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

Prius curb hit 6 months ago. Please help

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by priushelppls, Jul 11, 2019.

  1. priushelppls

    priushelppls New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 11, 2019
    8
    0
    0
    Location:
    earth
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    Sorry for the long post but this is turning into a saga, that I hope to resolve soon.

    Unfortunately hit a curb at 80k miles and 30mph about 6 months ago. It didn't seem bad. I lost the wheel cover, the rim had a little curb rash, and alignment was a bit off. No bent or damaged wheel or tire, no bent control arm, brakes looked good, all new tires put on, everything balanced. But I did have some symptoms start to show up over the past 30k miles.

    I had two mechanics and a Toyota dealer look at it shortly after the accident, at different points for the symptoms I'm about to describe. Here's how it happened:

    Shortly after the accident I started noticing a faint single "click" when applying the brakes on the very first time when first shifting to D or R. At this time it was quite a faint sound. I took it to Mechanic 1 and he could hear it but couldn't diagnose. He drove the car, jacked it up, did a visual inspection of the suspension and the brakes and said everything looked fine. It's safe to drive.

    I wasn't satisfied so I took it to Mechanic 2, who were first looking at the brakes, tie rods, things in that area, very closely but couldn't find anything. So they jacked it up and really got under the car. When they applied gas while it was jacked up, the clicking turned into a loud clunking at a constant rate. They still had a hard time pinpointing it, but after spending some time under the car listening for the source of the sound they came up with engine mount. They said it got so loud and constant because the of the car being jacked up and the weight of the engine free floating. They said don't worry about it for now, it will just make noise and vibrate.

    Toyota dealer didn't see anything visually inspecting it. Brakes and suspension components looked good.

    Well, it's been about 4 months since then, and 6 months from the accident. That "click" when first braking in D or R is now a loud clunk. It sounds like it's coming from "outside", like a wrench being banged against something below the car. It's not muffled as if it's coming from inside the CVT or ICE.

    But the strangest symptom is when I brake normally, below 15mph it feels a bit "shaky." I can feel it in the brake pedal, I can feel it in the car. It's almost as if the brakes are getting really "jumpy." I know the Prius has grabby brakes with the Regen and all that, but this started to get a really weird feeling. And I don't feel it in my Mom's Gen 3.

    I haven't been thinking too much of it while I save funds for repairs, as the engine turning on and off while parked is enough to startle you wake the car moves so much sometimes. But I had an issue with the brakes today where I thought "Can an engine mount really be causing all this? Or could something really be wrong?"

    I was doing a U turn on a small decline and suddenly I heard a grinding that I could feel through the brake pedal, I thought to myself "OMG the suspension is breaking," the traction light started flashing, and then it went away. A quick googling brought up Grinding noise from front end during fast U-turn | PriusChat, which described what happened closely. And there were a few other threads about it too. Makes sense.

    I've postulated that the engine wobbling all over the place could be throwing off the braking system, messing with the balance of the TCS and all that, and maybe contributing to the U turn skidding and ABS grinding noise?

    I really don't want to waste more money on inspections, I at least need an idea so I can start pointing these mechanics in the right direction. So do you fine gentleman have any ideas what could be going on?

    What could be the sources for the click turned clunk upon FIRST brake only in D and ? Does engine mount make sense for all this? Wobbly braking?

    Sorry again for the long post and thank you so much.
     
    #1 priushelppls, Jul 11, 2019
    Last edited: Jul 11, 2019
  2. priushelppls

    priushelppls New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 11, 2019
    8
    0
    0
    Location:
    earth
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    Also, braking is SMOOTH in Neutral with friction brakes.

    Here's some video of the U turn and "grinding" noise.


    The sound came from the right side, and I swear I could feel it on the right side (again, side of impact with curb) through the brake pedal. But I was pretty shook so I do not know.
     
  3. GrGramps

    GrGramps Active Member

    Joined:
    Jan 15, 2009
    294
    176
    0
    Location:
    Western North Carolina
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    N/A
    "the engine wobbling all over the place" Is there any particular reason not to replace engine mounts??
     
  4. cnc97

    cnc97 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 13, 2018
    1,416
    1,525
    38
    Location:
    Evansville, IN
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Three

    Next YouTube video you should have your seatbelt on and not be on the phone. We might actually be able to hear the noise it’s making.
     
    Grit likes this.
  5. priushelppls

    priushelppls New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 11, 2019
    8
    0
    0
    Location:
    earth
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    Haha sheesh, who pissed in your Cheerios? I unbuckled my belt prior to the u turn as I prepared to park on that street. And said “Hey siri, call 24 hour fitness” to my iPhone that is mounted on the dash.

    You can hear the noise clearly at around 7 seconds. The seatbelt chime stops about a second prior.

    Thanks for the reply and have a nice day.
     
  6. Grit

    Grit Senior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 22, 2017
    6,103
    4,032
    1
    Location:
    Wilkes Land
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    Video was an example of how not to drive; be on the phone & film with camera phone while driving in residential neighborhood.
     
  7. cnc97

    cnc97 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 13, 2018
    1,416
    1,525
    38
    Location:
    Evansville, IN
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Three

    :ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO:
     
    Grit likes this.
  8. priushelppls

    priushelppls New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 11, 2019
    8
    0
    0
    Location:
    earth
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    The phone and dash cam are both mounted completely hands free, recording automatically. Relax.
     
