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Info button intermittently not working

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by mooseo, May 18, 2010.

  1. mooseo

    mooseo New Member

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    I have a weird problem... on my 2004 Prius, the Info button on the wheel occasionally stops working. Originally, I thought that it was the button, so I just pushed harder, but that didn't accomplish anything. I can still access the screen through the MFD button, but the steering wheel button remains dead until I power off the car, then it works fine.

    I've found one other post in the forums a few years back of the same problem, but no discussion or solution... has anyone else experienced this? Any solutions?
     
    #1 mooseo, May 18, 2010
  2. usbseawolf2000

    usbseawolf2000 HSD PhD

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    Does the Map along with the bluetooth buttons work flawlessly?
     
    #2 usbseawolf2000, May 18, 2010
  3. mooseo

    mooseo New Member

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    Yes, the map button still seems to work fine. Not sure about the bluetooth button since I never use it. I also did have another weird thing happen while adjusting the radio volume... the volume display seemed to get stuck on the MFD for a while, but didn't respond to the knob.
     
    #3 mooseo, May 18, 2010
  4. usbseawolf2000

    usbseawolf2000 HSD PhD

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    Your MFD may be going bad. Thr symptons sound similar. Hobbit has a solution on his site to fix it.
     
    #4 usbseawolf2000, May 18, 2010
  5. mooseo

    mooseo New Member

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    Thanks, that was my fear. I've read through those instructions and they seem manageable... but I'll wait until it gets a lot worse before I try it!
     
    #5 mooseo, May 19, 2010
  6. usbseawolf2000

    usbseawolf2000 HSD PhD

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    #6 usbseawolf2000, May 19, 2010
    PriusFruit likes this.
  7. jdenenberg

    jdenenberg EE Professor

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    I recently did the "Hobbit" fix on my MFD. You should consider the offer from Steve (AutoBeYours) at Prius MFD Touchscreen Repair to send you a replacement for $325 (plus shipping).

    If you do want to do it on your own I have a few suggestions:

    • Get some proper tools for surface mount soldering:
      • A soldering iron with a 1/64 inch conical tip (I had an old Weller TCP and bought a pts8 tip from http://www.mouser.com/.
      • Some narrow diameter solder to match the tip (also from Mouser).
      • A "Solder Flux Pen" to apply some cleaning flux to terminal 60 (once more from Mouser).
      • A high power magnifying glass mounted on a stand (The soldering pad you are trying to re-flow is very small).
      • A 30x microscope to see the before and after pin 60. (I used an inexpensive Radio Shack lighted hand-held microscope).
    • Set up a clean, well lit work area and take your time to familiarize yourself with the MFD board.
    Good luck. My first try without these tools worked for a few days. The second try with these tools looks much better.

    JeffD
     
    #7 jdenenberg, May 19, 2010
  8. djasonw

    djasonw Active Member

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    I know this is an old thread but I did a search as I have the same issue on my 2004 Prius too. Interestingly enough, when I turn the steering wheel so that the button appears upside down, the button works flawlessly. I am wondering if the contact is compromised. The MFD and all other stuff works fine.
     
    #8 djasonw, May 1, 2011
  9. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    Within the steering wheel hub, there is a "spiral cable" which provides connectivity between the switches on the steering wheel hub and the wiring harness. That cable apparently has an intermittent connection and needs to be replaced.
     
    #9 Patrick Wong, May 1, 2011
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  10. qbee42

    qbee42 My other car is a boat

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    This type of cable is sometimes called a "clock spring".

    Tom
     
    #10 qbee42, May 2, 2011
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  11. djasonw

    djasonw Active Member

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    Sounds EXPENSIVE!! I think I'll resort to using the INFO button on the side of the MFD in the interim.
     
    #11 djasonw, May 3, 2011
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