Disabling SKS drained battery?

[rusty houndog]

Originally Posted by lordbah

I don't own a charger or a tender. If I can get the Prius started, will the ICE run non-stop for as long as it takes to get the 12V charged?

If I had it towed to the dealer, I think they'd expect me to drive it back home after they charged or replaced the battery, and I'm not allowed to do that (license revoked). I could call on friends or family but I'm already calling on them for so many other things that I don't want to add one more unless it's absolutely necessary.

Before going too much further I suggest you read this.

http://techno-fandom.org/~hobbit/cars/prius-12V/

The entire site is extremely helpful. Understanding how the main battery supplies charge to the 12 volt battery is quite interesting. Primarily it is through the inverter while the ICE is running, but also through the inverter when the ICE is not running.

So, run the ICE. To start the system tape ten D cells together like in a flashlight. Use a couple of wires attached to the positive and negative ends of the stack and apply them to the points under the hood detailed in your manual for attaching a booster. If you are quick enough the computer will start and the problem of charging your 12 volt battery will be solved.

Even better would be borrowing a small booster, but D cells will work in a pinch for a low 12 volt battery. Not a dead one, just a low one.

There are times in all our lives when we must depend on the kindness of strangers. Don't be chary of asking for anything you need; you never know how good you can make anyone feel being helpful to you unless you ask them for help.

As for the dealer/driving problem, explain to the dealer your driving problem and he might allow two of the techs to return your car to your garage.

But much cheaper than towing is a cheap booster battery. I remember seeing a five and a nine dollar charger on sale at Walmart. One of those little motorcycle chargers would be fine for the Prius 12 volt battery.

Just don't get discouraged; look on the license problem as an adventure in alternate living.

[lordbah]

Okay I got inside the car, went to the hatch, flipped up that floor panel (it's the backmost ~6" of the floor), popped off that cover (~3" wide if I recall correctly) in the center of the back wall ... and I saw nothing that looks like a lever. Just a few wires. I only had a minute to look before my ride to work came. Why am I so inept at these things? Anyway ... any hints on finding the lever which opens the hatch, when I get home tonight?

There is another cover to pop in about the same place but above the floorboard. It's wider and much shorter. But it doesn't seem to be removable - I think the post which runs through the center is holding it back. Anyway it doesn't seem to be the right thing to remove.

P.S. Can't open the rear side doors even from the inside? Bah!

[qbee42]

Originally Posted by lordbah

Okay I got inside the car, went to the hatch, flipped up that floor panel (it's the backmost ~6" of the floor), popped off that cover (~3" wide if I recall correctly) in the center of the back wall ... and I saw nothing that looks like a lever. Just a few wires. I only had a minute to look before my ride to work came. Why am I so inept at these things? Anyway ... any hints on finding the lever which opens the hatch, when I get home tonight?

There is another cover to pop in about the same place but above the floorboard. It's wider and much shorter. But it doesn't seem to be removable - I think the post which runs through the center is holding it back. Anyway it doesn't seem to be the right thing to remove.

P.S. Can't open the rear side doors even from the inside? Bah!

It's easiest to jump and charge from under the hood. There is a jump point expressly for this purpose. It is clearly documented in your owner's manual.

You should be able to open the back doors if you insist. Manually unlock them from the inside.

Tom

[lordbah]

?? Then I am all sorts of confused. I don't have the manual with me at work, but I could swear that what they were trying to show was a jump terminal inside a fuse box near the battery, in the back of the vehicle. I will have to look yet again.

As for the doors, the lock/unlock buttons from the inside did nothing, pulling the handle from the inside did nothing. It's as if the child lock feature was on (though I never intentionally turned it on since I don't have children). It would only have saved me a little bit of climbing anyway.

[qbee42]

Originally Posted by lordbah

?? Then I am all sorts of confused. I don't have the manual with me at work, but I could swear that what they were trying to show was a jump terminal inside a fuse box near the battery, in the back of the vehicle. I will have to look yet again.

