Prius (2010-12) :: Stiff Ride In Extremely Cold Weather?
Jan 20, 2014
In our recent -20 F cold spell in Chicago, I noticed the ride got very stiff, have others experienced this in very cold weather? My theory is that the oil in the shocks or dampers become extra viscous at these temps and the cold shocks causes the ride to becomes like that of a Honda Civic with a dropped suspension. (It's so amusing to watch those Civic "low riders" going over railroad crossings, but it's all image right????)
Anyway I would think the colder temps would lower the air pressure in the tires, softening the tires a bit, but perhaps the rubber hardens counteracting that benefit. I have Michelin Primacy BTW. Since temps went back up above about +10 F ride seem to be OK again.
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During this week, most ppl at NA are experienced extremely cold weather, what I found is, the Prius can't do a great job to keep the front windshield clean under that kind of condition.
What I tried, front deforest bottom, or fan to front windshield and leg, both works fine for the middle area but not the top left side which is about 1/4 area of the windshield. It doesn't happen on my sienna. Usually I drive 5-10mins and the windshield are clean. What I guess is maybe the fan tunnel goes too straight to the windshield instead of blow to the rear area or maybe the outlet isn't wide enough to cover the side.
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Using fuel additive with V10's in extremely cold weather? If so what are you using?
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2004 V8 - ~62k did the 60k service about 2 months ago. No other problems other than tpms not liking 50 degree swings in temperature. Haven't really had time to examine it, but wife left work this morning at -18F said she was getting a weird smell, no lights, a little smoke when she was stopped. I thought nothing of it.
Went to the garage to leave for work and it was like a dingy night club, fog/smoke everywhere and a strong smell of burning oil. Its supposed to warm up to 20 or so tomorrow, so I'm hoping whatever started leaking seals up.
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Uneven throttle response during cold weather engine warm-up? When sub freezing weather arrived a few weeks ago my 2010 Prius developed uneven acceleration during engine warm-up. The car was purchased in October and it ha less than 3,000 miles.
Gradual depression of the accelerator results in a very small, tiny in fact, amount of increasing power to the wheels, not in proportion to the usual smooth and responsive amount of cold starts above freezing temperatures.
Continued depression leads to a point about halfway to the floor when the engine, which of course has been running all along, suddenly surges and the car takes off with a jolt of power. Not smooth, impossible to control well and unacceptable. Many would say this is unsafe.
My 2005 Prius never had, and my wife's 2007 does not have this issue. Could be a cold weather related accelerator defect as with the Camrys, but this is not mechanical sticking as was the case with the Camrys, its an electronics error like a faulty sensor or cold start injector.
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I read about the white smoke and I found that is normal in cold weather!! Is that true and what do you think ?
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I have a 2006 Pri with 194,000 miles on it that has been dead reliable & owes me nothing really, now developing a serious problem. Only when it is below about 10 deg F I will get total failure of the power braking system on or shortly after startup Has happened on 3 days this winter. ABS light, Brake warning, continuous high pitched beep (very annoying warning the driver of immanent death!
When this happens I get almost no movement on the brake pedal. It's rock hard & acts pretty much like loosing power brakes on any car (ie. you will eventually stop, but not a safe condition). There is no transition to this condition. It's either "everything normal" or total failure. Brake fluid reads half way between min & max and looks clean, no sign of moisture, but has never been flushed.
The last time it happened I was leaving work, couldn't swap cars... so I drove straight to the dealer (white knuckled). Dealer calls the next day saying it's the Brake Actuator needing replacement. I told them I wasn't spending that & to look again for a cheaper problem like Fluid, 12v battery, Relay...
No dice. They confirm it's the actuator.
The code they read is C1256. They "checked resistance at actuator pins & found high resistance at pins 1&2." I'm thinking about just topping up the fluid a bit more, or getting the fluid flushed & changed, or changing the 12v battery (I need to check voltage on next cold morning), or just not driving it at those temps & hoping it doesn't get worse.
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Have a 13 Sonata Limited 2.0t and for some reason it won't start.
Also brake pedal is extremely stiff. Tried to push start button several times while pressing brake, and dash lights just blink several times.
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Didn't notice this on the test drive, but as soon as I started living with my Santa Fe (about 3-4 weeks now) I can't believe how harsh and rough the ride is. Very very uncompromising over all road irregularities - even those you can't even really see. 2013 Santa Fe Sport?
It's so bad I've been searching for aftermarket struts and shocks to replace what must be garbage OEM parts - but nothing seems to be available for it yet.
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So the Ex came to me with a 6" spring lift in front and 5-1/2" blocks on the rear. It's always been a little stiff and bouncy. More than it should, in my opinion. There are also some occasional low-speed groans coming from under my feet.
On a recent inspection, I noticed the spring eye bushings are a little worn (front springs, the rear bushing of the spring). In taking the rear or the front leaf away from the shackle, I noticed that the shackle would not swing at all. This could be a problem. If the shackle can't swing fore and aft, then the suspension can't articulate, making the ride super stiff and bouncy. This could also wear out the spring eye bushing.
