Prius (2004-09) :: Power Loss In Mountains?
May 6, 2013
I recently bought a 2004 Prius with 104,000 miles on it. When I try to go up into the mountains I only get a few miles or up to 1,000 to 2,000 ft. elevation (from 300 ft. starting) and the battery level gradually drops from 6 bars to 1 bar. The red triangle light and check engine light comes on and the car speed gradually begins to drop even if I continue to press on the gas pedal. I have only gotten down to about 35 MPH from 60-65 mph before stopping and turning around. Within a few miles of turning around the light goes off and the battery goes back up to 6 bars and works good going down hill. The dealer I bought the car from has been working with me to figure out the problem but so far we have not figured it out. He has replaced the main battery as well as the inverter/converter. The mechanic was with me on a test drive to the mountains and had his car computer plugged in while we drove and experienced the same thing. It gave the code for the catalytic converter so we changed the entire CC/muffler (one long piece) and still got the same code. The battery indicator on this car has never shown more than 6 bars. I'm not a Prius mechanic but I personally think it has a bad "Gas Engine" or something wrong with the gas engine. How do I tell if the gas engine is bad or has a problem?
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I feel like I am going crazy but it feels like when driving up long steep 6-7% grades if I set the cruise control for 65 I can go 65 the whole way. If however I just use the gas peddle the car bogs and slows enough to get passed by semis (maybe not that bad but it feels like it). Is there a rational explanation for this behavior?
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I intended to use my 2006 4.6 v8 Explorer to tow my driftboat/trailer with a few tires over the Cascades and Rockies this weekend. I hadn't even made it from Seattle to Snoqualmie Pass before I decided to turn around.
My guess is the driftboat/trailer with tires was still no more than 1500 lbs and probably closer to 1000. Those of you who tow with yours, should I expect high revs to maintain 65-70 going up mountains with this type of load?
If not, what should I check? My 2006 Limited is AWD with 18 inch wheels. The tires are slightly larger than stock size.
NOTE: I took it to Montana using a F450 instead. Obviously, a bit overkill for a light towing load.
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Purchased a used 2006 prius with ~180K miles on it from south bay a few months ago. At the time of purchase the guy warned us that it 'ate' motor oil.
After 2 months of driving without issues (driven couple of hundred miles), on an uphill road the engine overheats and throws the red triangle, vsc and check engine lights on the dash, along with loss of power. After cool down I check oil level and sure enough it is low, since this is on top of a hill we essentially coast all the way back home without any real issues. Once home I top up the oil. I do a test drive around the block without issues (no loss of power) though the check engine/red triangle/vsc lights are still on. But after I take it for a longer drive the loss of power returns.
Since my bluetooth obd2 connector wasn't working I borrow one from my friend and try to get a read. Unfortunately the thing puts out no obd2 error codes. Living in the bay area I apparently cant just take it to an autozone, to get code readings. I take it to meineke auto repair, they too are unable to get an obd2 read, and want to charge me $100 for a full reading, which I decline.
I do a few diagnostics steps including 'resetting' the computer by leaving it off of the 12v battery for a few mins, this clears the red triangle et al on restart. I do a test drive, at first everything is working just fine, but after about 10 mins or so of driving the red triangle/check engine/vsc lights returns, along with loss of power. (under ~20 mph only, cant go uphill).
Take it to a mechanic and they come back with code: "APOA92. Trans Axel issue - MG1 performance is off. Measured torque is different than executed torque, enough to be a problem. 95% sure it is the transmission." I still haven't checked the 12v battery.
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I drive a 2007 Prius, I just purchased it about four months ago. Today after filling up with gas I drove about 60 miles and suddenly three lights on my dash came on. The all system light (the red triangle), the check engine light as well as the VSC or VCS what ever way it goes, my electric batter was also low on charge having only one bar(my car is not a plug in, the battery is recharged by the engine) then the car lost all boost and while pressing on the gas it was not accelerating. I pulled over and put it in park so the battery could charge. It charged to half way, however the lights stayed on.
My car then started running really rough, I am still in park at this time. I put some gas stabilizer in my tank because I thought maybe I got some bad gas. I left my car sit for about five minutes before turning it back on. All the lights were off except my check engine and my car started running normal. Then about three minutes later all the lights came back on and the car started running jerky again. When I push the gas to move I can, however I've only gone about four feet because it is running so rough.
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With only 356k miles on my 06, I'm now getting a sudden drop/loss of power at high RPM. At about 80mph on flat land (or about 60mph up hill) if I try to accelerate the power drops off as a fluttering sound starts (not engine knock). The fluttering sounds like 6 inches of celophane tape flapping in the wind at highway speeds.
I just cleaned my K&N air filter, but the plugs, injectors and fuel pump are original. I ran 1 can of injector cleaner (SeaFoam from O'Reilly) with little to no improvement. I'm guessing it's the fuel pump/pressure, since it runs fine at lower RPM, with no loss of mpg or power (still 50mpg average). I know the fuel pump is in the tank ($400 in parts alone). I'll see if I can measure the rail pressure with Torque and my CANBUS scanner.