As for the doors, the lock/unlock buttons from the inside did nothing, pulling the handle from the inside did nothing. It's as if the child lock feature was on (though I never intentionally turned it on since I don't have children). It would only have saved me a little bit of climbing anyway.

The child locks may be enabled. In that case, you have to unlock the doors from the inside, then crawl out and unlatch them from the outside - it's a lot of bother.

You can jump from the battery, but you have to get there first. With a dead battery you can't open the hatch from the outside, so you have to crawl through, lift out the floorboards, lift out the tray, pop the cover, and pull the emergency hatch release. You really don't want to do that unless it's the only option.

The standard jump point is under the hood. Pop the hood and look for a black fuse box on the driver's side, close to the windshield washer bottle. Pop open the cover on the fuse box (it can be tricky the first time) and look in the upper left corner of the box (as you face back leaning in over the bumper). You will find a shiny metal pin sticking up inside the fuse box. This is the +12V jump point. Attach ground to the chassis or engine just as you would with any other car.

Tom

[lordbah]

Found the lever, got the jump. I let it run in Ready for just over one hour. Then I powered off and in a few seconds powered back on just to make sure it could. I'm running it another half hour now and then I'll have to shut it down for the night. We'll see how it fares in the morning.

Dunno if it means anything, but it retained the phonebook, though the clock and trip meter were lost.

[lordbah]

Measured 11.9V this morning. So I turned it on and it started up okay. Thanks all.

[Patrick Wong]

Pls note that 11.9V is very marginal. You would expect a new battery, fully charged, to be at around 12.6V after resting overnight.

Hence I suggest that you continue to make the car READY for a few more hours over the next few days, as your time permits, and see if the battery voltage comes back up.

If not, then expect that you will continue to need a jumpstart if you leave the car for more than a couple of days.

[andyprius]

I'll second that.

[avocadoman1]

i like this battery test via Elearnaid.com:

Prius battery test procedure for 2004 to 2009 Prius Cars
Here is a battery test you can perform on a Prius battery that is easy to do. It will not always detect a weak battery that does not allow you to park you car for long before it is drained down by the security system.

However, this test requires no tools, is easy to do and will give you some idea of the state of your battery. You can also perform this test after the car has been parked for a while to see how well the battery holds up under the drain from the security system.

• Do this test after you have driven the car for at least 30 minutes. This will give the battery a chance to be fully charged.
• Put the transmission in Park.
• Turn off the car.
• Engage the parking brake
• Push in the power button.
• Push Display button. top button to left of screen - "DISPLAY" will now appear in the upper left corner of your screen.)
• Push on the upper left(1) on the display just inside the box, withdraw, push on the lower left display(2) and withdraw . (see picture) Do this three times. Keep trying till the screen changes. If the word "Display" in the upper left hand corner of the screen goes away hit the display switch again.
  
• Push on Menu in upper right of display screen.
• Push on Display Check
• Push on Vehicle Signal Check
• You will see the 12 volt voltage displayed. In accessory mode the voltage should be 12.6
• With no electrical accessories on including lights the voltage should be fluctuate between 12.6 and 11.9. The lower the voltage, the less of a charge your battery currently has. If the voltage is low do not proceed as the load test might totally discharge your battery. (If you see a voltage around 13.8 you are seeing voltage from the high voltage battery being converted to around 13.8 in an attempt to recharge your battery. This normally does not occur till after you start the engine but might occur earlier if the battery is very drained.)
• You can also test the battery by turning on the headlights, rear window heater and the heater fan. For a new battery the voltage would be around 11.3. If the voltage drops below 10.2 it should definitely be replaced. For voltages in between the lower the voltage, the lower current charge of your battery.
• Note: If in doubt disconnect the 12 volt battery completely (start with the negative post to avoid shorting the battery) and hook it up to a battery tester.

12 Volt (12v) Toyota Prius Auxilary Battery for 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009 with free shipping