Prius (2004-09) :: Engine Misfire And Intermittent CEL Flashing


Feb 11, 2014

I drove a hybrid prius for the second time ever this past Sunday and drove a whole 22 miles on open roads. This is earmarked to be the parts car, but I believe is actually in better shape than the principal car. Regardless, I'm trying to ensure the motor will be suitable for swapping into main car when needed prior to me pulling it out so I'm tinkering/driving it this next week.

The engine has a misfire, and I suspect that is the reason for the flashing orange check engine light. But what I'm not used to is that the light goes off and doesn't stay illuminated. The light comes on and flashes when any significant demand is placed on the engine-- when I nurse the throttle pedal, I can hear the engine running (I think) and there's no miss. But when I give it throttle the engine starts to miss and the CEL starts to flash. When I slow back down, the engine stops missing and the light goes off.

1) How/why the CEL flashes but then turns off?

The only background I have on this car (2008 at 225K miles) is it was taken out of service with the following writeup:
P0300 Random misfire, 0301 Misfire #1, Po302 Misfire #2 and P0101 Mass Air Flow Stored in ECM. Intermittently car only runs on 2 cyls. Suspect problem with intake due to the fact there is a recall for newer vehicles with the same condition. #1 spark plug continually getting wet with oil. Possible valve guides or ring issue allowing oil in to combustion chamber. To correct engine replacement or rebuild will be necessary.

2) What is this maf recall and might that issue apply to this 2008?

Truthfully, I only need the car to function for ~ 400 miles on a racetrack. I've been reading about the pcv valve replacement and MAF sensor cleaning. I'm considering venting the pcv line into a catch can or into the exhaust stream (to reintroduce a vacuum to the crankcase) and plugging the opening in the throttle body so there's no chance the throttle body is sucking in crankcase oil that's fouling the plugs.

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Prius (2004-09) :: Intermittent Misfire Cylinder 1 Code

I posted this problem several months ago about a p301 code that my 2007 Prius has been generating. I eliminated all the easy stuff... plug, spark unit, fuel injector. Over the past year since I've had the car, the CEL light has gone on for a couple months then shut itself off for a couple, then back on ... probably has shut itself off 3 times in the past year, each time staying off about a month or two before coming back on. Some background on the car, supposedly the PO hit a rock and damaged the motor about 2 years ago and had the short block replaced.

Anyway, the CEL has been on again for about a month, and I got a notice for Illinois emission testing, so I decided to take it in to the dealer and have him do a diagnostic so I can get the emissions passed. After an hour and a half of testing they told me that the best they could ascertain, the car has been submerged in water, as there is a lot of rust in areas that never get any rust, and they think there's a short somewhere.

The service manager at the dealership said if it was his car he wouldn't spend the money for another 5 hours of trouble shooting, and if the car runs good he'd just drive it as is. They cleared the CEL and the service manager just charged me for an oil change as they caught a recall on the steering that hadn't been done and figured he'd let me slide on the hundred for the diagnostic.

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Audi - A6 :: 2004 - Check Engine Light Intermittently Flashing / Misfire On Cylinder 2 And 5

I have a 2004 Audi A6 wagon that has an intermittently flashing check engine light. I took it to the dealership to have the codes read and they told me that they got codes for Cylinder 2 and Cylinder 5 misfires. Additionally they got a code saying the Engine Coolant Temperature Sender was electronically faulty. What is this part and what does it do? Is it essential to fix it immediately?

The dealership recommended changing the spark plugs and the air filters for the cylinder misfire issue. We are also talking about replacing the timing belt since the car has 105k miles on it. I know there are several other parts that are replaced during the timing belt replacement (like the water pump, thermostat, oil seals, etc). Is it essential to replace these items if there is no immediate need to do so?

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I have a 2004 santa fe with a 2.7 v6. I have had a little misfire issue lately. I had a major power loss with a check engine light on it lasted for just a minute before it settled itself out. Had the code pulled at a local parts store. P0301 so I checked the plugs and they looked worn out. I pulled the upper intake and replaced the plugs and wires plus the upper intake gasket. I cleared the code and that seemed to correct the problem. Two days later, same thing happened. The engine seems to be running fine now. I wiggled the wiring harness to the injector and to the coil, no change in the way it runs. I was thinking it could be an injector or a coil pack.

