I know the owners manual says 87 octane or higher. I'm only on my third tank of gas but yesterday I think I heard some "pinging" when I needed to catch up with the traffic flow. So far I have been using 87 octane from Raleys Aisle One. (Sacramento area) I think it's a generic gas but not sure where it comes from.....
View 19 RepliesI have a 2010 III prius with about 20,000 miles. at about 5000 miles, it developed a pinging noise that has steadily got worse. It appears to be worse when the car is cruising on level ground at about 50mph. the pinging noise appears to be metal in nature but sometimes i think it sounds like electrical arcing. the frustrating thing is that it comes and goes. some days it does it a lot, some days not at all. The grade of gas does not seem to matter much, although it appears to have some effect.
Naturally, the days i have taken the car to the dealer are the days it isn't making the noise, although one day a technician did briefly hear it so they don't think i'm nuts. also naturally, the dealer doesn't have a clue what is wrong. the dealer said they hooked up a computer and everything checks out OK. they say that if it was serious, it would show up on the computer. I asked them to specifically check the timing advance mechanism and they said it was OK.(to be honest, I really doubt they looked at anything. they basically brushed me off) they also said that if it is piston pinging, that it won't hurt the car.
Recently I started to hear engine pinging/knocking-like noise when the hybrid battery level becomes low like two bars and the car starts a charge cycle. I also hear it occasionally when I accelerate on uphill. Is this normal or should I take it to a mechanic?
View 2 RepliesI took my Prius Two to its first car wash today, afterwards, the air flow from the vents became minimal, almost non-existent. How could this be? The car is barely two months old. Prior to the car wash, I had the AC and air blasting to the highest, I didn't change any fan settings, and now there's barely any air coming out. I can hear the fans churning and running, but there's no air!!! Do I take it to the dealer?
View 2 RepliesThis is the first winter with my 2012 Prius, and I've been suspicious of the climate controls. Today, my passenger complained that there was not heat going the to feet. I've always worn insulated shoes/pants so I didn't really notice before.
I jacked up my fan, increased the temperature and changed the aim to the feet/knees only. I then put my hand to where the gas pedal is. I couldn't feel any air flow at the feet. There was still plenty of air coming out of the upper side vents that blows towards your chest. The upper vent got hot, but not the feet.
Why there's no/little airflow to the feet? I'm thinking of checking my carbon filter but it is too cold be pulling out parts. I'm now suspicious if my car's air direction function works properly.
I’m concerned about stop and go traffic here in Phoenix, where the highway traffic literally stops for minutes at a time. Then we get to move for 50-100 feet and then completely stop again. This process may continue for 30-45 minutes. How is this affecting my Prius, am I slowly killing my new car?
View 19 RepliesWhat are the selection input for these? I have seen them go back and forward on its own. I have also been told that there is an in-cabin humidity sensor but have seen no documentation on it. Does that switch between fresh and recirculate?
View 2 RepliesI have a 2012 Prius. It has twice shut down spontaneously when idling while in traffic. I have explained this, the Service Advisor said he had never heard of it. My question is: why is this happening? The car has been properly serviced. It never happened with my 2006 Prius.
View 12 RepliesMy traction control light comes on sporadically when I am stopped at a light. Roads are dry and I have not hit anything. What is going on?
View 8 RepliesIs there a hack to add interactive graphics (shown below) to the backup camera if
[1] you don't have Intelligent Parking Assist, or
[2] you don't want to install an aftermarket kit that changes your dash interface? What's the least invasive way to add this feature?
The dealer tells me my batteries in my low tire sensors are bad. The low tire light on the dash won't go out. So I need to replace the TPMS sensors in my '06 type 5 Prius. I know I can pick them online much cheaper than at the dealer. My question is, is there some reprogramming that will need to be done. I'm assuming it will be some convoluted sequence with buttons on the dash similar to turning off the backup alarm, etc.
