Struggles uphill

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by Gloria&Suzanne, Jun 28, 2026 at 6:21 PM.

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  1. Gloria&Suzanne

    Gloria&Suzanne New Member

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    My 2013 Toyota Prius with almost 213,000 miles on it struggles uphill and revs loudly (rpm possibly too high) and loses power on steep hills. My car more often experiences sluggish acceleration once the engine warms up. I cleaned the EGR system a few months ago, replaced the PCV valve after discovering oil pooling at the bottom of my air intake manifold, in which yesterday, I discovered a recurrence of the oil issue and cleaned out the air intake manifold. And that the oil pressure sensor seal broke and oil started leaking out of that. The lower oil pan is leaking around the edges so I'm going to replace the oil pan seal.
     
    #1 Gloria&Suzanne, Jun 28, 2026 at 6:21 PM
  2. Brian1954

    Brian1954 Senior Member

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    How many years have you owned the car?

    Do you have a long-term history of the work and maintenance done on the car?

    Back on May 8th in a different thread you wrote:
    What did the mechanic find and fix if anything?
    Did the high temperature warning light come on when the car was overheating?
     
    #2 Brian1954, Jun 28, 2026 at 6:52 PM
  3. Higgins909

    Higgins909 Member

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    Is the hybrid battery original and what kind of bars is it at when this happens?
     
    #3 Higgins909, Jun 29, 2026 at 4:00 PM
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  4. rjparker

    rjparker Tu Humilde Sirviente

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    It is normal for the engine to rev high on a steep uphill, the kind where you normally are slowed down.

    As noted in another thread, its most important to know what your engine temperatures are at that time, not how much the transaxle is gearing down.

    Review this post
    Can a water pump go bad with no check engine light? | Page 3 | PriusChat

    Finally oil in the manifold is normal and a new pcv does not solve it. It can be minimized with a high quality $200 pcv line catch can system but won't solve current issues like rattling, oil leaks or poor acceleration.
     
    #4 rjparker, Jun 29, 2026 at 4:09 PM
    Last edited: Jun 29, 2026 at 7:40 PM
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  5. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    The RPM won't go too high in a Prius, because that's all under the control of a computer that knows what the limits are. It might go higher than your personal listening preference, but that's a different matter.
     
    #5 ChapmanF, Jun 29, 2026 at 4:21 PM
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  6. Higgins909

    Higgins909 Member

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    IIRC, it will hit 5,200-5,400.
     
    #6 Higgins909, Jun 29, 2026 at 7:30 PM
  7. CR94

    CR94 Senior Member

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    More so than the same Prius did on the same hills in the past? If so, you actually have a problem. If not, that's normal Prius behavior, as was explained to you in another thread a few days ago. Especially at moderate engine speeds, a Prius engine produces relatively low torque in proportion to the weight of the car. Therefore, there's no way the car can speed up a steep hill without "revving loudly."
     
    #7 CR94, Jun 29, 2026 at 9:36 PM
  8. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    Yes, the gen 3 engine HP output peaks at 5,300 and then drops off, and the ECU knows that.

    A teenager might choose to rev an engine above that point sometimes for the sake of hearing snarly sounds even though it's less power. The power management control ECU in a Prius would think that was silly.
     
    #8 ChapmanF, Jun 29, 2026 at 9:43 PM
  9. Gloria&Suzanne

    Gloria&Suzanne New Member

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    Yes, the behavior has changed. I found out there is a recall on my car still pending and I scheduled to take that in for that tomorrow. It's related to the inverter and computer software. My oil pan is leaking and my oil pressure sensor switch seal broke, and this Despite cleaning the EGR system and replacing the pcv valve, oil started pooling in my air intake manifold, yet again. I cleaned it out. It improved the issue a bit. I'm replacing the oil pressure sensor switch.
     
    #9 Gloria&Suzanne, Jun 29, 2026 at 11:12 PM
  10. Gloria&Suzanne

    Gloria&Suzanne New Member

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    My car turned into a road tortoise on hill. It revs without flooring the gas pedal.
     
    #10 Gloria&Suzanne, Jun 29, 2026 at 11:15 PM
  11. Gloria&Suzanne

    Gloria&Suzanne New Member

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    It went into full limp mode, nearly stalling my vehicle.
     
    #11 Gloria&Suzanne, Jun 29, 2026 at 11:16 PM
  12. Gloria&Suzanne

    Gloria&Suzanne New Member

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    #12 Gloria&Suzanne, Jun 29, 2026 at 11:22 PM
  13. Gloria&Suzanne

    Gloria&Suzanne New Member

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    The oil pan needs new sealant. I was talking about an incident where Google maps took me on a dangerous stretch of Highway 49 in Northern California, USA, in the mountains. Roads were narrow, hills were steep, some blind turns.
     
    #13 Gloria&Suzanne, Jun 29, 2026 at 11:26 PM
  14. Gloria&Suzanne

    Gloria&Suzanne New Member

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    I'm not that dumb. I don't wanna go rough on my baby (My Prius which I named Suzanne). Becoming emotionally attached to non-living things as if they were living is a common experience for people on the autism spectrum, like me.

    And I'm a woman, and my 22nd birthday is coming up, so I'm not a teenager. I feel blown off as you did not witness the extent of which my car did that. You did not ride along with me. A life lesson is do not assume you fully understand someone else's lived experiences when you haven't gone through them yourself. ‍
     
    #14 Gloria&Suzanne, Jun 30, 2026 at 12:02 AM
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