2006 Prius 67,000 mi trouble code says...

[MacGyver]

Just dropped my car off at dealer so they can check it out tomorrow. Basically got the triangle of death yesterday, along with other warning lights. The main display would sometimes show the battery charging into the green zone, but mostly stayed at 1 or 2 purple. Auto parts store read only one code this morning "replace hybrid battery pack". Drove okay for the first 15 minutes of my hour drive to the dealer, and the battery meter even went into the green and looked normal (all the warnings stayed on). But then the engine sound changed to a higher revving noise and the battery meter stayed at 1 purple bar for the rest of the way (luckily I made it). No arrows to and from the battery for the rest of the trip and acceleration was very, very sluggish. From a stop it was similar to a bicycle acceleration to about 20 MPH, then it improves slightly and I could get all the way to 60MPH, unless I came upon a hill, then it would bog down to about 50-55! Everything should be covered under warranty, so other than the inconvenience, I'm not too worried about it, but would this be uncommon with this mileage/age? I really didn't think I would deal with this until over 100K. This vehicle is used mostly on highway, would that cause it to die quicker? Any thoughts?

[dogfriend]

Yes, it would be very unusual if your HV battery has failed at 67k.

[Patrick Wong]

Based upon your description of the driveability problems, it does sound like your traction battery failed. The key symptoms are the wide-ranging SOC indications and lack of power at low speeds (plus the DTC that your parts store retrieved.)

I would say that highway driving would generally constitute light to moderate use, unless your commute requires substantial changes in elevation.

[tochatihu]

Hi MacGyver, first time poster. If HV has indeed failed, don't take any bull about the warranty. You are covered.

He'd have to get some distance from Tampa for substantial changes in highway elevation

[MJFrog]

Before you go replacing the HV battery, verify that the 12v battery is still good. I've seen numerous threads where problems with the 12v battery can indicate various things may be bad and need replacement when it's just low voltage coming off the 12v battery. Remember the Prius is basically a mobile computer and they depend on a good 12v supply to give good results.

[dogfriend]

Originally Posted by MJFrog

Remember the Prius is basically a mobile computer network and they depend on a good 12v supply to give good results.

There, fixed it for ya.

[MacGyver]

Okay, dealer says hybrid battery IS bad and has one on order that will be there tomorrow. Diagnostic charge is $60, should I argue this or just pay it. He said the battery would be totally covered but called before they even looked at it to have me agree to the $60 fee (kind of on the spot-what could I say?). He wanted me to also replace the 12v battery and said that isn't covered and would cost extra. I told them not to replace the 12v, because it is only 3 years old and I can handle replacing that myself if needed. I felt like they were trying to get me for everything they could since I am sure this is costing them. So how do I know I am getting a good battery and not some refurbished junk?? I never even looked at the battery. Should I be concerned about it? In 23,000 miles I'll be paying out of pocket if this happens again.

[dogfriend]

Diagnostic fee should be covered if it is a warranty repair.

12v battery could be near the end of its life after 3 years, especially if it has ever been heavily discharged (e.g. by leaving an interior light on )

If this happens again in 23,000 miles, you should start buying lottery tickets.

[Patrick Wong]

Originally Posted by MacGyver

Okay, dealer says hybrid battery IS bad and has one on order that will be there tomorrow. Diagnostic charge is $60, should I argue this or just pay it. He said the battery would be totally covered but called before they even looked at it to have me agree to the $60 fee (kind of on the spot-what could I say?). He wanted me to also replace the 12v battery and said that isn't covered and would cost extra. I told them not to replace the 12v, because it is only 3 years old and I can handle replacing that myself if needed. I felt like they were trying to get me for everything they could since I am sure this is costing them. So how do I know I am getting a good battery and not some refurbished junk?? I never even looked at the battery. Should I be concerned about it? In 23,000 miles I'll be paying out of pocket if this happens again.

It is customary for the dealer service dept to quote a diagnostic charge because they don't want to waste their time without compensation if a customer brings in a car with NTF (no trouble found.) Since a problem was found and is covered under warranty, you should not have to pay the diagnostic charge. You would have to pay that charge only if NTF or the tech found a problem not covered under warranty.

Regarding the traction battery and whether it is new or not, I recommend that you tell the service writer that you want to visit the service area when the new battery arrives so that you can inspect it before it is installed. Note that the tech will have to move the battery ECU and system main relays from the old battery enclosure to the new one.

You might take a look at the 28 modules to see if they show consecutive serial numbers. This requires opening up the cover, which the tech has to do in order to install the ECU and SMRs. If the numbers are not consecutive that might be indicative of a refurb.

[paprius4030]

In this circumstance I'd tell them that you know the $60 diagnostic fee is covered under the warranty, so I tell them to take that off but after thinking it over you'll take a new 12v. battery from them(as long as it's reasonable). That way if, god forbid, you still get a code or something is still not right they can't come back to you and say, see we told you what the car needed and you didn't do what we said needed to be done. Plus it's less hassle for you if the car won't start one night when you far away from home cause the 12v battery decieded to go toes up.