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$299 12V battery?!

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by chrisooo, Jun 5, 2011.

  1. chrisooo

    chrisooo New Member

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    My 2004, with Smart key, needed a new battery and I decided to just let the dealer handle it. I was quoted $190-ish installed and was completely shocked when I got the bill for a $297 battery and that was before service fees! The rep explained that it's a heavy duty battery that will start anytime and that i should get a really long life out of it. I was totally pressed for time (clock ticking on pick up deadline at my son's daycare) so I paid and left. Yesterday I called one dealer in CT who quoted me $190 for a replacement battery however another dealer I spoke with said that the $297 was in line with the new pricing that dealers are paying since Toyota is having a hard time getting batteries. She explained that the other dealer was probably quoting the old price and that you can't actually get those batteries any longer. I don't know if this is quake related or not. Anybody else run into this issue recently?
     
    #1 chrisooo, Jun 5, 2011
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    it's about right these days. fyi if you ever need another one, optima.com. but you'll have to pay someone to install it so the savings isn't huge. there's no cheap way out with a prius. but you can't complain with 7 years on the original.
     
    #2 bisco, Jun 5, 2011
  3. cwerdna

    cwerdna Senior Member

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    See http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-...92860-new-12v-battery-part-28800-21171-a.html for discussion about the price of the battery, not including labor.

    As for "it's a heavy duty battery", hahahaha. The consensus here is that the OEM battery sucks. I believe part of the reason why the 12 volt is so expensive is that it's a special AGM type battery, instead of a flooded acid battery. This has been discussed many times (such as at http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-...ting/87380-no-conversion-12-volt-battery.html and http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-...eshooting/53726-jump-starting-my-prius-2.html).

    On the flip side, maybe it's not THAT bad if it seems to last 5 years or so.

    I went w/the Optima D51 from elearnaid, their kit and changed it myself. The time it took me wasn't that much longer than my time to drive to the dealer, wait for a shuttle, be shuttled home, but picked up again and drive back.
     
    #3 cwerdna, Jun 5, 2011
  4. edthefox5

    edthefox5 Senior Member

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    Two
    Thats about right given the dealer labor charges. At least thats what the local robber barons would try to pull. If a mechanic opens the door its usually $100. labor around these parts so don't feel bad.

    I have been looking around lately and found the Optima D51 at BatteriesPlus for $ 159. + tax.

    I'd like to buy it local so if an issue it's not ship back. That plus the elearnaid adaptor cable for $25 gets me to around $199. for all the parts. I haven't really looked at whats involved to make that post cable but I bet I can buy the parts locally for less.

    Plus labor of course but its pretty easy to change the battery.
    I'm getting ready to do just this so let you know.
     
    #4 edthefox5, Jun 5, 2011
  5. bigmike5

    bigmike5 New Member

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    #5 bigmike5, Jun 5, 2011
  6. kenmce

    kenmce High Voltage Member

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    This doesn't sound like the stock Prius battery. What battery did you get exactly?
     
    #6 kenmce, Jun 5, 2011
  7. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    The last time I got a battery was for an '06 Civic Hybrid. This was the stock "Honda" battery: $133.22, plus $5.00 battery levy. Dealer installed for no charge. Those are Canadian funds.

    I know that's a bit apples/oranges, but can't see it being that different.
     
    #7 Mendel Leisk, Jun 5, 2011
  8. seilerts

    seilerts Battery Curmudgeon

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    Civic Hybrid uses a group 51 size battery like the Prius, but it can be flooded since it is under the hood. These are typically $90 at US auto parts stores like Carquest. Prius MUST use AGM since it is in the passenger compartment.
     
    #8 seilerts, Jun 5, 2011
    1 person likes this.
  9. JimboPalmer

    JimboPalmer Tsar of all the Rushers

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    Never leave your dealer with a blank check unsupervised. Make it clear you only pay for work authorized in advance.
     
    #9 JimboPalmer, Jun 6, 2011
  10. Rest

    Rest Active Member

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    What did you really expect from a "Stealership"?
     
    #10 Rest, Jun 6, 2011
  11. The Critic

    The Critic Resident Critic

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    The MSRP for the battery is around $170, so I wouldn't have expected a bill of more than $200.
     
    #11 The Critic, Jun 9, 2011
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