Need advice about Lack of driving

I don't expect any problems. Just be careful when installing the new battery.

 

Welcome to priuschat!!

I do not see any problem with that except I would not jump start it upon return. You will have a very very dead battery and it will pull max current when you jump it. Many many posts with resulting major damage jump starting a Prius over the last 3 years. Jump starting a Prius is its achille's heel. If you are stuck and have no choice its understandable but your not.

Its not a problem if you plan on bringing a replacment battery to the car and install it right where it sits. That would be fine. If your plan is otherwise its a very bad idea.

BTW, Any resulting jump starting damage will not be covered under any warranty.

 

You shouldn't have any problems provided you PAY ATTENTION to what you are doing when you jump the dead battery. Reverse the polarity & you'll probably cause 4 figures worth of damage.

 

YES!!! If it was me I would have the car towed. Only because of the number of reports we've had of damage in jumps. Many using AAA as a jumper too. And all swearing they did not reverse the leads.

OR...buy an Optima replacement battery on line from here:

http://www.elearnaid.com/12vo1topraub.html

(This site has full installation instructions also)

and since your at a University try to find a student with good car experience and have him install it for you right where it sits. Ask around. Its a pretty easy install. Just make sure whoever does it knows what there doing. Do not reverse the polarity. And this Optima is a much better battery than the stock battery. Lots of posts here concerning installing this exact battery.

And yes when the car is dead you can open the car door with the mechanical key stowed in the FOB. And then crawl into the back hatch area where there's a mechanical lever on the back of the hatch itself. You pull that lever and it opens the hatch allowing access to the trunk area where the spare tire and boot battery resides.

Please review your owners manual.

Jump damage is not covered under any warranty. A new inverter which is usually damaged in jumps gone wrong are around $4000 plus labor.

Good Luck.

 

I have experience with a prius, dead battery, not started for months. Some of the car's systems had to be "awakened", or reinitialized. There is a bit of reference to that in the owners manual.

 

Sorry but kind of misled you a little on the rear hatch manual release location. I have never had to use it before. And I thought I knew where it was.

You crawl into the back and lift up the plastic hatch cover that hides the spare tire compartment.
There's 2 little knobs that you turn to release the cover. Lift the cover off and then there's a little lever on the door latch lock mechanism itself you pull on. Its hard to explain. Please go to page 380 in the owners manual as there's a picture of it. If your not familiar with removing that hatch cover try it yourself and learn how the release knobs work. You might not want to learn the first time laying in the back of the car.