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Our 2008 with 110,000 mi is intermittently displaying CEL. First appeared about 3 wks ago. I took gas cap off and then put it back on and let car sit overnight. Next day and for 10 days no CEL. Then one mornng, at first start, CEL reappeared. Repeated gas cap process that night. CEL disappeared for 6 days. Then CEL came on in middle of day after car had been started and stopped 3 times. Repeated gas cap process that evening with no success. Did the gas cap thing one more time, last night, and today the CEL is off. First time CEL came on was right after a fill-up. Subsequent CEL's have had no relationship to refueling. Car has been nearly flawless for 68 months. Engine coolant pump changed @ 75k. Aux batt changed 24 mo ago.

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Golf IV / Jetta IV :: 2004 - MIL Flashing - Misfire On Cylinder 4

Just dug out my 2004 2.0 Jetta after sitting buried for 4 months. You can see a corner of the wheel there lol, its been a LONG winter. It is my car but my brother normally drives it, and while he is away at uni it just sits.

Anyways, dug it out to start it. Started right up, however after a bit the MIL began flashing. It was running a little rough. Took out my code reader and engine misfire cylinder 4 came up. The rpms are varying by 75~100 every few seconds, however nothing rough. It seemed to rev fine.

Before I put it away I got my brother to put some fuel stabilizer in the fuel. He now tells me that he put some in the oil too since it said "oil stabilizer" as well. It was a seafoam type brand... Not impressed with him there.

My question is could this just be the car waking up? Should I let it run for an hour or two to see if things work out?

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Toyota - Tundra :: Intermittent Misfire Only When Engine Is Started And Cold?

2008 Tundra 5.7 only 55K miles – What is causing an intermittent misfire at startup? It’s been running great, then 2 weeks ago when I started it up I could feel a misfire. By the time I backed out of the driveway the check engine light came on. This is what I have learned so far:

•It only happens when you start the engine and the engine is NOT at operating temperature.

•The engine code always reports misfire on Cylinder #2 I put in a new plug and swapped coils but it still reports the misfire on cylinder #2.

•Once it starts to misfire it will continue to misfire until the engine is at operating temperature and you restart the engine. NOTE: You MUST restart the engine for the misfire to go away. It will be running rough, turn engine off/on once it is at operating temperature and it's as smooth as can be, no more misfire.

•One time I started the truck, I felt the misfire and drove it to a parts store to read the code. Engine was fully warm by the time I reached the parts store. I did not power off the engine, plugged in the tester and read the code which was a misfire on cylinder 2. I cleared the code and within 2-3 seconds it logged the misfire on cylinder #2 again. Cleared the code several times and it kept reporting misfire on cylinder 2. You could also feel the misfire happening. Turned engine off, started it right back up, like before no misfire, cleared the code and it no longer reported a misfire.

•This just started intermittently happening. This morning it happened again, I drove it for about 5 min, engine was about 75% it’s normal operating temperature, powered it off/on, still had the misfire. Once engine temp reached normal temp (about 9 min), I turned off engine, started it back and like before problem was gone.

What is causing this to happen?

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Prius (2004-09) :: Engine Misfire On High Acceleration?

Motor started to misfire while out on grocery run. scanner said mifire on #1 so I bought a coil and plug. car ran well for a day then same thing on # 2.. repeat.. then # 3 repeat so did #4.

Now it did it again on #3. I switched the coil #2 and #3 to see if scanner would show if it followed the new #3 coil but so far no code. The misfire is on light acceleration, push down hard and it does not miss. Today I will try some fuel injector cleaner.. Is this the trail I should be following ?

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Prius (2004-09) :: Intermittent Engine Light While Braking / Driving

I have a 2008 Prius. It has been giving me an engine light intermittently while I am driving. My mechanic could not get an error code to show. It mostly happens while braking or while driving a right hand curve on roads at speed. What might be happening?

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Prius (2004-09) :: 2005 - Engine Running Very Rough And CEL Flashing

We have a 2005 Prius with 77,400 miles on it. My wife came home from a short trip yesterday saying the engine was shaking the car and the CEL was flashing. About 4 months ago we also had the CEL come on but not flash and it ran a bit rough but not as bad as it is now. I was told by our local dealer that a flashing light is worse than if the light comes on and stays on. When this happened 4 months ago at 74,000 miles the dealer said they downloaded codes P300, 303, and 304 and that I needed to replace all 4 fuel injectors.

