I blew up the inverter????

[jayman]

For whatever reason, Toyota chose to use a rather small capacity 12 vdc battery for the Prius. There is no cost savings doing so, quite the contrary when you price a replacement.

I had battery issues my first winter with my Prius, and was told to either drive it more - thus negating any fuel savings - or not use the headlights, electric rear defrost, and heat, not even an option at -30 C and colder

It's unreasonable to tell people "you have to drive the Prius often" to keep the 12 vdc battery at a proper charge. The only time you are warned about this is the various TSB's, and it's unreasonable to expect the layperson to subscribe to Techinfo and learn this

I finally solved my battery issues by hardwiring a VDC Electronics Battery Minder harness directly to the battery. It automatically keeps a float charge on the battery, won't overcharge, and claims to have reverse-polarity protection

As my FJ can sit for a week or more at a time, I also have a Battery Minder hooked up to it as well. Very good results with both, my Prius battery is 4 years old and still strong

I'm hoping Toyota is busy engineering in reverse-polarity protection for the dc-to-dc, as this is becoming the Prius Achilles Heel. True enough for a conventional car or truck, you can bugger things up by crossing polarity

As the Prius fleet increases in size, this could very well turn out to become the same mess as The Stall did. Mine stalled less than 4 months old, but since the dealership bent over backwards and all but kissed my butt, I quickly got over it

Let's all hope for a positive outcome from this.

[GatorJZ]

If you have even the remotest thought that you might want to have Toyota/ the dealer held responsible for this, have an independent expert inspect the car before you try repairing things on your own. As soon as you try the self-help method, you can forget about any third party liability.

[jayman]

Originally Posted by GatorJZ

If you have even the remotest thought that you might want to have Toyota/ the dealer held responsible for this, have an independent expert inspect the car before you try repairing things on your own. As soon as you try the self-help method, you can forget about any third party liability.

Excellent point. Don't even check the 12 vdc battery

[donee]

Hi Ginny..,

Well, reverse polarity jumping will kill allot of cars. 20 or so years ago my mom sold her old Ford Granada to a friend of my brothers. The thing worked fine for the 8 or so years she had it. I replaced the battery for her once. This friend had the car for a month, and ran down the battery leaving something on. He then reverse polarity jumped it, and fried electronics (besides the usual stuff - alternator, radio) in the car which was worth more than the car, so he junked it. Sad story, but you, and anybody you let touch your car have to be really careful about polarity during jumping, a car, any car. Never be in a hurry, and never let anybody touch your car that is in a hurry. They just are not designed to take such abuse.

My opinion is the toe-truck guy screwed it up. It would not be the first time that has happened either.

And yes, the Prius hatch gas struts are very very stiff when the car is new. I left my hatch down, but not all the way down, and the light was on an hour later when I luckily had an nightime errand to perform. And found out I really really had to put some oomph into closing that hatch. Now its no problem.

If you really want to sell your car, Bob Wilson will give it a good home.

[qbee42]

Originally Posted by donee

And yes, the Prius hatch gas struts are very very stiff when the car is new. I left my hatch down, but not all the way down, and the light was on an hour later when I luckily had an nightime errand to perform. And found out I really really had to put some oomph into closing that hatch. Now its no problem.

Lock your Prius. Always lock your Prius, not because you are worried about thieves, but because locking it will assure you that the hatch and doors are shut.

Tom

[hiremichaelreid]

Originally Posted by jayman

It's unreasonable to tell people "you have to drive the Prius often" to keep the 12 vdc battery at a proper charge. The only time you are warned about this is the various TSB's, and it's unreasonable to expect the layperson to subscribe to Techinfo and learn this

I finally solved my battery issues by hardwiring a VDC Electronics Battery Minder harness directly to the battery. It automatically keeps a float charge on the battery, won't overcharge, and claims to have reverse-polarity protection

I'm hoping Toyota is busy engineering in reverse-polarity protection for the dc-to-dc, as this is becoming the Prius Achilles Heel. True enough for a conventional car or truck, you can bugger things up by crossing polarity

Perhaps there is a small market for an aftermarket kit to protect the inverter etc. How much are 150 Amp diodes these days, with a temp or current controlled fan to cool it ? Quick google search indicates perhaps $20-30 for the diode alone...

