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newbie: Had problems accelerating from stop

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Crystal S, Mar 23, 2015.

  1. Crystal S

    Crystal S Junior Member

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    I've had my Prius for over 3 years now. I've put 90K miles on my 2008 which I bought used. It has about 162K miles on it. The light turned green, I pushed on the gas pedal and it barely moved... took what felt like forever to get to 30 mph... and I only had 1 bar on my main battery gauge. I noticed that is the only time it did it today...but it has never done it before with only 1 bar... it was a little scary. Any thoughts?
     
    #1 Crystal S, Mar 23, 2015
  2. a_gray_prius

    a_gray_prius Rare Non-Old-Blowhard Priuschat Member

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    Sounds strange. Any warning lights or recent errors?
     
    #2 a_gray_prius, Mar 23, 2015
  3. Easy Rider 2

    Easy Rider 2 Senior Member

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    A shop needs to scan it for fault codes.
    And the 12 V battery needs to be tested. If it's 7 years old, it probably needs to be replaced.

    On a car that is 7 years old with over 100K miles, there are a lot of possibilities.......including getting some bad gas.
     
    #3 Easy Rider 2, Mar 23, 2015
    Briana Giselle Jauregui likes this.
  4. Crystal S

    Crystal S Junior Member

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    No warning lights or errors...

    Just replaced 12V in November. The hesitation going uphill in the morning has been happening for some time. I haven't been able to replicate the not wanting to go from a stop yet, so bad gas is a possibility. I am supposed to drive to Texas in April and May and I'm wondering if I should take it to a Toyota specialist and have them run a diagnostics on it to make sure there isn't anything wrong?
     
    #4 Crystal S, Mar 25, 2015
    Last edited by a moderator: Mar 26, 2015
  5. Dino33ca

    Dino33ca Member

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    First sign of a hybrid battery going bad? Get the hybrid battery charged/balanced (grid charger)? Clean the hybrid battery cooling fan? Check the 12v battery again...
     
    #5 Dino33ca, Mar 26, 2015
    Last edited: Mar 26, 2015
  6. Bill the Engineer

    Bill the Engineer Senior Member

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    Bad gas? Fuel filter could be clogging up.
     
    #6 Bill the Engineer, Mar 26, 2015
  7. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    did the engine come on?
     
    #7 bisco, Mar 26, 2015
  8. Easy Rider 2

    Easy Rider 2 Senior Member

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    My opinion is yes. A can of Techron in the gas wouldn't hurt in the meantime.
     
    #8 Easy Rider 2, Mar 26, 2015
  9. Crystal S

    Crystal S Junior Member

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    I've looked in the manual and cannot find one page of information on a fuel filter.
     
    #9 Crystal S, Apr 5, 2015
  10. Crystal S

    Crystal S Junior Member

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    Thank you! I will do that!
     
    #10 Crystal S, Apr 5, 2015
  11. jdenenberg

    jdenenberg EE Professor

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    The fuel filter is in the gas tank and is not accessible.

    JeffD
     
    #11 jdenenberg, Apr 5, 2015
  12. exstudent

    exstudent Senior Member

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    PM (Private Message) PriusChat member "3prongpaul". He is in the Boulder, CO, area. And possibly works for Boulder Hybrids?

    Maybe they are close and could run the Techstream diagnosis on your Prius for a fraction of the dealership fee of $100+. I'm sure their labor rates are a fraction of the dealership too. Maybe they have a PriusChat member diagnosis discount fee too?
     
    #12 exstudent, Apr 6, 2015
    Last edited: Apr 6, 2015
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