Possible new, old 2001 Prius, owner?

Hi goldenchild,

Did you see any driver inside?

There was a report on a 2G robotic Prius in SF 2 yrs ago.



Robotic Prius takes itself for a spin around SF | Cutting Edge - CNET News

It looks like they are testing it on the 3G now.

 

The "leak detected" definition does not refer to electrolyte.

The P3009 code does not necessarily indicate a battery problem.

Not always.

Is someone panicking?

Good to hear. What is your understanding of P3009?

 

It is a poor question that ignores the original poster in a forum:

We are here to address the original poster's questions comments and observations. Once again you failed to contribute anything to this thread.

If you have some facts and data, post them . . . with the backup data. Show by example that you are not a hypocrite by taking a big dose of your own advice and offering the answer to your own question.

Bob Wilson

 

DTC P3009 means that there is a high voltage leak to ground, which is a potential safety issue. Normally the high voltage system is isolated from ground. The hybrid system can detect a ground fault.

The problem might be caused by electrolyte leaking from a battery module. However it could also be caused by any of the components that contact the high voltage, including the traction battery, the battery ECU, the battery cable leading to the inverter, the inverter, or the transaxle.

You said that you assume everything is OK now. Does that mean warning lights are no longer present?

It's very good that you are going to have the car inspected. Which dealer are you taking the car to? (I lived in Silicon Valley for 24 years.) Good luck with that process.

 

Thanks Patrick,

I'm thinking module electrolyte leakage is the likely cause:

• Appears to have cleared - he is not getting the original codes and the 'dealer' didn't report a problem. This suggests it is an intermittent with one occurrence.
• Climate, humidity and salt - I'm pretty sure they have a lot of fog and areas with airborne salt. It doesn't take much to make a fairly high resistance trace that could trigger the fault. His area has that type of climate.
• History of electrolyte leakage and P3009 - we've seen it more than once and there was a recent posting by someone who pulled the battery, cleaned up the area, and has yet to see the problem come back.

When he gets a chance to have the car surveyed, it should include reading out the 19 module-pair voltages to see how balanced they are (anything under 0.3 is good news.) With the Auto Enginuity, someone could read out the module-pair internal resistance, another good metric.

So all in all, it sounds like an 'one time' and though it bears watching, I wouldn't be too worried. If it comes back (or when) there will still be time to deal with it. Of course in our case, it would be a 'convenient excuse.' . . . "Sorry Honey, I have to check out the P3009 and can't run to the store right away."

I don't remember if we discussed traction battery characteristics, driving to keep it happy:

1. HEAT is the enemy - everything that follows is to help minimize heating the traction battery.
2. Park in the shade instead of sun - a Southern thang, it also tends to keep the cabin cooler too. Just aware that some tree sap can be difficult . . . or wash the car more frequently.
3. Avoid excessive regeneration - so descending hills, try to use "B", especially the larger, +500 ft, and steeper ones, +8% grade. This tends to reduce the traction battery overcharge that happens descending tall hills at high speed.
4. Avoid excessive regeneration - when you can, coast to a stop versus running up to the exit or intersection and hitting the brakes. Be considerate of other traffic but often coasting down to a stop is a better way. I often just shift into "N" although there are laws against being in "N" going down a grade (plus the speed build-up is rapid and can make the ride somewhat scary.)

Over time, you'll discover there are many 'slower' vehicles on the road and they make excellent 'pace cars.' So a nice moving van is perfect and I'll follow them with plenty of space for relaxed, care-free driving. The overtaking traffic will see the truck and curse the truck as they 'successfully' pass you and the truck . . . The gas pump hates that kind of efficient driving. <GRINS>

Bob Wilson

 

You will get pretty lousy mileage due to your short commute. As for babying the gas pedal, if you're doing that so that you accelerate while keeping so lightly that you're preventing the ICE from coming on, don't do that, if you want better mileage.