Say my wife is driving and the batt dies, which often happens here in Canada on cold-snap days where temps drop to -15 or -20. How do I know the roadside assitance guy will do it right ?

While were at it, how about a protected "REAL" 12v car battery adapter or add-on kit, so we CAN help jump start other cars (or run inverters) with no danger to our own cars ???

[tochatihu]

How about these Schottkys?

Digi-Key - MBRB4030T4GOSCT-ND (ON Semiconductor - MBRB4030T4G)

Ten for 24 bucks. Make a little socket compatible with the D2PAK so you can just plug in your spare (after you blow up the first one)

The beauty of diode protecting Prius (vs. a starter-motor vehicle) is that we can use a much smaller blocker.

[Patrick Wong]

Originally Posted by tochatihu

How about these Schottkys?

Hi Doug,

I would say that the 40A current rating is insufficient, given the DC/DC fuse link is 100A and the fuse in the fuseblock over the positive battery terminal is 120A.

[Godiva]

If any dealer pulled this on me, I'd hire a tow company with a flatbed and have the car towed elsewhere for a full diagnostic.

1. The car didn't start in the first place. (More than once?) That indicates a problem to begin with the had nothing to do with the jump.

2. This dealer doesn't know what's wrong with the car. First they say "fuse" or whatever? Then they change their minds and switch to a much more expensive fix? What codes did they pull? If they can't answer that, they don't know how to diagnose or fix.

3. Was it towed on a flatbed? If not, go after the tow company.

[GinnyErns]

Originally Posted by Godiva

If any dealer pulled this on me, I'd hire a tow company with a flatbed and have the car towed elsewhere for a full diagnostic.

1. The car didn't start in the first place. (More than once?) That indicates a problem to begin with the had nothing to do with the jump.

2. This dealer doesn't know what's wrong with the car. First they say "fuse" or whatever? Then they change their minds and switch to a much more expensive fix? What codes did they pull? If they can't answer that, they don't know how to diagnose or fix.

3. Was it towed on a flatbed? If not, go after the tow company.

GODIVAL IS IN MY COURT...THANK YOU....my first comment to Toyota Mr. 800# customer relations when he repeated word for word what the dealer mechanic said.....was why did the car die in the first place. Mr. 800 just kept repeating his broken record....

The other point was that I don't think they put in the difuser link cause he was waiting for my approval. So as as few have suggested should they put that part in first before they tell me if the inverter is bad. Are you guys saying the fuses have to be in and working brefore you can check the inverter?????? hummmmmmmmm

The other funny thing is, they have not mentioned the batter condition to me through all the conversations I have had with them. And that was my first complaint was to have them check the condition of my battery. I told them it wouldn't take a charge.

So I will call them and ask them to email me (so I get it in writing) whether they have installed the difuser? Ask them to report the condition of the battery....did it have a charge, if not, were they able to charge it.........and ask for the DTC codes on all the tests they did do especially on the inverter? Can they check the inverter as a stand alone unit??????? and for $5000 quote don't I deservre to have a written estimate of what all they propse to do?????? and ask them to put in writing why they think it is not covered under warranty.

I am wondering that if they get me to pay for this could they then void all future repairs saying I messed up the car so nothing following this would be covered bercause they could say the future problems are a result of what "I did here":.............this could really put me in a comprimising position if they get their way with this issue.

And no, I watched the tow guy.....he did things right and he had the portable jumper so the voltage was the 12v........he was very conciencious....was very careful getting my car on his flatbed....and was very careful to tie it down...took his time and was careful not to hurt or scratch the car.....

To me it just a case where Toyota should stand behind their car....because it did die....and it has a poor design that even allows anyone to do that much damage with a simple jump. ... it should be covered under my new car warranty.

If any of you see any other battery or inverter problems...would you let me know....there is one on another thread and he has a 2007 Prius....his battery in intermittant with him....I told him not to charge it himself....but to have it towed to dealer...that he should read this thread....not sure if he has.... I will copy his thread for my backup support.....and hope to find some more soon.....I am also trying to get the TV or radio station in Boise to talk about this issue to see if it will nudge the dealer off his high horse........anybody have any other ideas??>??????>