I realize that 300 is a general misfire code and 303 is a misfire code for cylinder 3 and 304 is for cylinder 4. After reading some advice on here 4 months ago, I cleaned my MAF sensor, ran some fuel injector cleaner through a tank of fuel, replaced all 4 spark plugs, and started buying Chevron gas. The CEL stayed off and our mileage went back to normal. I thought I had solved the problem but now this after 3000+ miles. I checked all the ingitors, connections, spark plugs, and wires yesterday and all seem to be in good condition. Maybe they were right and the fuel injectors are going bad. I am at a loss as what else to do other than take it back to the dealer now and plan do that this afternoon.

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Caravan/Voyager :: 2002 - Check Engine Light On / Intermittent Misfire

I have an 02 Dodge Caravan 3.3 L Flex . It had initially stalled and wouldn't start. Check engine light was on. Had it towed to a Cert Mech. He said it needed a "Major" tune-up. I let him do this. It included: New Coilpak, plugs, plug wires, cam-sensor, crank sensor. That's what was on 1st invoice.

It started, but was still running very rough. He then recommend a new PCM. After choking on his estimate, and paying the initial invoice, I decided to let someone else have at it. Mech # 2 installed a "Rebuilt" PCM, New Battery, and a PCV Valve.

It runs good now BUT, ...It has this weird idle Misfire. The only time it happens is at a stop light when at idle. And it doesnt do it all the time. This check engine light is not on... At this point, all I want to do is sell it.I have over 1K in repair costs and still can't get rid of this misfire.

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Ford F-150 - 1997-2003 :: Misfire And Flashing MIL When Engine Was Under A Load Doing About 3000 RPM

I have a 2002 Ford F-150 with a 5.4 Triton. 212,xxx miles. I replaced the cops and the plugs about 6 months ago. I was pulling a trailer up hill last week and the engine was under a load doing about 3000rpm. It began to misfire and give me a flashing mil. However, before I went very far the engine began to run fine. It happened 3-4 different times. However, there is no code recorded. I've driven the truck nearly 100 miles with no problems, but I'm going to be pulling that trailer uphill again next week.

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Prius (2004-09) :: Intermittent No Start - Check Engine Light / VSC And Triangle On

So let's start with this. A week ago my dad went to start his car after going to the store. I wasn't there so can't say exactly what happened but when I got there the car would basically go into accessory mode with check engine light VSC and triangle on. Also displayed problem on the screen. I checked 12v battery with just the radio on (one button press with foot off brake) and it only showed 12.0 volts. So I hooked our jump box directly to the battery and it still wouldn't start. I scanned it for error codes and it showed nothing but I could erase them and the lights went off so probably codes from one of the hybrid computers I can't read but the car still wouldn't ready. I unhooked the 12v for about 30 second seconds and the car started fine without the jump box hooked up.

At this point I don't have any codes and with nothing to go off of I'm at a loss. We drive it 8 miles back to our shop and it drove normally with no errors. Once it was back in the shop after turning the car on and off 10 times or so still no errors. On the last time it was in ready mode and the errors came back on, still with no codes I could read. His 12v optima was still under warranty so we got it exchanged for free even though I was reluctant that it would fix the issue. Well a week went by and all seemed to be fine until yesterday.

My dad had left the car in ready mode for probably 20 minutes and when he got back in it all the lights were on. I will also add that the battery fan was operating normally and not screaming like if there was a traction battery issue. I changed one of the modules in his traction battery about 6 months ago when one failed. Without any codes I don't know where to start with this problem. 2005 with 170k miles....

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Chevrolet - Suburban :: 2007 - Misfire After Working On Engine / SES Light Flashing While Driving

I replaced the oil pressure switch on an '07 Suburban 5.3L because the oil pressure was showing low once the engine warmed up. That did nothing, then I found out about that little filter/screen under the sensor. I intended to remove and clean the filter then reinstall it. While I was pulling it out, I dropped it back behind the engine and couldn't find it. I checked online and found a few people in other forums that said to just remove the screen as a "fix", so I left it out and put the sensor back in, just to get the vehicle drivable. It started right up and ran fine for me, parked it, and a after sitting for a few hours it started popping while driving with the SES light flashing on the drive home.

