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2013 Prius Three - shaking at startup, but not every time

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

  1. Sani

    Sani Junior Member

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    Good afternoon. I have a 2013 Prius Three I purchased used in October, 2016. It had 91,646 miles when I purchased it, and it's now approaching 125,000 miles. I have full maintenance records from pre-purchase via the CarFax report, and it was maintained at the dealership approximately every 5,000 miles.

    I've noticed on a few occasions this winter that the engine will shudder and vibrate rather dramatically at start-up. It did this once when I came out after work on a cold day. I shut it off and back on, and it ran normally after that. It did the same thing a few weeks later when starting it up at home. Again, turning it off and on resolved the issue.

    I have noticed since these happened that the engine seems to vibrate or shudder for just a moment when it shuts off at a stop. It almost makes me think one of the engine mounts has gone bad, but it seems very intermittent, when a broken mount would be a problem constantly. I do not have any dash lights or codes. As far as I am able to tell, it is not leaking or consuming oil.

    When I took it to the dealership for the recall at the end of January, the service tech mentioned that I should get the spark plugs replaced soon, as they can "cause trouble" if they aren't replaced. He didn't elaborate on what that meant.

    Seeing the threads about head gasket problems has made me very nervous, but my symptoms don't match exactly. My vehicle was built after the redesigned intake manifold was rolled out. Does anyone have suggestions as to what I should be looking out for, or maintenance I should be doing? I appreciate your time.
     
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    time to clean the egr circuit. see the youtube directions from nutzaboutbolts
     
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  3. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    Start by checking the EGR pipe, it's the easiest to get to by far. It's condition will give you an idea what the rest is like. @NutzAboutBolts video number 16 here:

    Nutz About Bolts Prius Maintenance Videos | PriusChat

    How the level in the engine coolant reservoir?

    A "leak-down" test would be good, to test the head gasket condition. The dealership or an independent could do this.
     
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  4. Sani

    Sani Junior Member

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    Thanks. I’ll check out the EGR.

    The coolant level is good. The dealership changed the engine and inverter coolant before I bought the car at 91,000 miles. That does remind me, though — when it was warmer, I did notice the coolant would hiss after the vehicle was parked and turned off, and there are some small spots of dried coolant on top of the reservoir closest to the right fender. I’m not sure if that’s related in any way or anything to worry about.
     
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  5. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    First time I read that I thought wow, what a great dealership, lol.
     
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  6. Inspector858

    Inspector858 New Member

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    Engine replaced before you bought it? Seems like a HG issue before you even knew about it and now the save issue with another engine? Wow Toyota has really outdone itself now. I just saw a 2019 Prius YouTube video experiencing this. Money maker for Toyota that’s for sure.
     
  7. Vman455

    Vman455 Senior Member

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    "The dealership changed the engine [coolant] and inverter coolant...."
     
  8. Sani

    Sani Junior Member

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    Unfortunately, my Prius was totaled in July by a girl in a Mercedes looking down at her phone, so I never got to the root of this issue. A flight of angels sing thee to thy rest...
     
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  9. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    That's a cool thought. :)
     
  10. JohnnyJavelin

    JohnnyJavelin Junior Member

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    A coworker had is 2012 Prius headgasket changed by Frontier Toyota under the California PZEV emissions wtty provision
    ! But they wouldn't change his piston rings for free, so he is burning a lot of oil. But no coolant..
     
  11. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    how many miles?
     
  12. JohnnyJavelin

    JohnnyJavelin Junior Member

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    Under 150K as per Cal regs for PZEV emissions wtty
     
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  13. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    That’s great, and first I recall.

    There are threads here on helping with oil burning, as well as cleaning the egr
     
  14. Grit

    Grit Senior Member

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    We ask for miles logged because it gives us a better approach to help. But if you want miles to remain anonymous under 150k, alrighty then.
     
  15. JohnnyJavelin

    JohnnyJavelin Junior Member

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    its not my car. I only know what I was told.