1. Attachments are working again! Check out this thread for more details and to report any other bugs.

Help! Curly is stuck in my engine

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by dalen, Jan 9, 2013.

  1. dalen

    dalen Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 9, 2013
    14
    0
    0
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    Five
    Just found this site and really appreciate all the information. For the past few months when I first start up my '08 it sounds like Curly (Three Stooges) is yuck-yucking under the hood. This occurs right before the engine kicks in and he yucks about 6-8 times. (A few times he yucked after I turned the car off too) This morning when I hit the power button the big red triangle came on and the car didn't start until the third attempt. Ran fine all day. From looking at this site I'm guessing that the triangle means I should check the 12v battery. But what about the yucking??? (Where's Moe) Is it related to the triangle? I am also reading about various recalls and am wondering if there is a website that lists them. How do I tell when my car is manufactured? Several of the recalls mentioned on this forum say the recalls cover only certain months of a specific manufacture year. Thanks all. Dale
     
  2. cwerdna

    cwerdna Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 4, 2005
    12,544
    2,122
    1
    Location:
    SF Bay Area, CA
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Please run the test at Weird stuff happening? MPGs dropping? Test The Battery | PriusChat after the car has sat MANY hours or overnight. Please tell us the 3 values (not just 1). Don't go changing the battery first until you tell us the values...

    If you have HIDs, you can avoid unnecessary cycles on the lights by toggling between off and parking light positions.

    Weird stuff can start happening w/a low or bad 12 volt. Don't waste $ on having a dealer "test" the 12 volt (07 Prius Dead - Any Guesses? | PriusChat).

    You can look up recalls for any vehicle at Home | Safercar -- National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). You can also see what recalls are outstanding for your car by registering it at Toyota Owners Official Website: Service Coupons, Owners Manuals, Service Scheduling and More.
     
  3. uart

    uart Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 7, 2009
    4,215
    1,200
    0
    Location:
    Australia
    Vehicle:
    2005 Prius
    Hi Dale. You could always try opening the hood, raising your hand and saying: "why I ought'a ...".
     
    PriusGuy32 likes this.
  4. ccdisce

    ccdisce Active Member

    Joined:
    Oct 10, 2010
    259
    187
    0
    Location:
    Stone Mtn GA USA
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    I had a similar sound on my 2008 but the guys took off when I opened the hood and I could hear them ' yucking' when they went.
     
    PriusGuy32 likes this.
  5. dalen

    dalen Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 9, 2013
    14
    0
    0
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    Five
    Thanks all. I'll try the battery test this weekend. But seriously, do you think the yucking (or clucking is how my 80 yr old father describes it) is related to a low 12v battery? Could it be something else?
     
  6. ccdisce

    ccdisce Active Member

    Joined:
    Oct 10, 2010
    259
    187
    0
    Location:
    Stone Mtn GA USA
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    N/A

    Seriously, I HAD a similar problem with my 2008 .
    Recently we had a cold snap followed by cold very rainy 4 days followed by an few days of cold. I do remember driving for 2 hrs each day in the pouring rain and deep long puddles of water ( I had grill blocking in place, 2 top and bottom) and then parking at the end of our driveway over a puddle.
    I heard this 'yucking', low intermittent klunking no1se whenever the brake accumulator pump would start. Checking under the hood I could hear the motor and the relays being activated the yucking/knocking was very faint but inside the car it was bad.
    I discovered that pressing on the brake pedal made it go away, the amount of pressure had to be enough to turn off the hill-hold-current.
    So to me it sounded as if the vibration damper bushings on the brake accumulator were frozen over with ice and the vibration was being transmitted to the car body making it louder within the cabin.

    I decided to thaw/dry out the bushings by removing the grille blocking to get more air into the engine compartment. For the past 2 days and the noise no longer happens (the 3 GUYS are GONE). Yesterdays high was 52 F and todays 62.
    Removing the grille bocking to dry out the engine bay was a pain as it was frozen to the grille but hey it fixed my problem.
     
  7. dalen

    dalen Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 9, 2013
    14
    0
    0
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    Five
    so much answering my question. If I did you think it's okay to just ignore it and wait for spring time?
     
  8. 2k1Toaster

    2k1Toaster Brand New Prius Batteries

    Joined:
    Feb 14, 2010
    6,035
    3,854
    0
    Location:
    Rocky Mountains
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    Also add to it that if it is cold, then running the brake accumulator pump off of the weaker 12v (all lead batteries dislike the cold and become weak, even new ones) it will make similar sorts of sounds as it cuts in and out of UVLO protection.

    I think I remember a similar sound one of the times I was skiing last season. It was friggin' cold that day and was close to 10F around base. 6 hours of being parked in that temperature, the start was loud with lots of whirring, clicking, and I believe "yucking".
     
  9. ccdisce

    ccdisce Active Member

    Joined:
    Oct 10, 2010
    259
    187
    0
    Location:
    Stone Mtn GA USA
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    I do not think that you should ignore it till spring with it banging around for the next months as this IMHO could be causing extra wear on the vibration bushings (who knows they could be well worn and need to be changed to eliminate the noise) and possibly 'wear' out other 'plumbing' such as hydraulic lines, PVC insulation on wires, anuthing connected to the bake accumulator and brake pedal.
    $1000 to change out bushings only is a stiff bill asuming that you can get the bushings separately without having to buy the accumulator assembly.
    If you did decide to do the complete accumulator replacement the total bill may be around $1500 it seems.