View 3 RepliesI know I am unusual but most days I drive about 3-4 miles. I can get 2-3 days out of a charge. Should I plug in every night or just when needed? Does it use more kWh to plug in every day?
View 19 RepliesWe purchased a used 2010 Journey in May. In early June, we found that when running errands in the heat, at about the third errand the car won't start. It will kind of chug chug, turns over, but doesn't catch. We took it in once and they rewired the starter. (someone had wired with with a piece of extension cord?). Then, a couple weeks later took it in for a new starter. Still does it. BUT, I think I figured out that when you wiggle the gear shift (Automatic) while in Park, it will start. It may take a few times, but it started for me twice this way.
View 13 RepliesI had my wallet and key stolen and my spare has somehow gone missing too. A dealership has quoted me half hour to program and an hour and half to reseed.
One of the things I was told is I need the reseed to cancel any previous fobs the car was programmed to. I don't care if the old fob is out there and could be used for my car. If this is the only reason for reseed I don't want it.
I am confused. Somewhere I think I read that if you don't have any keys then you'll need a reseed no matter what.
I had the black logo fob, not a proximity one.
Why a reseed needs to be done when you have no key to go off, or why you don't.
My '08 Prius Touring is in the shop today because the 'check engine' light came on at 68,500 miles. I just got word from them that the catalytic converter is bad and needs replacement. Good thing I bought the extended warranty! Well, I searched the forum for similar problems and it seems like this is somewhat common, albeit on cars with a bit more mileage and maybe a year or more older. I don't abuse my car at all, though I often roll into full-throttle while merging.
Is this a symptom of a poor part design or of a system that fouls the cat over a certain amount of time? I'm not looking forward to replacing it again at 130K after my extended warranty expires.
I just took the car to the dealer, for a recurring Check Engine light, and after changing the gas cover 2 months ago, now they tell me that it needs to replace the Charcoal Canister pump . I have a 2008 Prius, bought used 18 months ago, with approx. 70k miles
View 4 RepliesThe timer built into the Prius needs to be pressed each time a delay is needed ? Is this correct ?
View 5 RepliesI have a 2010 Chevy Equinox and I hear a pinging noise when my car is idling and when I drive below 40m.p.h. It sounds like a diesel engine, when it isn't. I have the 2.4L Ecotech direct injection. The dealership says this is normal, but why is it so noisy. What if anything can I do about the noise or is there a problem with the Equinox?
View 4 RepliesI have a fairly low mileage 2005 Prius I purchased private sale about 6 months ago... so still getting used to a few things. The previous owners had to replace the hybrid battery at about 45,000 mi. From what I understand, that's pretty unheard of. The reason that was given that the battery died was that the Prius was in their garage un-driven for a couple weeks while they were on vacation and the car had been pinging the key fob (close by in the house) the whole time. The associated details were a little fuzzy, but the owner has a note written in the manual about a certain combo of buttons to hit if you'll be away from the car for awhile, but the fob will still be physically close to the car. This combo turns off the hybrid battery (??)
Ok, so my question... How common is this? How long is 'long' that I should be concerned about leaving the car? Is it really best practice to keep your keep fob more than so-many feet from the car to reduce the chance of this happening?
I'm having a problem with my Prius. It pings under acceleration and it sounds like something metallic is rattling. It only happens when I use 87 and 89 oct. I use 91 premium to reduce the ping however, gas prices are rising and I want to go back to 87. There are no warning lights or anything and the ping has been happening for quite some time now.
View 3 RepliesI recently changed my oil, transmission fluid, and both coolant systems. I have a 2008 Prius, and I can hear this noise coming from the engine when I accelerate between 50-70 MPH or have the cruise control on.
I had low coolant in the ICE system earlier (didn't know there were two separate systems) and I had the red triangle light up for a moment and "Problem" appear on the LCD screen followed by an orange thermometer. I pulled over and let it cool down, and babied it home and added coolant.