Prius battery pack failure or installation causing auxiliary battery failure?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by rsyoungmd, Jul 8, 2011.

  1. rsyoungmd

    rsyoungmd New Member

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    My 2006 Prius batteries died and it has taken the dealer 3 weeks to get the pack made and Houston. Now they tell me that my auxiliary battery is bad and want to charge me $300 for a new one installed. The dealership says this is the first battery pack replacement they have ever had to make on a Prius, so I am suspicious that they fried the auxiliary battery when they did the installation. The battery pack was under warranty still but the car has 114k miles.
    Has anyone had any experience with this to know if the auxiliary battery would be affected by the failure of the battery pack or installation of a new pack? I don't want to pay for their inexperience if it was their fault. That is an expensive little battery.
     
    #1 rsyoungmd, Jul 8, 2011
  2. 2009Prius

    2009Prius A Wimpy DIYer

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    The Prius 12V battery is small and known to fail quite often due to age (5 years is about time) and/or infrequent charging. If yours was on its last leg and sat uncharged at the dealer for 3 weeks then it is possible that that killed it. However it would be difficult to argue at this point. If you don't want to pay the dealer to do the replacement you may buy one from the parts department and DIY. Good luck and welcome to PriusChat! :)
     
    #2 2009Prius, Jul 8, 2011
  3. seilerts

    seilerts Battery Curmudgeon

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    You could try to make the case that they should have had it on a 12V maintainer or had it disconnected. TSB PG007-03 states that the 12V should be disconnected if the car is being stored for more than 10 days. Ask them to replace it at their cost/free labor.
     
    #3 seilerts, Jul 9, 2011
    1 person likes this.
  4. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk MMX GEN III

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    Are you on the original 12 volt battery? If so, it's had a good run. One school of thought is to replace it periodically, regardless of condition. For regular use replacement every 4 years is a decent interval.
     
    #4 Mendel Leisk, Jul 9, 2011
  5. F8L

    F8L Protecting Habitat & AG Lands

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    If all else fails tell them you will do it yourself in "the parking lot. It will cost you less than $200.
     
    #5 F8L, Jul 9, 2011
  6. andyprius

    andyprius Senior Member

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    Seilerts, that is fantastic. :plane:
     
    #6 andyprius, Jul 10, 2011
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