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Had A/C go out while in Vegas almost 2 weeks ago. Dealer said compressor dead, replaced at my dealer back home, now having loss of power issue's, poor acceleration, 29mpg, & bad smell like transmission fluid or catalytic converter... Problems noticed after picked up car, then went away, now back.. No codes on the scantool, no lights etc.
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I had the cruise control set on the speed limit going up a hill. Half way up, the cruise control dropped as did my speed from 70 to 56. There were no warning lights but the battery meter was in the one bar pink range. I managed to continue up the hill at 56 mph by flooring the accelerator. When I got to the top and started to regenerate power to the battery, I regained power and speed. I am discussing a 2008 Prius with 89k miles. What the issue may be ( like battery pack declining efficiency)?
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After successful 4kwh install I was coming off interstate at 65 mph avg. when red light began to show on phev switch. Of a sudden the ice revved to 3700 rpm and loss of power. I was only able to get up to 25mph after red light. The ice continued to rev and of course the dash lit up like a christmas tree. I got to top of hill and pulled over and shut it down. I started it up and every thing worked fine except the red triangle and check engine light were still on and all the other lights were off.
I pulled into BachmanToyota about five miles further and their tech said this: "There is a code poa92 detail 606//adv there is a cust.modified addtional battery,in which we cannot svc." He cleared the code and I drove it home a total of about 60 miles and it is fine. What went on ?
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We are original owners of a 2004 Prius with 165K miles. We've taken excellent care of what has been a great family car. A couple of months ago, we got a check engine light associated with a catalytic converter error. We first replaced the oxygen sensor, which temporarily eliminated the error light, but the car really loses power, especially when a load is placed on it going up hill. The power loss is associated with a fluttering noise coming from within the engine and the battery display showing that it is not charging sufficiently.
We took it back to the dealer and they replaced the exhaust manifold gasket and suggested we replace the catalytic converter (> $2000) but also recommended a local exhaust specialist who could replace the catalytic converter for much less. The exhaust shop examined the car and told us the catalytic converter was fine and did not need replacement. There are no more error codes, and the dealership and their service department shows no interest in repairing our car.
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I have a 2009 Prius with about 72k miles on it. Today, after about 45 minutes of highway driving, these lights all came on: master warning, the "check" indicator, VSC, the circle brake indicator, and the hybrid system warning on the multifunctional display.
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Hesitation and power loss have returned. I removed all four spark plugs and found that the spark plug on the driver side of the engine, or side closest to the inverter, and its coil pack were covered in dried/sticky oil with no loose oil present around them. Pics added to new post #11 of coil pack and spark plug.
I couldn't find anything that really matched the symptoms I was having this afternoon on the way home from work. After letting the engine idle for about a minute to get through Stage 1, I pulled out of work but noticed I kept hearing a slight whining from the inverter (radio was off and windows were down) while going uphill on the road out of our parking lot. Speed was in the range of 25 to 30 MPH.
Torque showed I was pulling between 10 and 20 amps from the HV battery but what I noticed that was REALLY weird was that the timing advance gauge showed I was running around 2 to 3 degrees (?) instead of normally being around 13 or 14+ depending on how quickly I'm accelerating.
And the more acceleration I demanded, the the more amps were coming from the battery and the RPMs on the engine would go up, but the timing advance still remained below 10 degrees. I didn't hear any knocking but I could definitely feel the lack of power.
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During a highway trip three months ago, my 2004 Prius suddenly lost engine power, the red triangle Master Warning light came on accompanied by a warning sound, and then the Hybrid System Warning sign appeared on the Multifunction Display. I pulled off to the side of the road and stopped. I turned the car off and then tried turning it on again. Engine power was restored although the warning lights remained. We took a chance and carried on with our trip. The same sequence of events reoccurred about 10 times on our 1,300 km journey. I took the car to a Toyota dealer where they found a C2318 DTC. They checked the battery and the HEV fuse but could not locate the problem.
We returned home and on the way the same thing happened a few more times. My service manual noted that the description for C2318 is Low Voltage Error (Power Supply Malfunction) and the trouble areas are HEV fuse, IGCT relay, Wire harness or connector, or Auxiliary battery. Since the car was nearly 7 years old I thought I had nothing to lose by replacing the battery, which I did. However, on a short 150 km trip last week the problem appeared again, once while approaching our destination and once when we were almost home. There seems to be a pattern in that the problem appears every 150 km or so of highway driving. It has never done it while driving in the city.
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I have a Prius 2005 with an Engineer 4kwh kit installed [v4 bms]. Lately, I have experienced several instances where the Prius suddenly looses much of it's traction power and the engine races, and the red triangle and engine service lights go on at the dashboard. This happens with the kit turned on, and often after a few kit on/off cycles to get more ev mode. The Prius battery is sometimes low, sometimes not, when this happens. Not sure if it also occurs with the kit off.
