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Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by George A Grant, Oct 24, 2016.

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  1. George A Grant

    George A Grant New Member

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    Hello,
    My 2004 Prius started making a weird noise after taken it through a car wash. There are no check engine lights, or anything lit up on the dash, or anything out of the ordinary. The engine starts and there's this bass vibration all over the car. It sounds like a sub-woofer in the vehicle. It only does this at low throttle response. If I floor it, it goes away. I took my car to the local muffler shop and they looked at the exhaust system and found no problems with it. This issue has been going on for a week now.
     
    #1 George A Grant, Oct 24, 2016
    Last edited: Oct 24, 2016
  2. andrewclaus

    andrewclaus Active Member

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    If the noise occurs at idle while the car is not moving, have you tried opening the hood and taking a look around? You may be able to see or hear something unusual and pinpoint a source. A low frequency resonance might be a strange exhaust or air intake issue, an engine mount, and I hope others will chime in with better ideas....
     
    #2 andrewclaus, Oct 24, 2016
  3. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    welcome! how many miles on her?
     
    #3 bisco, Oct 24, 2016
  4. George A Grant

    George A Grant New Member

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    249,800 miles on my 2004 Prius and still going strong!
     
    #4 George A Grant, Oct 24, 2016
  5. George A Grant

    George A Grant New Member

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    The noise is most noticeable when the car is in gear at low RPM's.
     
    #5 George A Grant, Oct 24, 2016
  6. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    nice! maybe a dealer will have better luck locating it. have you done all your own work up to this point?
     
    #6 bisco, Oct 24, 2016
  7. George A Grant

    George A Grant New Member

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    I'm trying to avoid going to the dealer at all cost. I have done all the work on my Prius except for replacing one wheel bearing and replacing the catalytic converter. When my hybrid battery cell went bad about 30,000 miles ago I removed it and replaced the faulty cell with a new one. That saved me over $3300 in which the dealership wanted to repair my Prius.
     
    #7 George A Grant, Oct 24, 2016
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  8. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    well done, i hope someone can help you locate the source of the trouble. is everything secure at the air box?
     
    #8 bisco, Oct 24, 2016
  9. George A Grant

    George A Grant New Member

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    Are you referring to the air filter box?
     
    #9 George A Grant, Oct 24, 2016
  10. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    yes.
     
    #10 bisco, Oct 24, 2016
  11. George A Grant

    George A Grant New Member

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    I just checked it and it is very secure. The problem started right after water from the car wash shot water pressure on the under side of my Prius.
     
    #11 George A Grant, Oct 24, 2016
  12. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    Sounds like the car is not idling properly. Try cleaning the throttle body of carbon deposits and then reset the car by unplugging the 12v negative for a minute.

    SM-N900P ?
     
    #12 JC91006, Oct 24, 2016
  13. George A Grant

    George A Grant New Member

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    My Prius idols just fine. I have already tried unhooking the negative terminal for five minutes and then reattaching it to see if that would solve the problem which he did not. I cleaned the throttlebody about eight months ago so I'm pretty sure that's not the issue. The problem started right after water from the car wash was forced from the bottom side up into my car.
     
    #13 George A Grant, Oct 24, 2016
  14. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    There are no check engine lights? Only thing under the car would be oxygen sensors or loose exhaust system.

    You would need to look under the car.

    Another possibility is a bad coil or spark plug. Causing shaking

    SM-N900P ?
     
    #14 JC91006, Oct 24, 2016
  15. George A Grant

    George A Grant New Member

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    There are no check engine lights. I looked underneath the car while it was on the lift at the muffler shop. I didn't see any damage at all. I replace the spark plugs in my Prius less than a year ago. I'm not ruling out a faulty coil. I'm also not ruling out something in the traction control system.
     
    #15 George A Grant, Oct 24, 2016
  16. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    Run a diagnostic on the car and it should detect any misfires. Often when you go through a car wash, water drips into the coils and plugs. If you check them all, you might find your answer

    SM-N900P ?
     
    #16 JC91006, Oct 24, 2016
  17. andrewclaus

    andrewclaus Active Member

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    In gear--do you mean it must be moving? Or will it happen in gear when the car is stationary?

    Does it happen only when the ICE is running? Do you know how to put the car in inspection mode? Will the noise happen in inspection mode?
     
    #17 andrewclaus, Oct 24, 2016
  18. George A Grant

    George A Grant New Member

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    It makes the noise in or out of gear but mostly in gear at low RPM. What is the ice? I do not know how to put the car in inspection mode. How do you do that?
     
    #18 George A Grant, Oct 25, 2016
  19. George A Grant

    George A Grant New Member

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    I'm pretty sure the car is not miss firing
     
    #19 George A Grant, Oct 25, 2016
  20. andrewclaus

    andrewclaus Active Member

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    Will the car make the noise when it is not moving? You've repeatedly said the noise happens in gear at low rpm, but a car can be in gear and not be moving. It would be good to know this, to help eliminate some drive train issues.

    ICE = internal combustion engine.

    Google "2004 Prius inspection mode" for instructions.
     
    #20 andrewclaus, Oct 25, 2016
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