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Lots of highway wind noise and you can feel a mild clunk when the engine kicks on

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by drewbabich, Jan 22, 2014.

  1. drewbabich

    drewbabich Junior Member

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    I'm loving this 'new' 2004 prius with 177k miles on it that i just bought. In New England winters I'm still getting 40-45 mpg and I'm not even trying to get great MPG's.

    1.) Wind noise
    My biggest dissapointment is excessive wind noise over 55 mph. I 'm using this car as a taxi and its so loud inside i'm a little embarrassed with customers in the car. It sounds to me that its coming from the passenger window or passenger side near the windshield, but I can not identify its location at all. I've always been the one driving when looking for it though.

    I called a dealer that sells lots of gen II used prius's and he says its fairly common to replace the window seals? Have other PriusChat people encountered this or has anyone done this to fix this issue? I'll definitley do it if it fixes my problem.

    The car has a clean car fax.

    2.) Mild clunk when the engine kicks on. Not all the time, but sometimes.
    Other thing is, I can sometimes feel and hear a mild clunk when the engine kicks on. I also feel a little bit if vibration when the engine is on and i'm idling (it was 16 degrees last night so the engine stays on for heat). The oil level is good. I'm due for change in the next 500 miles.

    Is this anything I should be concerned about? I'm sure I'm just overly sensitive.

    I'm running this thing till the wheels fall off so I'm not dissapointed at all. I wouldn't even care about the wind noise if I wasn't using it for commercial transportation.
     
    #1 drewbabich, Jan 22, 2014
  2. GrumpyCabbie

    GrumpyCabbie Senior Member

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    It shouldn't have excessive wind noise. You sure all the windows are actually fully shut? Has the car been in a side shunt? Are all the rubber seals intact?

    Is it a clunk or a 'transition'? If it's a clunk then that's not good. If it's just a transition similar to a gear change on a normal auto, then it's normal. On mine sometimes I don't notice the engine coming on and others I do. Around 45 mph it does seem more noticeable.

    I had my egr valve replaced and the car was much smoother when the engine comes on. Considering the high mileage on yours, do you know if the valve is blocked or whether it needs to be cleaned or indeed changed?
     
    #2 GrumpyCabbie, Jan 22, 2014
  3. Britprius

    Britprius Senior Member

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    GC there is no EGR valve on the gen2.
    Drew, the mount on top of the transmission can cause this noise and was the subject of a free replacement while under guarantee. It does not cause any other problems however.
    The engine stabilizer bushes is another possible cause but this is not common.

    John (Britprius)
     
    #3 Britprius, Jan 22, 2014
    GrumpyCabbie likes this.
  4. northwichita

    northwichita .

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    The valve probably was the PVC valve. I want to suggest to drewbabich is to sit in the passenger seat while some else is driving and tug and push on the door frame and window area where the wind noise is coming from. If its just the door frame, perhaps some cheap foam adhesive weather-strip added to what's already there would help. I have some extra wind noise (from the door frame) that's noticeable when its very windy on the highway, not enough to do anything about it.
     
    #4 northwichita, Jan 22, 2014
  5. 00-00

    00-00 Member

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    Some repair shops and body shops may have a tool that could help in a case as yours.
     
    #5 00-00, Jan 22, 2014
  6. drewbabich

    drewbabich Junior Member

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    Wow guys thats fantastic information. A cheaper stethoscope thats not electronic might be a good tool to try as well. I'll need to do that.
    Yea its just a mild clunk when the engine kicks on. Its like 15 degrees out right now so it probably mad how cold it is.

    Yesterday i ran into a 10 minute window of time where I got a really loud whine from the engine bay, that then went away on its on. I suspect fan belt noise but i'm going to post a new thread for advice on the seperate issue.
     
    #6 drewbabich, Jan 23, 2014
  7. drewbabich

    drewbabich Junior Member

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    I do not know if the pvc valve is blocked or not. The car was serviced at toyoto so I assume they would recommend replacement of that if thats a normal maintenance item. Either way I 'd be excited to replace it if access does not require removal of lots of other parts.

    I know the pvc valve on other cars is often a 100,000 mile recommended replacement item.
     
    #7 drewbabich, Jan 23, 2014
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