Code P0300 was set, no cylinder specific misfire codes were present. I checked the misfire data and cylinder #6 showed tens of thousands of misfires, #5 showed several hundred, but I think it was just picking them up from #6 since #5 is right after #6 in the firing order. I disabled each injector with a scan tool, all changed the idle except #6, it did absolutely nothing. #6 fuel injector had good pulse to it, I connected a fuel pressure gauge and put power/ground to injectors #6 and #4, both dropped the same fuel pressure. I did the "cylinder deactivation" test on the scan tool for the four cylinders that have it, they all did the exact same thing - the engine bogged way down for a couple seconds and then died. Is that normal? I can't say I've ever seen a V8 engine die before when running on 6 or 7 cylinders. I checked compression on cylinder #6, it showed very low, almost zero, but I tried it a few times and it would show just a little compression at times... valves staying shut? I'm thinking when I opened the pressure relief valve on the gauge and the piston was near the bottom of the cylinder may be when it showed some compression. I also switched the coil/wire/plug from #6 to other cylinders and the miss did not follow.

Could having that screen out cause this problem? Having the engine die when deactivating the cylinders makes me wonder if maybe it's commanding all four at the same time, although the test shows each cylinder being controlled separately. Using a MODIS, not a TechII. I just got done putting in a new filter/screen to see if it would make any difference, and of course it didn't.

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Toyota - Corolla :: 1999 - Check Engine Light Came On Flashing / Cylinder 3 Misfire

I have a 1999 Toyota Corolla. 4 cylinders.

I was on the road about 2 hours from home when my check engine light came on flashing. It stopped flashing so I kept driving. Three more hours of driving at highway speeds and it only came back on once. I then took it into autozone and the code reader told me I had a Cylinder 3 Misfire. The guy told me to change my spark plugs and I would be fine. It was time for a spark plug change anyhow so I drove home and did it. After I changed the spark plugs the car did not start at all. It would cough and sputter and try to start but not actually start. Changed the spark plug wires and then the car stopped even coughing and sputtering. It just didn't start.

I then noticed that my fuel line that feeds directly into the engine was rotten right next to the engine and if I pushed it in I could get the car to try to start. (Try and fail, but at least try.) The fuel line is a molded piece of rubber that flares at each end. It was one of the flares that was rotten and didn't seem to be sealing anymore. The hose is 7 mm inner diameter in the middle and about half an inch on the ends. I took some 3/8 in fuel line and used it to cover over one of the flares. The car tries to start now but wont. 3 of the four cylinders crank. I don't understand how I could break my car on such a simple repair job.

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My g/f's 2004 Ford Escape (3.0L V6 AWD 112,000mi) is acting up. After a full day of sitting, with the second half of it raining steadily, she was driving her Escape and it was acting funny (miss-firing, she said). The engine light came on and soon began blinking. She got to my house shortly after it started this. We left it and I drove for the day. Later that night, I drove it and it seemed fine. The engine light was on, but not flashing anymore.

The next day I took it my friend that was a Saturn mechanic and now working at a KIA dealership (same owner as the former Saturn and current Buick/GMC and Chevy Dealer). It ran fine for me. So he tries to scan it, his Mac Tools scanner won't read it. The KIA scanner wouldn't read it. I drove it the Ford dealer up the road. They said they couldn't get to it until after lunch, I just want the codes read. They re-iterated, and I told them to pound salt and went to an independent shop where I know a guy. They read it right away for me. "Mis-fire on start-up" & "Cylinder 4 Mis-fire." were the two codes stored. He cleared them.

She got the tune up basics (plugs, wires, air filter, etc) and did the complete tune-up herself yesterday. (I was impressed). She put 94 in the tank and some fuel system cleaner in it as well. She said there's been no change and today I finally saw what it was doing. Sometimes during idling at a stop light, the RPMs will drop to almost zero, the lights dim but so far it has not stalled. It'll do this for several seconds, then correct itself and idle normally.

Currently, the engine light has not come back on. She's thinking coil pack (each cylinder has a coil on these engines) on #4. She wants to switch it out with #1 and see if the problem follows. I think that might uncover the cause, or it could be the battery. It's the original, never been replaced and has a lot of miles on it, but it survived this past winter, without trouble. In my experience, most batteries crap out due to age in the fall when the cold snaps start.

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This is my friend's car and I have never looked under a Subaru hood before. She is getting an intermittent check engine light with codes for cylinder misfires on one and three. Today, I inspected the plugs and all four looked identical, a nice uniform tan color and good condition. No sign of deposits or oil. Did a compression test and found the driver's side bank at 155/150 and the passenger side bank at 185/190. My question at this point is which side is cylinders 1 and 3? The front-most cylinder is on the passenger side. Is this the number 1 and 3? If so, then the low compression on the other bank cannot account for the misfire.

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