  9. Leadfoot J. McCoalroller

    Leadfoot J. McCoalroller Senior Member

    Joined:
    May 12, 2018
    6,688
    6,375
    1
    Location:
    Pennsylvania
    Vehicle:
    2018 Prius c
    Model:
    Two
    If the noise is related to torque on the drivetrain (acceleration and regen braking) but not related to torque applied through the brake rotor, then I'd say the problem is in the driveshafts- and possibly just one of the four joints therein.

    I'd go so far as to guess that the right outer CV joint took too much of a shock. Cracked cage or one of the balls got chipped.
     
    Pluggo likes this.
  10. priushelppls

    priushelppls New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 11, 2019
    8
    0
    0
    Location:
    earth
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    The single clunking noise and wobbly instability only seems to be during braking below 10-15mph. Acceleration is very smooth

    I’m sorry for the dumb question, but what do you mean by in the driveshaft and the 4 joints?

    Thank you for the reply.
     
    #10 priushelppls, Jul 11, 2019
    Last edited: Jul 11, 2019
  11. cnc97

    cnc97 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 13, 2018
    1,416
    1,525
    38
    Location:
    Evansville, IN
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Three

    When you ask for help determining a noise, and you have other things going on in the background that override the noise you are asking for help with, how do you expect us to hear the noise in question.

    And no, the belt beeper clearly overrides the noise so it is not as clear as you believe.
     
    Grit likes this.
  12. cnc97

    cnc97 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 13, 2018
    1,416
    1,525
    38
    Location:
    Evansville, IN
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    And guessing at what you are hearing, I suspect the right front wheel bearing is the likely cause of your noise. Or the lower control arm is bent, and causes an outrageous camber angle with the top of the tire leaning out. This could be checked by turning the wheel to the lock of each direction and see if the left and right side look different.
     
    Pluggo likes this.
  13. priushelppls

    priushelppls New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 11, 2019
    8
    0
    0
    Location:
    earth
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    Lol you’re quite the critic, huh?

    Yes, the belt beeper turns off prior to the grinding noise, which starts at 7 seconds. I’m not sure what’s unclear about that?

    Further, in the original post I explain the context for the grinding noise while u-turning. I didn’t exactly plan the noise or recording it.

    So, my phone was hands free, the dash cam was auto recording, and I didn’t exact plan for my car to lose traction and make a grinding noise. Sorry the recording isn’t ideal!

    Thanks!
     
  14. cnc97

    cnc97 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 13, 2018
    1,416
    1,525
    38
    Location:
    Evansville, IN
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    Not a critic, I personally have 40% hearing loss.


    I offer my apology for sounding like I had an attitude. I should have just refrained from commenting.

    However I do believe the diagnosis I offered is a probable one. Easily checked with a trip to an alignment machine.
     
    priushelppls likes this.
  15. TMR-JWAP

    TMR-JWAP Senior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 12, 2016
    6,058
    5,783
    0
    Location:
    Columbia, SC
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    Touring
    Personally, if I were someone who just joined, looking for advice, I would bite my tongue just a little bit. Grin and bear it, and be grateful for what advice is given. Having just read the entire thread, the advice that has been already given seems adequate.....
     
    Grit likes this.
  16. Grit

    Grit Senior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 22, 2017
    6,103
    4,032
    1
    Location:
    Wilkes Land
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    Love the self entitled ones who just newly joins . one replied “just going into the settings isn’t a complete answer.” Nearly spilled my wine laughing.
     
    #16 Grit, Jul 11, 2019
    Last edited: Jul 11, 2019
  17. Leadfoot J. McCoalroller

    Leadfoot J. McCoalroller Senior Member

    Joined:
    May 12, 2018
    6,688
    6,375
    1
    Location:
    Pennsylvania
    Vehicle:
    2018 Prius c
    Model:
    Two

    [​IMG]

    These are the rotating shafts that carry power between the transaxle and the front wheels. They are double-jointed to allow the front wheels to turn and bounce while still delivering torque.

    I think there's a problem with your right side outer- leftmost in above image.

    Also potentially suspect- the right front wheel bearing, which is next-door-neighbors with the joint, surrounding the red stub you see pointing leftward.

    I would think any shop could diagnose this correctly, but possibly the place you visited may have been blinded by the hybridness of your car. That happens- they get caught up worrying about the things they don't fully understand and miss the ordinary stuff. Prius driveshafts, CV joints and wheel bearings are the same as you'd find on any Corolla, Altima, Civic, Focus etc.... an extremely common setup.
     
    Pluggo likes this.
  18. priushelppls

    priushelppls New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 11, 2019
    8
    0
    0
    Location:
    earth
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    Sorry. All I meant to clarify is it’s kind of cynical to assume a phone call and video recording means someone is double fisting cell phones. Dash cams and Bluetooth have existed for a long time haha.... if that’s not made clear early in the thread it could quickly devolve into a joke thread with sarcastic reply after reply of how reckless OP is.

    Sometimes you’re damned if you do or don’t as a noob on the internet

    Thanks for all the replies!
     
  19. priushelppls

    priushelppls New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 11, 2019
    8
    0
    0
    Location:
    earth
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    That all makes so much more sense now, thank you!

    I used to have a high mileage Camry that got really bad humming from two bad wheel bearings. I’ve been keeping an ear out for any similar sounds on the Prius and In the 30k miles since the curb hit I haven’t heard any humming. Could the wheel bearing need replacement without making any noise?

    Thanks again!
     
  20. cnc97

    cnc97 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 13, 2018
    1,416
    1,525
    38
    Location:
    Evansville, IN
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Three


    Hitting the curb could damage the bearing. If you take the wheel off, and brake caliper, then spin the wheel it would show up. It would act like spinning the dial on a combination lock.