The design of this shackle looks very simple. Maybe too simple. A bolt goes through the top, and through holes in the frame. If this bolt is tight, then the top of the shackle is clamped to the frame and can't pivot. Is this right? Is it safe to loosen this bolt? Should it be lubricated?
BTW 2005 Excursion XLT 4x4 V10
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The last few days I've noticed an extremely rough ride when in Normal Mode. In sport + mode I noticed a bit of a smoother ride where the bumps weren't as harsh. Which is the complete opposite of what's supposed to happen. My tire pressure is 36 and reaches 39-40 when hot. No clue why this is happening, should I be worried ? Should I lower the tire pressure a little maybe to much air is causing the harsh ride? Or should I reset the battery because my car is stuck in sport + mode when it should be normal.
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I've had the stiff ride issue with my 2005 gx470. Took it to three lexus dealers and finally the vehicle is fixed. Hats off to Lexus of Maplewood, St Paul, MN. Their shop foreman persisted and found after several days troubleshooting; a speed sensor was the culprit. My ride is much smoother over speed bumps without the need to cycle through the height adjustment.
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My steering got real "heavy" almost as if I had no power steering so I replaced the power steering pump. The steering got a little easier but is still very stiff. It's extremely hard to turn at low speed just off idle...I have to rev the engine a bit to get it to turn.This is on my 1999 7.3 f350...I've ran 33" and 35" tires on it it's whole life and this is the first PS pump I've replaced since 1999...never replaced the steering box.
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On a 2003 5.4 f-250 XLT 4 door, long bed
Running 285 tires, none lifted, factory lifted for snow plowing? Did have a plow mount when purchased used.
Had the truck over a year now & love it. My only real dislike is the stiff/ rough ride when empty, which is 80-90% of the time for me.
I know my truck & year have leaf springs with shock dampeners on the front, vs the coil spring and shock dampeners that came in the later years for a much improved ride. Also my struts are "Rough Country" which from what I understand are cheaper shocks. Had a 04 Tacoma I replaced with Bilstein 5100 shocks after leveling it & it was an amazing difference. So that's my only real comparison in shocks. I've read of guys replacing their entire front end for the coils & springs. Not interested in going that deep into it for a better ride. If that's my only option, all be happy with the ride as is.
What are my options if any? Better shocks/struts? Other than my rough country that are on the truck? Purchased used a year back & never felt the "stock struts".
I did find Bilstein 5160' s for my model truck. Link : [URL] .....
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My spine was damaged in an IED blast in Iraq a few years ago and my truck is getting harder and harder to drive. It sends every little bump up me. It looks like I have the original shocks on there.
What is recommended for shocks or possibly seat upgrades or any other possible solutions. I love my truck and don't want have to get something else.
The most I haul is my jeep on a trailer and occasionally two jeeps (8000lbs)...
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I'm completely aware a lifted truck will not ride factory and most likely ride harder. But this is ridiculous.
So I bought a 8" super lift for my F250 7.3 2000, although the price is very cheap at that shipped to my door debating if I have messed up either with the brand or somewhere because I feel like I went from a casual ride in my lovely 7.3 to feeling like a horse carriage of a few century's ago.
Lift is setup with lift leaf springs in the front, one add a leaf in the rear with a block, and 4 new shocks and all the other hardware included to do the lift.
I'm wondering if it's possible the springs are installed wrong, or the shocks are just that bad or if there a weird issue I've over looked.
Tire pressure is set to 35-40 psi all around on toyo open country mts, (which I was running before the lift so that hasn't changed) but I mean this is so stiff that when I hit a bump my steering wheel jerks and I feel like my suspension has absolutely no flex in it. Debating on returning to stock or not at this point...
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My wife has a 2010 RX-350 which had to have the transmission replaced a few weeks ago. She has run into an issue when it's cold that the car seems to be stuck in neutral as she applies the gas and it just creeps. This most recent time, the "Check Engine" light came on the message "Check AWD" on the dash. Lexus says they can't find anything wrong except slightly low Transmission Fluid.
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I notice if I drive on anything other than a smooth road the suspension squeaks a lot. Is this normal when its -30C or -22F? Car has 30000km and is 2.5 years old if that makes a difference.
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The drivers window on my 2016 Elantra freezes up with ice in cold weather. How can I safely unfreeze it?
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It's been extremely cold in the northeast recently (<20 degrees), and I've noticed that my suspension has been very noisy (clunking type noises) when I'm driving on uneven roads or bumps. Is this normal? Is there something I can do to alleviate it?
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I purchased a 2013 RX450h in May. Now that it's getting cold I've noticed that when I start the car I get a moderately loud "whirring" sound from the dash for the first few minutes after I start the vehicle. It sounds similar to a cassette tape being rewound or something. It seems to originate from inside the dash, behind the CD player and other controls. This only happens when it's quite cold out (below freezing or thereabout).
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