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Shift into park while moving, any damage?

Discussion in 'Gen 4 Prius Main Forum' started by littlebird002, Nov 5, 2017.

  1. littlebird002

    littlebird002 Junior Member

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    I accidentally shifted car into park while moving at a slow speed, under 5-10mph. I heard sound like hit the wall and then immediately stepped on the brake. I estimate I traveled less than 6 ft after shifting into park. I did not have any trouble driving or stopping the car afterward.

    I am wondering if I caused any damage to my car? Do I need to bring my car to dealer?
    Thanks a lot.
     
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  2. RCO

    RCO Senior Member

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    I don't think you will have done any major damage, because there is a safety override preventing the parking lock engaging at an unsafe speed. You may want to try the P Button on a slope soon to see if it still works normally, but according to @Prodigyplace recently, there is a pawl which engages to prevent a rotating part from spinning in the drive line somewhere. You might have guessed, I'm no technical genius. ;)
     
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  3. David Beale

    David Beale Senior Member

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    Some cars use a pin in the transmission to lock the drive, but the Prius uses a "hypoid gear" to do so. It's much stronger. It can be replaced without full disassemble of the HSD as it's "external". If "P" still stops the car from rolling you did little to no damage. Many have done this, don't worry about it. It's rare to damage it.
     
  4. littlebird002

    littlebird002 Junior Member

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    Sure.Thank you very much.
     
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  5. littlebird002

    littlebird002 Junior Member

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    I have tried "P", it still stops the car from rolling :)
    Very appreciate your detailed information. Have a wonderful day.
     
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  6. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    The Prius transaxle still uses an internal pawl to lock the drive. The cycloid gear mechanism referred to here is just the torque multiplier for the little electric motor that moves the pawl into and out of position (instead of using a big mechanical shift lever pulling a cable, as Gen 1 did). If something goes wrong with the motor/gear, that can be replaced (it's called the Shift Control Actuator), but if something breaks the pawl, that's still a transaxle teardown.

    But you're not very likely to break the pawl, because even if you do press Park when your speed is too high, the computer will just beep at you and shift to Neutral instead.

    A hypoid gear is a different sort of animal, often seen in rear-wheel-drive axles.

    -Chap
     
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  7. littlebird002

    littlebird002 Junior Member

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    Sure. Have a lot things to learn.
    I am thinking whether I should take couple Automotive classes during my spare time.

    Thank you very much.
     
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  8. RCO

    RCO Senior Member

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    You're welcome. You too, have a good one. :)
     
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