As I posted at http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-...slightly-dissatisfied-my-mpg.html#post1126079 which came from a PDF at http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-...angauge-best-threads-mileage-improvement.html

 

As far as I can see, no one is ignoring the original poster.

That is a tacit understanding.

With all due respect, I strongly disagree. The original poster deserves accurate information. At present, there is no information to indicate whether or not the OP's P3009 has been caused by a battery issue. Moreover, your post indicated to me a lack of understanding of the code on which you were commenting. I posed my questions so that you would have an opportunity to clarify yourself. That's only fair.

In this case, there is no need for that. The errors on which you have based your assumptions are basic enough that they can be explained without data. For example, the description of P3009 that Patrick Wong offered can be readily found in the Prius repair manual. You have said that you own a copy of that manual. Why not read it prior to posting? It would take no more than a few minutes.

Given that you had posted the claims that I had called into question, and in some cases corrected, it was only fair that I give you the opportunity to explain those claims. However, I see from your follow-up post that - in light of the subsequent corrections that forum members have made to your post - you are now backing away from your original diagnosis and characterizing it as more of an educated guess. That is a bit of an improvement.

A gentle observation: Not everyone can be right all of the time. This forum is for learning. Indeed, if someone were to correct a post of mine, I would be both thrilled and thankful. I have no desire to spread misinformation, and I make an honest effort not to do so.

However, while I have hope that you mean well most of the time, it is - to put it kindly - fair to say that you have a wee history of misbehaving when it has been pointed out that you have posted incorrect information. It does not serve the forum well to drag out words such as "fool", "lazy", "sociopath", or (in this last post) "hypocrite" in response to folks who have taken the time to correct your posts in an effort to ensure that those who ask for help do not get off track. No one else on this forum uses such language. There is simply no need to do so.

In addition, I cannot help but notice that despite your rage at such folks, you do not counter their corrections. If you think that such corrections are themselves in error, please feel free to explain why you think so. Otherwise, it is a simple task to admit the error and move on. Not a big deal.

 

While an apparently intermittent P3009 will usually return after a short time, there are exceptions. Perhaps your vehicle is one of them. Just drive it and see what happens. Most of the time, P3009 will set without adversely affecting vehicle operation.

It may be a cause of poor documentation on the part of the service writer. It may also be that the technician could not find a problem, despite the code being set. Intermittent P3009 codes can be challenging to diagnose.

Some folks get upset when their technical advice is corrected. Egos can be fragile.

 

Five months is a long time for a P3009 code to stay away. Perhaps that is a good sign. Are you able to determine from your records the rough number of miles the vehicle has been driven since it set that code?

 

You just did with this selfish post. Stay on topic and address the original poster and these threads will combine into an excellent work worth sharing.

BTW, there are more resources available on the net. I can recommend:

• Ecomodder.com - a great place for folks who modify any vehicle for improved mileage. Some of their work is truly awesome. I can personally recommend Orange4Boy whose saga has been well documented here including swapping the transmission and some impressive mods. As much as heat is the enemy of the traction battery, it is the friend of the efficient driver and he has nearly 2 kW of block and transmission heating to improve mileage.
• Yahoo Groups "toyota-prius" "Prius-Europe" and "Prius_Technical_Stuff". There is also a group that deals with the NHW10, the very first Prius sold originally in Japan but now finding its way to other markets.
• Also, if you want a good car mag, I'd recommend: Autospeed.com - it is a free Internet magazine written by an engineer. Julian was the first to put a turbocharger in an NHW10 Prius: The Story of Turbo'ing a Hybrid Prius, Part 1
  

Warning: good Prius resources can lead to 'loss of sleep' and family complaints . . . but it is terribly interesting!

Bob Wilson

 

P3009 can be accompanied by other issues as the root cause of the problem progresses. So it's encouraging to note that more than 2000 miles after the code set, your vehicle is still running well.

If the problem returns, there are folks on this forum who are familiar with that code. Time will tell.

 

I'm going to pass on the lecture. Thanks for the offer.