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

Help! Dealer screwed up my car, again...

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Eclipse1701d, Feb 24, 2013.

  1. Eclipse1701d

    Eclipse1701d Prius Enthusiast

    Joined:
    May 12, 2011
    645
    223
    0
    Location:
    Nature coast, Florida
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Three Touring
    Okay. I am experiencing a loss of power since my last service in my '07 with 97,000 miles. I brought it back to the dealer and they say that there is nothing wrong with the car! Now, when I drive my wife's '07 I feel like she has a Tesla it's so much faster than mine...

    I brought the car in at 95,000 for an oil change, new tires (same as last LRR set I had), wheel alignment, inverter coolant drain and replace, belt replacement, rear brake clean and adjust, throttle body cleaned, and steering column recall.

    Car shows no codes, no lights on dash. 12 Volt was replaced three months ago and checks out fine on MFD Diagnostic screen.

    I drive to appointments in my car everyday and I can tell it's not right. It is much more difficult to get the MPG into the 50's and 60's and I can hear and feel the ICE reving higher and working harder then ever before. My SOC also appears to be taking longer to charge than before... Any thoughts?
     
  2. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

    Joined:
    Mar 8, 2008
    18,198
    6,461
    0
    Location:
    Green Valley, AZ
    Vehicle:
    2015 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    1. Check the tire air pressure.
    2. Raise up the rear of the car, release the parking brake, and see whether the rear tires rotate freely.
     
  3. Eclipse1701d

    Eclipse1701d Prius Enthusiast

    Joined:
    May 12, 2011
    645
    223
    0
    Location:
    Nature coast, Florida
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Three Touring
    Front is a 44PSI, rear 42PSI. I will report back on wheel spin. Thank you.
     
  4. Eclipse1701d

    Eclipse1701d Prius Enthusiast

    Joined:
    May 12, 2011
    645
    223
    0
    Location:
    Nature coast, Florida
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Three Touring
    Raised up the rear end and the whees spin freely. Stopped and put a bottle of Techron Fuel Injector Cleaner in case something lodged in an injector when they cleaned the Throttle Body. Did not notice any difference, yet.

    I also discovered a barking type noise coming from the Thermos area when I start the car. The noise seems different then the normal sound the pump makes when I turn off the car. Please advise... Thank you!
     
  5. Britprius

    Britprius Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jun 14, 2010
    5,194
    1,910
    0
    Location:
    Herefordshire England
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    You say you fitted new tyres of the same type however these will lower your MPG against your old tyres for two reasons.

    One, new tyres take time to bed in "at leased 2000 miles" before the rolling resistance settles down, and old tyres roll better.

    Two, the tyres are larger in circumference than the old tyre so per rotation you are traveling further than with the old tyres. A quick calculation puts this distance difference per mile at approximately 60 yds, so if your doing say 55 mpg on the MFD you have actually gone 1.875 miles further with the new tyres.

    These calculations are based on tread ware difference of only 3/8 of an inch.

    John (Britprius)
     
    Eclipse1701d likes this.
  6. Eclipse1701d

    Eclipse1701d Prius Enthusiast

    Joined:
    May 12, 2011
    645
    223
    0
    Location:
    Nature coast, Florida
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Three Touring
    Thanks, John. I am currently on my third set of tires. I've experienced and expected the MPG drop. But, this is definately not the same. The car is labouring to accelerate...
     
  7. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    107,571
    48,862
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    oil level? belt tension? sad how many of these post service complaints we see.(n)
     
    Eclipse1701d likes this.
  8. Eclipse1701d

    Eclipse1701d Prius Enthusiast

    Joined:
    May 12, 2011
    645
    223
    0
    Location:
    Nature coast, Florida
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Three Touring
    The oil level is to the top dot on the dipstick, cold. The belt is very tight if I push on it with my finger. No play...
     
  9. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

    Joined:
    Mar 8, 2008
    18,198
    6,461
    0
    Location:
    Green Valley, AZ
    Vehicle:
    2015 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Did you get a printout that shows before/after settings?
    Do you notice any difference in vehicle stability at highway speeds?

    Maybe the front toe-in is more than in the past, which would yield better vehicle stability at high speed, but also more drag.
     
  10. JMD

    JMD 2012 Prius 4 Solar Roof

    Joined:
    Oct 11, 2012
    3,779
    1,282
    0
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    Wonder if the Traction Battery is degrading.
     
    Eclipse1701d likes this.
  11. Eclipse1701d

    Eclipse1701d Prius Enthusiast

    Joined:
    May 12, 2011
    645
    223
    0
    Location:
    Nature coast, Florida
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Three Touring
    Yes, Patrick. Here it is...
     

    Attached Files:

  12. Eclipse1701d

    Eclipse1701d Prius Enthusiast

    Joined:
    May 12, 2011
    645
    223
    0
    Location:
    Nature coast, Florida
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Three Touring
    That is my biggest fear. I am noticing that when I lift my foot off the gas, then press it again lightly (above 41MPH), the MG's don't act like they used to, or on my wife's '07. The mileage doesn't go up, it stays. I don't know which one it is, but it's like the one MG doesn't disengage like it used to... (I don't have a scangauge, I could just feel the difference and see the difference in the mileage on the MFD.
     
  13. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

    Joined:
    Mar 8, 2008
    18,198
    6,461
    0
    Location:
    Green Valley, AZ
    Vehicle:
    2015 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    If you can believe the alignment report then it appears that is not the issue. Front toe-in is slightly improved towards zero, compared to the "before" case.

    I have no further ideas on this subject.
     
  14. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    107,571
    48,862
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    maybe get the spec on belt deflection?
     
  15. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    107,571
    48,862
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    that would be quite a coincidence, but possible i suppose. how much have your mpg's dropped?
     
  16. Eclipse1701d

    Eclipse1701d Prius Enthusiast

    Joined:
    May 12, 2011
    645
    223
    0
    Location:
    Nature coast, Florida
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Three Touring
    Problem solved! Traded the '07... Purchased a 2013! Lovin' it!
     
  17. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

    Joined:
    Mar 8, 2008
    18,198
    6,461
    0
    Location:
    Green Valley, AZ
    Vehicle:
    2015 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    See...this was your dealer's plan all along... :cool:
     
  18. boppo

    boppo Active Member

    Joined:
    Mar 11, 2009
    799
    138
    0
    Location:
    Owego, NY
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Model:
    II
    Patrick, u got a point there. :)
     
  19. 2009Prius

    2009Prius A Wimpy DIYer

    Joined:
    Mar 25, 2009
    2,705
    509
    63
    Location:
    USA
    Vehicle:
    2009 Prius
    Imagine this (disclaimer: pure fiction): dealer's boat payment is up; service department does a firmware "update" - move the accelerator curve to "extreme eco" say; now customer experiences lack of power but no codes, nothing is wrong with the car; time to trade it in - perfect.
     
  20. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    107,571
    48,862
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    congrats on the new car, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em!all the best, enjoy.