The Prius seems to retain some traction power up-down by the throttle pedal, but most power goes missing. On the other hand the engine races and does not seem to power the wheels or vary by throttle. When I pull off the road using brakes normally, and turn off the car/engine and restart [kit now off], the car seems to reset and can resume driving normally, but the error code lights [triangle-engine] lights stay on.
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So I replaced my battery about 20k miles ago, so I know that's fine. I always throw a P0420, but I'm told that's fine too. So I was driving, and I lose power suddenly. The red triangle comes on, and I plug my scangauge II in, which tells me it's P0121, or the throttle body sensor. I reset the codes to make it home - my battery DID charge just fine on the way home, making it up to a 63.5 state of charge. Now when I start it, and press the gas, it tends to rev up, rev down, and repeat. I haven't gotten the red triangle again yet but I also haven't driven it since then.
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My Volvo with 167,000 miles lost power and almost stalled at approx. 3,000 feet in elevation driving up to the mountains from sea level. Check Engine Light came on and after getting off highway and letting it sit for a bit, it started right up and made it down to sea level without a problem. Volvo Dealer could not locate problem. Codes 3503,3513,3523 were showing up. Same problem 1.5 years ago and at that time they replaced radiator, coils, and spark plugs. They said it was not that again, however, they do not know what it is. Car has been faithfully serviced and I want to keep it. I volunteer for a seal rescue non-profit and need a reliable car!
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Faulty combination meters on the Toyota Prius. Loss of braking and power steering on the vehicle? This has happened to me 4 of the 100+ times my dash lights were not working. On those 4 occasions I was driving without the dash lights and all of the warning lights came on and the car lost power steering and the ABS braking and I had to use the emergency brake to stop. Fortunately when this has happened I have not been on the highway and there was no snow or it could have been very dangerous.
This issue has only happened when there is a malfunction with the combination meter. I understand this can create many issues within the vehicle including braking difficulties. The response of the Manager at my local Toyota shop said "well, at least you have brakes, you just won't have them in an emergency stop." Wow! I've read accounts of people going 65 mph and losing brakes when this has happened which could be very deadly.
I'm surprised at Toyota's response with this possibly deadly issue. I'm also surprised that the Combination Meter Failure has not be recalled because based off what I have read about 3% of Prius owners have experienced issues with this and the braking system. At what point does a "warranty" become a "recall"? Please note that this issue is separate from the "accelerator recall".
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A few days ago I posted a thread about losing power on a steep hill climb with a cold engine. I replaced the hybrid battery and all seemed well. A few days later, the problem occurred again--bummer. (The car has 120K miles and has spent most of its life in a hot and mountainous environment, and I knew the hybrid battery was failing, so that's not a problem.)
The car starts the climb OK, gains a few hundred feet in elevation, still has some charge left in the hybrid battery, then loses power, surges a couple of times, then comes to stop. The engine continues to run at idle and I get no warning or check engine lights. The "ready" light stays on. This time, the second time it happened, I turned off the car, turned it back on again immediately, and all was well. The remainder of the 1000' climb went fine. As did several other similar climbs on the same drive. Since then I've climbed this hill with a cold engine without a problem, so it's intermittent.
I hesitate to pay Toyota for a code scan since the check engine light did not come on. Should I do this anyway? My local auto parts store will scan for free, but I know that their scanner will not read Toyota-specific codes, just industry standards.
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Both of my rear brake calipers hung while traveling in mountains. Both so hot that I had no brakes. Had not been riding the brakes. Had to bump them when someone pulled out in front of me. Never noticed them hanging but smelled them and then hit the brakes and no brakes. They were so hot that they blew the valve stems out of both rear tires. Once they cooled, I had brakes. What would cause both to hang up at the same time?
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My 2007 Prius has 120,000 miles. I live in a mountainous area. I need to climb 3 miles at 6% grade to get out of my neighborhood. Lately I've been noticing the traction battery loses charge fairly quickly and I've been thinking about replacing the battery. Much of my driving is in steep hills and I run a full charge cycle many times a day, so I guess I should expect some loss of life.
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I have a 2004 F250 6.0 DuperDuty with about 170,000 miles on it, so far no major break-downs, just a starter and a blinker relay, but now I have a problem.
When I start now, the truck starts fine and it sounds fine, but it has almost no power even if I floor the gas peddle, there is a delay of like 2-3 seconds and then responds slowly, like some tractor. Eventually it starts to move slowly, and after it warms up (after a few minutes), the gas peddle responds more normal.
Also - at about 45mpg, at lower RPMs about 1250, the engine starts to shake (weird), it doesn't do it at idle about 850 RPM, or when I get it up to about 1800RPM+, but at about that 1250 RPM it does do it, luckily I driver locally for a few miles.
What could this be ? What exactly happens when I press on the gas peddle, what systems are involved and in which order?
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