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Engine Misfire, no warning lights???

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by bnorris, Aug 15, 2011.

  1. bnorris

    bnorris New Member

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    Hello All,

    I bought my 2010 Prius IV Solar/Nav pkg in Febrary 2011. I've got just over 10k on the odometer. Aside from the persistent rattle/clatter/clank noise over bumps that these cars seem to be famous for, I've had no issues. That is, until last Thursday. The temps here in Indiana have dropped substantially so I was driving in town with the windows down, sunroof open. About two miles after leaving the office, I turned a corner and the car suddenly seemed like it went from running on 4cyl to running on 2 cyl. No warning lights came up on the dash, but the car was definitely shuddering/struggling to pick up speed, and was obviously running very rough. It felt worse when I was accelerating, but I think it may have even been doing it when I let off the accelerator.

    This continued for approximately two or three blocks until I parked the car & powered down. After debating what to do (call a tow truck, confer with SafetyConnect, etc.) I decided to try & move the car again. Of course, it was as if nothing had happened. No warning lights were on & the car seemed to be performing normally. Since then, I've had no issues.

    So, while I'm grateful that the car didn't seem to be harmed in any way, I almost wish it would have continued to do it so that it could be repaired. Now, I worry that whatever the problem might be, it will present itself at the most inopportune time & I will be stranded out of town, on the interstate, etc. Should I have pressed the SOS button while it was occurring? Does the SafetyConnect work like OnStar where they can assist in diagnostics remotely? Is there any point in taking it in if it seems to be running fine now?

    I guess I'm just looking for advice & wondering if anyone else has experienced this problem.
     
    #1 bnorris, Aug 15, 2011
  2. Tande

    Tande Active Member

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    Yup! ...My Gen. III does this on a regular basis....When I slow/up to turn a slow corner (in town) & then try to accelerate, the engine "Misfires" badly, as you said, acts like it is only running on a "Couple" of cyls.....goes on for maybe 5 secs. & then runs normal....
     
    #2 Tande, Aug 15, 2011
  3. jdcollins5

    jdcollins5 Senior Member

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    You two guys need to get your cars to the dealerships as this is by no means normal. Especially if you can get it to repeat on demand. Take it to the dealer and show it to the service tech or the service manager.

    I have had my 2010 for two years this month and it has never done anything similar to what you are describing.
     
    #3 jdcollins5, Aug 15, 2011
    1 person likes this.
  4. bnorris

    bnorris New Member

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    That's the kicker...it has never acted up again. I've been worrying about it incessantly, but I can't duplicate the problem. It seems silly to "wish" for your car to act up! But now, its always in the back of my mind, like waiting for the other shoe to drop. :confused:
     
    #4 bnorris, Aug 22, 2011
  5. bnorris

    bnorris New Member

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    IV

    How many miles do you have on your Prius? Do you have to "do" anything to get it to act up?
     
    #5 bnorris, Aug 22, 2011
  6. Pinto Girl

    Pinto Girl New Member

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    These Gen III Pri are really scaring me. After selling my '06 (which I regret) I want to buy an '11 or '12. But between the rattles, the shuddering/clanking engine on start up, this misfiring issue, no way!
     
    #6 Pinto Girl, Aug 24, 2011
  7. xpcman

    xpcman Senior Member

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    NO problems after 35k miles on my (first off the boat) 2010. You have to remember that you only see the problems here.
     
    #7 xpcman, Aug 24, 2011
  8. Pinto Girl

    Pinto Girl New Member

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    I suppose you're right. But I didn't seem to see problems like this when reading about the G II Prius in '05. Perhaps I didn't notice them? Not sure. But I'd kick myself if I bought a new one and some of the issues arose.

    Perhaps I'll wait another year or two...?

    ------

    In 1989 I bought a new Mustang GT convertible. As far as rattles go, there wasn't time for that; the parts just fell off. But the thing that still sticks with me was, every so often, I'd try to start it and the engine would barely run. So I'd shut it down for a minute and try again, and that seemed to fix it. Of course the dealer could never replicate the problem, and the entire time I owned it I'd always worry that whatever was wrong would get really bad when I was in a remote location.

    These sporadic mechanical problems remind me of the Mustang; that issue was always in the back of my mind, and it really sucked.
     
    #8 Pinto Girl, Aug 24, 2011
  9. vinnie97

    vinnie97 Whatever Works

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    How many G2s circa 2005 were being sold compared to G3s in 2009/10?
     
    #9 vinnie97, Aug 24, 2011
  10. Tande

    Tande Active Member

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    Sorry for the delayed reply....I don't get to cruise through here often....I have approx. 15000 mi on this gen III....My language may have been a little strong when I said, "My gen III does this on a REGULAR basis", ....If I may, I'd like to change that to "On a FREQUENT basis"....As far as "Doing anything to get it to act up", I won't claim that I can get it to do it "On/Command", but IF it's going to do it, it will happen after I have slowed down, maybe with light braking, to say, 15 m/p/h (maybe to turn a corner) & then while LIGHTLY accelerating; this is when it will misfire badly....Sometimes, not always, I can hear what sounds like the "Engine/Start/Up/Knocking" at this time....To a layman like myself it would seem like the "Computer" can't decide whether to let the ICE start & run OR keep it shut/down....This entire chain of events; the "Misfire & maybe the "Knocking", does not last probably more than 5 secs. ....FWIW :confused:
     
    #10 Tande, Aug 27, 2011
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