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2001 Prius battery dies at 70K, Toyota won't pay for repair

Discussion in 'Generation 1 Prius Discussion' started by Otis, Jan 18, 2010.

  1. dogfriend

    dogfriend Human - Animal Hybrid

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    A Ford with a bad transmission? No way! :madgrin: :D
     
  2. Mike Dimmick

    Mike Dimmick Active Member

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    It appears that the Gen 1 batteries are largely dying due to age, not down to miles driven. We know of several cars that managed over 200,000 miles and I know of an owner that achieved 320k before the car was written off in an accident.

    The battery replacement is slightly involved but I can't see how it accounts for $1,200 of labour. I've seen quotes that involved not just replacing the battery modules but everything else that's in the same reinforced box, which isn't necessary - the battery ECU, system main relay, resistor, power cables and vent pipes can all be transferred across. (That's part of the labour charge, though.)

    There are a couple of good articles from Bay Area hybrid specialists:

    Luscious Garage - Gen 1 Battery Failure P3006
    Art's Automotive - Installing a Prius HV Battery

    Did the diagnosis include any DTC codes? Sometimes dealers recommend changing everything that is included in the diagnostic tree rather than doing the work to find out exactly which one is at fault.
     
  3. kenoarto

    kenoarto Senior Member

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    Toyota sells the Prius implying that they expect the batteries to last as long as the car. The warrantees last 10 years in California, why not the rest of the country?

    People buying crappy used (aka broken/out of date) computers from you, however, have another, completely different set of needs and expectations. People buying refurbished computers are doing so because they can't afford a new one. Period. I strongly question the mentality/ethics of anyone trying to resell used computers with a extra short warranty to those in need...it is quite reasonable for consumers to expect a computer to last longer than 30 days.

     
  4. adric22

    adric22 Ev and Hybrid Enthusiast

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    Strange.. i always felt my return policy was pretty good considering most used computers come with NO WARRANTY at all. But, like I said, some people just can't be pleased.
     
  5. JimboPalmer

    JimboPalmer Tsar of all the Rushers

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    I do not believe this is true.
    As I understand it, Gen I batteries are 8 years/100,000 miles.
    Gen II & III batteries are 10 years/100,000 miles, except in states with emission laws which require 150,000 miles.

    There would be no point in designing new Prius, if they did not get better.
     
  6. jdcollins5

    jdcollins5 Senior Member

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    The warranty on the Gen III battery in non-CARB states is 8 years/100,000 miles.
     
  7. brad_rules_man

    brad_rules_man Hybrid electric revolutionizer

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    If you do end up buying some used batteries, I think Toyota pays $500 like a bounty to obtain and recycle the battery. Might check into that.
     
  8. bwilson4web

    bwilson4web BMW i3 and Model 3

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    Hi Brad,
    Not every Toyota Service Center 'got the memo.' However, the folks at "Re-InVolt" have a clue. I would contact them first.

    Bob Wilson
     
  9. Otis

    Otis New Member

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    Thanks for the thoughts. After reviewing on this and some other forums, I decided to call the Customer Experience Center at 1-800-331-4331. I tried both menu choice 5 and the direct extension of a rep who was quoted here. I get a recorded message on each of several calls: "due to the high call volume we are experiencing at this time, we are unable to take your call. We sincerely apologize for this inconvenience... to speak to a representative, please call back."

    Any other recommendations on how I can contact Toyota corporate? I did go back to the dealer who did the repair, but they told me this is the only corporate contact they can provide.
     
  10. Otis

    Otis New Member

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    Also, here is some food for thought as to whether this is a perfectly normal event and I should grin and bear it. "Out of 750,000 Prius battery packs produced and distributed so far, only 306 have been replaced as worn-out or a warranty fault. 'The life of the battery pack is generally about the same as the life of the vehicle,' said Toyota's Jeremiah Shown." That's from a piece in Driving Sports called "New 2010 Prius takes hybrid technology to the next level". The article appeared June 18, 2009 so presumably there have been more battery failures, but still...
     
  11. usbseawolf2000

    usbseawolf2000 HSD PhD

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    Otis,

    Sorry about your car and what you are faced with. Did you do the TSB to clean the HV battery terminal corrosion?
     
  12. tochatihu

    tochatihu Senior Member

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    Otis, I sympathize with your difficulties contacting Toyota by phone. Guessing that the floor mat and accel pedal recalls are keeping their telephone people very busy now. I hope you keep trying this approach. What to the other phone options do? Is has been quite a while since I called TCE and any calls to the US are difficult for me now (from China).
     
  13. orange4boy

    orange4boy Member

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    What's your evidence of this?
     
  14. cwerdna

    cwerdna Senior Member

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    Also true of the Gen II.
     
  15. adric22

    adric22 Ev and Hybrid Enthusiast

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    A combination of what I'm seeing online in forums like this, on craigslist with cheap prius' with dead batteries, and from toyota technicians I know who are seeing lots of these coming into the shop needing new batteries around 140,000 to 160,000 miles.

    And just from what we know in general about the life-expectancy of the chemistry used in the 1st gen as well as leakage issues, the toyota recall on the Gen-1 batteries, etc..

    True, I don't have a list of every 1st gen prius ever made with a list of their ages and whether they have had battery problems. So it is just an observation. But I know I certainly wouldn't recommend anyone spend a lot of money on a Gen-1 Prius unless it recently had the battery replaced. Otherwise, do what I did and buy one real cheap with a dead battery and replace it yourself. At least that way you know the car is going to last for a while.
     
  16. hybriddriveguy

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    I know Toyota at one time had a $200 bounty on old packs, but all the dealers in our area (Southeast US) say they have suspended the buy back for now. I don't know if this is nationwide or not. There also has been quite a bit of confusion about whether or not they would pay for the packs if you were not purchasing a new unit from them.
     
  17. hybriddriveguy

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    Based upon our conversations with dealers nationwide, this number is definately very low. We are seeing 90% of the failures occurring between 120k-140k and we have sold close to the number of packs you have here.
     
  18. Otis

    Otis New Member

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    Ok, today I got up early in time to gett in the CES queue. Have been on hold for 20 minutes so far. Passed the time by doing something the recording suggested which was to go on the Toyota website, register for an account, then click the "contact Toyota" link at the bottom of the page. (Hm... actually you don't need an account... it's also there at the bottom of their home page.)

    This gave me the CES number but also a snail mail address. I'm going to write to them if I don't come off hold by the time I have to leave for an appointment:

    Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc.
    19001 South Western Ave.
    Dept. WC11
    Torrance, CA 90501
     
  19. Otis

    Otis New Member

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  20. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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