Prius breaks down 20 days after purchase... help!

Thanks for asking for further details. The battery display did have a full 8 bars when we started out. It broke down just moments after pulling out of the parking lot (within 2-3 minutes of starting the car). I can't say that I was watching the battery display the entire time we were driving but I do know that it was not acting funny until the problem occurred. We got up to speed and the car completely cut off. We lost all engine power and were able to coast into a turning lane. Nearly all the lights on the dash were flashing when this happened and the headlights/dash remained on. I tried to start the car but it just makes a "computer sound" and won't turn on. The "triangle of doom" warning light is on. The electronics (hazard lights, radio, etc) seemed to be working fine but I did not do a quick test or anything to see if the windows appeared to be going slower than normal or anything like that. Now the hybrid battery shows 1 red bar.

Thanks for the help and input!

 

Very true. I am still very excited about my Prius and understand it really could happen to any car at any time. It's just frustrating that it happened to me so soon after buying it. Thanks for the input. I am going to take a look at the service manual and peruse the threads to see if it's something that I can handle. For the time being it looks like I've got my hands on some affordable towing to get it back home.

 

Since I just bought the vehicle and don't know how long or if the 12v has ever been replaced than I am leaning towards replacing the 12v just to have that checked off the list. I've read on here somewhere that you should do this around 100k miles anyway or at least keep an eye on it. I will test it before I drop the $$ on it thought...

Although I wish it were the case I am fairly confident the car did not run out of gas (unless a fuel pump malfunctioned or the gauge was incorrect). If I remember correctly I was only 200ish miles into my tank.

I will take a look to try to find the thread you mentioned above. With the miniVCI you mentioned would I have to do a short subscription with Toyota TIS to read the codes and get the repair manuals? Or do you think most codes/processes can be looked up online?

 

Hello All!. I am sorry that I turned into one of those guys that asks for help and then disappears. I suppose my reasoning is because I am having to cash flow the repairs, the wife and I planned and hosted a wedding at our home, I also had to purchase another vehicle while this Prius sat on the sidelines, and I also must admit that I have been actively avoiding this headache...

I do have some updates that I've outlined below and would be happy for any continued input...

I purchased a Mini VCI cable: Google search "Generic Mini VCI J2534". It works fine now, but getting the correct software on my laptop was a beast (I don't claim to be the most tech savvy individual).
I purchased the Yellowtop Optima Battery and installed it which did not fix the problem. I am still glad that I did this as it probably needed to be done anyway. The 12v battery that I removed was original.
I did top off the gas tank prior to reconnecting the 12v battery just in case.
I purchased a salvaged Inverter and installed it last week.

Now that I have everything put back together to get a reading I am getting fewer codes.
The codes are...

POA7A: Inverter Failure
C1259: HV System Regen Malfunction
C1310: This one is new. Previously I had C1300. I don't know if this is a clue or not...
B1421: I have it parked in the shade and I have read that this code is a light/heat sensor that helps control the AC so no big deal here.

So what are your thoughts? The inverter coolant pump was working as I see disturbance in the reservoir and it did cycle the new inverter fluid effectively. I did bleed the system to rid any air bubbles. When I try to start the car it makes "electronic" sounds then immediately sends me to the red triangle of doom. I can't get it to turn over at all. I realize that the HV battery has been sitting a few months so will my next step be to look at the HV battery specifically? I have a voltmeter and am confident I can follow the threads I have found on here to try to diagnose a bad module. I have also read that the POA7A can be a transmission problem so would that be my next suspect?

Blown Transmission - No Warranty | PriusChat

Thoughts? Further tips to diagnose? Thanks in advance for any and all replies!

 

Thanks for the response.

1. I will hook up the Mini VCI tonight to see if I can get additional codes.
2. Very logical to double check all the connections. It was the first place I went to as well since I saw the same code so I had hoped that I had "missed" a plug on the back of the inverter. I removed the inverter cap and double checked all of my connections. They appear fine. Although now I am considering taking it all the way off and putting it back on just to be sure.
3. I have the traction battery switch installed correctly. Thanks to these threads I did know to make sure it was correctly put back together as that appears to be a common problem during reassembly.
4. I did recharge the yellowtop 12v with my trickle charger prior to putting everything back together. It had been sitting for a few weeks so I wanted to make sure there was plenty of juice in it. I will double check the with my voltmeter tonight but I seem to remember it reading 12.8v when I had the key in the ignition and the inverter pump was going. It was over 13 with no load.

I am concerned that I am not getting any power from my HV battery. It has been sitting for a few months and it had previously had a low charge of 21% when I had paid for the original diagnostics. Could it be that I need to pull that apart to test it? Is there a way to test that I have any power going to the inverter from the HV battery? Would it make sense that these codes would be thrown given that there is no HV power? I have seen several threads on reconditioning the HV battery and believe it to be within my skill set although I would need to purchase the correct charger(s) to attempt this.

 

Thanks for the info. I was able to go back out tonight and check the 12 v battery status and the 12v battery readings are as I stated above so it looks like I am good to go there.

I hooked up the mini vci and if I am reading the freeze frame data correctly I show the subcode under "detail code 1" as 325. I did look this up on another thread and see that it can be ambiguous.
Diagnostic Trouble Codes P0K92 and P0K7K | PriusChat

I suppose my next test is to see how my transaxle fluid appears. I will do that in the daylight. Being as I just purchased the car I don't know if the fluid has ever been changed but given the state of maintenance on the rest of the car I would highly doubt that it has been changed. If I have bad/burnt/smelly fluid that will point me towards the transaxle replacement. There was never a noticable whirring prior to the breakdown. I will update when I have an answer on the fluid.

I will also go back and look at the inverter connections again. I did poke around and all appeared to be connected tightly, but a more thoruogh inspection during daylight is appropriate.

I know that it could still be the state of charge for the HV battery and am not ruling that out at all. It makes sense that the whole system is out of whack if there is not enough juice to start the hybrid system. If you guys have any more suggestions on which path may be more likely it would be greatly appreciated. Remember that the car won't turn over and it was being driven 50+ mph when my wife lost power.

 

Thanks Patrick,

I was able to do the above and got the code -127. After doing some online hunting I found the diagnostic manual which tells me to "Proceed to A: Inspect Hybrid vehicle assembly". I am going to pop off the inverter cap and make sure that the alternating current insulation bolts are tightened to the specific torque.

After that I should follow the directions as attached? Does it sound like I am on the right track?