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Strange metallic noise / rattle at low rpm uphill

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by gboss, Jun 12, 2023.

  1. gboss

    gboss Member

    Joined:
    Aug 30, 2021
    154
    55
    2
    Location:
    Mountain Town in CA
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius
    Model:
    Five
    I feel like the noise was present slightly when I bought the car 1.5 years ago (at very low levels though). I recently went on a trip where I bottomed out once on a dirt road and now I feel like it may be louder. I have a CAT shield installed and originally thought it may be that or the 'natural' sound of the clutch switching from battery power to ICE power. The noise tends to occur at about 20% into the ICE side of the power meter and disappears as I apply more throttle/power.

    Here is a clip where you can hear the onset of the noise:


    Does anyone have an idea what may be going on?
     
    #1 gboss, Jun 12, 2023
    Last edited: Jun 13, 2023
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    109,751
    49,866
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    could be a loose heat shield under the car
     
  3. gboss

    gboss Member

    Joined:
    Aug 30, 2021
    154
    55
    2
    Location:
    Mountain Town in CA
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius
    Model:
    Five
    After over a year...finally got it up off the ground. It was a damper that broke away from the exhaust pipe. They were grinding against each other at low rpms when the ICE was running:
    tempImagejo2VVL.png

    My fix - a hose clamp sawed down to size off an old piece of dryer ventilation ducting:
    tempImage9RGSPq.png

    Welding would have been ideal, but it seems to be quiet for now.
     
    #3 gboss, Oct 8, 2024 at 9:53 PM
    Last edited: Oct 8, 2024 at 10:09 PM
    Brian1954 likes this.