeit, Feb 7, 2026.

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  1. Geschwindigkeit

    Geschwindigkeit New Member

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    I have this strange issue where if I'm driving at roughly 44-60 km/h and my blue bar in Hybrid System Indicator is three quarters full (halfway past the eco line, halfway to PWR), my engine vibrates + my whole cabin. It's completely fine at any other speed or acceleration.

    Here is a video where I get my engine to exhibit this behavior a few times roughly the first few seconds in. It's been getting louder recently.



    I've replaced my spark plugs and this issue still persists. I don't think it's the head gasket as my coolant is fine and I have no other symptoms for that issue. I have not cleaned my EGR yet.

    Other than this issue, my car runs fine.
     
    #1 Geschwindigkeit, Feb 7, 2026
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    How many miles on her? Maybe engine mounts
     
    #2 bisco, Feb 8, 2026 at 2:06 PM
  3. Geschwindigkeit

    Geschwindigkeit New Member

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    119K I was thinking maybe engine mounts, too. I can try and check if my engine moves or anything.
     
    #3 Geschwindigkeit, Feb 8, 2026 at 3:29 PM
  4. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    have you ever cleaned the egr circuit?
     
    #4 bisco, Feb 9, 2026 at 8:58 PM
  5. Geschwindigkeit

    Geschwindigkeit New Member

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    No, but I'm dreading doing it after reading the articles here. It sounds like so much work that I don't have time for. Can't I just take it out, take it apart, spray it off, and be done?
     
    #5 Geschwindigkeit, Feb 9, 2026 at 11:23 PM
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  6. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    Idk. I traded mine in to avoid doing it.
    Here’s a good video:
     
    #6 bisco, Feb 10, 2026 at 1:35 PM
  7. CR94

    CR94 Senior Member

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    With that symptom, I'd suspect the EGR ports of the intake manifold may need cleaning out. That's much easier than cleaning the EGR cooler (heat exchanger). Unequal clogging of those ports can cause rough running under moderate load.
     
    #7 CR94, Feb 11, 2026 at 8:41 PM
  8. NutzAboutBolts

    NutzAboutBolts Senior Member

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    is your tires balanced? If the whole vehicle is vibrating at high speeds, uneven balance on the wheels could cause the steering wheels to vibrate at high speeds but not when driving at city speed.
     
    #8 NutzAboutBolts, Feb 11, 2026 at 8:51 PM
  9. CR94

    CR94 Senior Member

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    44-60 km/hr aren't particularly high speeds. If the vibration were caused by wheel imbalance, it wouldn't be sensitive to what the Hybrid System Indicator display shows.
     
    #9 CR94, Feb 11, 2026 at 9:09 PM
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  10. NutzAboutBolts

    NutzAboutBolts Senior Member

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    yeah I just converted to mph which is 27mph, which isn’t too fast :ROFLMAO:. Any check engine light?
     
    #10 NutzAboutBolts, Feb 11, 2026 at 9:44 PM
  11. Geschwindigkeit

    Geschwindigkeit New Member

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    No light. I also noticed that it seems to only happen when the engine is cold. Could be wrong on that, though. I haven't tested it, thoroughly.
     
    #11 Geschwindigkeit, Feb 12, 2026 at 4:05 PM
  12. NutzAboutBolts

    NutzAboutBolts Senior Member

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    put it on maintenance mode and rev the engine while its stationary and see if the vibrations still exist or not. If not, then it’s not your engine.
     
    #12 NutzAboutBolts, Feb 12, 2026 at 4:58 PM
  13. Geschwindigkeit

    Geschwindigkeit New Member

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    With E brake on and in neutral? Or parking brake on?
     
    #13 Geschwindigkeit, Feb 13, 2026 at 12:17 AM
  14. NutzAboutBolts

    NutzAboutBolts Senior Member

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    No need e brake. It’s in park so you just step on the gas pedal to rev the engine to different rpm to see if it mimics the vibration from the engine or not. If you don’t feel any vibration, it could be other issues.
     
    #14 NutzAboutBolts, Feb 13, 2026 at 12:17 PM
  15. Geschwindigkeit

    Geschwindigkeit New Member

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    Seems like it's not doing it in maintenance mode.
     
    #15 Geschwindigkeit, Feb 13, 2026 at 3:30 PM
  16. NutzAboutBolts

    NutzAboutBolts Senior Member

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    Does your steering wheel vibrate or it’s the whole car?
     
    #16 NutzAboutBolts, Feb 13, 2026 at 5:59 PM
  17. Geschwindigkeit

    Geschwindigkeit New Member

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    Kind of the whole car. It feels and sounds like if the bass and volume of a stereo was turned up really high.
     
    #17 Geschwindigkeit, Feb 13, 2026 at 6:58 PM
  18. Geschwindigkeit

    Geschwindigkeit New Member

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    I'm starting to think, that it's whatever is responsible for charging the high voltage battery that's the issue. If it doesn't happen in maintenance mode. The engine ran fine in maintenance, it might be whenever it's charging that this happens.
     
    #18 Geschwindigkeit, Feb 13, 2026 at 7:04 PM
  19. NutzAboutBolts

    NutzAboutBolts Senior Member

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    what’s the history of the car and what’s been done to it recently? When did you start noticing it started vibrating?
     
    #19 NutzAboutBolts, Feb 13, 2026 at 7:20 PM
  20. Geschwindigkeit

    Geschwindigkeit New Member

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    It's been pretty well taken care of. I changed the spark plugs a couple weeks ago and the 12V a week before that. I started noticing the noise last month.
     
    #20 Geschwindigkeit, Feb 13, 2026 at 7:44 PM
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