My (almost) new '05 Prius shudders every time the gas engine shuts off - just a few times, but noticeable. Dealer says this is normal, happens to everybody, and that it has actually been happening since I bought it, I just didn't notice it at first.
I think he's full of you-know-what.
How do I "prove" to my dealer that the shudder isn't normal?
The brand new 05 prius that I borrowed for a 24hr test drive had 40Kms on the clock and it did the same thing.
The Toyota dealer ship also told me it is normal.
I will see what it is like when I get my 06 i-Tech at the end of April.
My '04 Prius has done that since it was new, and it now has 25K miles on it. It's perfectly normal.
Steve
On Fri, 17 Feb 2006 09:28:23 +0800, "Statesman" put together some random words that came up with:
I just bought (in Jan) a new 2005 and it shudders - I hate hearing that it's "normal" as much as I dislike the shudder. Funny how the demo I drove in the fall didn't do that!
In this case, "normal" was used instead of "universally abnormal" or "common". Toyota didn't achieve perfection but did manage to produce a great hybrid.
Agreed. My '05 purchased new in late Nov. 2005 does it too.
I have an 03 Prius and I can tell when the ICE shuts down. The only shudder happens when the Hummer tailgates instead of changing lanes to pass.
Bob Wilson
My 05 does it occasionally, didn't do it for the first 6 months or so
My 2004 and 2006 both shudder the ICE shuts down. This doesn't always happen, but it is not uncommon either. I think that the shudder is residual fuel in the cylinders being burned before shutdown.
Kari
What is happening is similar to dieseling. If you hard brake there is still a bit of gas left in the lines which will burn causing the engine to continue to run roughly for about a second before completely shutting down. This is the shudder you perceive. It can be avoided by cruising to slow down before a stop, so that all the excess gas is burned off before the car actually stops.
Huh? The computer decided when to shut the engine off. Fuel is metered to meet demand. You may be right about what causes (what sounds like) engine overrun however the solution to the problem lies in Toyota's hands. Besides, it usually happens to me when my engine is cold, not when it is hot.
In my case, I see no correlation at all between the shudder and hard breaking.
Does anyone really know how the car works? I have contacted the dealer and they have doubts about what is normal. I also contacted Toyota and asked to meet with one of their people and they say that isn't possible. That you must go to the dealer. Sounds like the run around to me.
What I would really like to know is if they shut off the engine using the electrical or via the fuel supply. It seems reasonable to me that they would stop the fuel first by shutting off the fuel injectors, if they are electric, if not it still should not diesel. This is not good for a gas engine.
The car is good, but not great. The seats suck. That is where a person spends most of the time. I still can't understand why an auto company wouldn't put in the best possible seats. They also suck in my Lexus, so Toyota keeps up the good work. They must be designed for small people.
Maybe that's it - my wife and I are both small and we love the seats.
Mike
...
The car's cycle is pretty well documented in the owner's manual. What you experience as "shudder" is probably not dieseling. The engine is not only elecrically controlled, it's fuel is metered and it's valves are computer controlled. On top of that, the ICE is also mechanically turned by one of the two MGs (motor-generators) to provide the equivilents of gear ratios.
If, for any reason the engine does not stop turning as fast as the computer expects you will have a little extra resistance that is not counteracted by the MG. This can cause a momentary shudder as everything catches up.
It's really a miracle that it runs as smoothly as it does. It has to detect changes as they happen AND provide the appropriate power inputs to keep it all in balance.
It's more likely that the "shudder" is caused by the engine stopping one cycle earlier than the computer expects.
If it really bugs you, now is a great time to sell it. You'll get your money back at current resale prices. Personally, my wife and I love the seats. We've driven up to 4,000 miles in a one week period.
Daniel
I'm 6'3" I think the seats are fine.
I also thought that the seats could use some improvement until my wife and I travelled from California to Florida and back last fall. We did our trip East in three days, spending up to 14 hours on the road in one day. The our seats on the car seats held out quite well and both of us are in the AARP age group.
Kari
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