    I think you should attempt to dry out the area to confirm that the noise is caused by the same circumstances as mine and can be eliminated by drying it. You may want to make an attempt to dry that area of the car by parking indoors maybe, absolutely no grille block for a while (if you use it). Parking indoors in a secure area with a window fan blowing dry air where the brake accumulator is located (between the firewall and the below the Inverter).

    I no longer park at the lower end of driveway with the puddle as it as also sheltered by trees and buildings but rather at a more open area with a small incline.
     
  10. dalen

    dalen Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 9, 2013
    14
    0
    0
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    Five
    Hi everyone. Curley is still here and yucking every morning when I first start the car but I think Moe and Larry have left for warmer weather. I finally got a chance to do the battery test using the procedure under "weird stuff happening". I got readings of 9.9, 9.5 and 14.3. I assume that I need a new battery but the final reading has me concerned. If the battery is going bad wouldn't the last reading be low too???
    I have another related question. I have recieved the Toyota pre-notifications for the COT and COT and am waiting for the official letters that I can take to my dealer's service dept. Since my budget is limited are the recall repairs going to help with the labor costs to replace my battery? I mean do they have to take off a part(s) to do the recall repairs that would also come off to replace the battery? Thanks.
     
  11. nh7o

    nh7o Off grid since 1980

    Joined:
    Dec 10, 2011
    1,686
    337
    0
    Location:
    Hawaii
    Vehicle:
    2009 Prius
    Model:
    II
    Those numbers do indicate that a new 12V battery is a good idea. There are two main ways a lead acid battery goes bad, one is via increased internal resistance that makes the voltage under load go way down, and the voltage while charging go way up. The other way is for one of the cells to form a short, and that ends up dropping the voltage at rest and under load as well, but the voltage under charge does not rise high enough to indicate to the ECU that the battery is charged. So it keeps dumping in more current which results in reduced mpg from the wasted current in the battery going to heat. It looks like your situation is the latter, but both situations can be present at the same time.

    Neither of the recalls has any interaction with the 12V battery, which is all the way in the back. So no help there.
     
    PriusCamper likes this.
  12. dorunron

    dorunron Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 17, 2011
    3,318
    1,103
    0
    Location:
    Houston, TX
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius
    Model:
    Three

    Based on personal experience, I would say you should change the 12 volt auxillary battery ASAP.

    Concerning Curley yucking as you describe it, it could be the pump that pumps coolant into and out of the thermos bottle. That pump is notorious for making all sorts of racket when it is going out. The number's you mentioned (9.9, 9.5, and 14.3) definitely indicate a very weak/dying battery.

    Question: When you go out in the morning to start the car, do you see the red triangle light up momentarily along with a long beep? If so, this would also confirm that your battery is very weak.

    EDIT: After rereading the OP, the question about the red triangle was plainly answered. IMO, you definitely need to change your 12 volt battery ASAP. (End of Edit)

    As stated above, the recalls have nothing to do with your battery and more than likely won't involve Curley either. You may find that once you swap the 12 volt battery Curley's voice may change quite noticeably. ;)

    Ron
     
  13. RobertK

    RobertK Member

    Joined:
    Sep 9, 2007
    128
    40
    0
    Location:
    Norfolk, VA
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    To answer your question about the 14.5v reading, this is normal for a severely discharged battery. A fully charged battery should be charging at 13.8v after being made Ready for a few minutes.

    The 12v Prius battery is a easy DIY installation with basic hand tools and is well documented in PriusChat and YouTube.. Most auto parts stores that sell batteries will install them at no charge while you wait. You just need to decide which battery to buy and find a store that either has the right battery in stock or can get it via special order.
     
  14. dalen

    dalen Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 9, 2013
    14
    0
    0
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    Five
    I am so happy I found this web site and so grateful for all the good advice. I was hoping to wait until I could get the recall work done but I will get the battery replaced asap as I have 2 very ill family members that require a taxi driver -me 5 days a week. I won't try to install it myself as I have zero tools and even less mechanical ability. Looks like it's time to break out the plastic. Anybody have an idea what is a reasonable price in the Sacramento Ca area?









    ca
     
  15. dorunron

    dorunron Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 17, 2011
    3,318
    1,103
    0
    Location:
    Houston, TX
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    Dale,

    Unfortunately, if you pay someone to swap the battery you can expect to pay upwards of $300.00 or even more!

    The battery normally run's in the neighborhood of $200.00. When I inquired with three different Toyota dealerships here in Houston, I got prices which ranged from $50.00 to $275.00 just to do the swap. Those prices were with me supplying the battery. You might inquire at your local auto parts store and see if they will install the battery for you. I don't normally recommend that, but in your case it may be the cheaper route.

    I ended up changing the battery myself in our Prius within the last week. You are not the only taxi driver out there shuttling sick one's around. I do the same thing myself, and I am disabled to boot.

    If I was close to you, I would gladly help you. It is not a hard job to change the battery. It is however time consuming as you have to move a bunch of stuff to get to the battery. Nor does it take a lot of tools either. You can do the job with two sockets, two wrenches, a ratchet, a couple of extensions, a small hammer and a flat blade screwdriver.

    If I were you, I would consult a friend who is mechanically inclined. See if they would be willing to help you change the battery. There is a lot of information here on Prius Chat concerning how to change it as well as video's on YouTube.

    Save yourself some coin if you can and DIY.

    Ron