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Red Triangle, Problem and slow Prius on uphills

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by aliasbody, Apr 5, 2015.

  1. aliasbody

    aliasbody New Member

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    Hello Everyone,

    Maybe this had already thousands and thousands of posts, but since I didn't found a clear solutions for this I've decided to create this post.

    I've bought a second handed European Prius 2en Gen from year 2006, the car is wonderful and I simply love it ! I wouldn't change it for anything, but yet I have some problems with it.

    When I start the car I get the Red Triangle on the front panel, and exclamation symbol, a VSC symbol and an engine (?) symbol on. On the Display I always have a black bar on the top with a car and an exclamation point on it. Both can be seen int the pictures below.

    20150403_006.jpg 20150403_007.jpg

    At this point the car runs normally, the only things I notice are :
    1 - When I stop the car (without shutting him down) I notice that the consumption of fuel is at 99.9/L because it is charging the battery, which is already full.
    2 - The back-right ventilation fan of the car (on the passanger seat) is ON even when the Air Conditionner is OFF.

    After a few miles (I don't know exactly when it happens, sometimes it happens when stopped, sometimes when on the road), the car beeps and then it shows a, on the same black bar on the display, a message saying "Problem", after a few seconds I get a Battery symbol on the right of the car with an exclamation point symbol.

    At this point the car starts having the following problems :
    1 - The motor begins to speed like if I was at full speed on the highway.
    2 - I simply can't do an uphill, the car won't pass the 20Km/h speed, if I gain balance before arriving at the uphill, it will start losing speed until reaching the 18-20Km/h.

    At this point I really don't know how to solve this. I only know that, the Toyota Representative here where I live (in Portugal), ask me for 2,975Euros (almost 3,263USD) saying that it is a problem in the Hybrid System. But yet it seems strange because from what I know, if the Hybrid System was compromised, the car wouldn't start at all.

    Can anyone help me on this ? Does changing the 12V Battery on the back would solve this (even knowing that the Display shows a fully charged battery ?) ?

    Best Regards,
    Luis Da Costa
     
    #1 aliasbody, Apr 5, 2015
    Muhibul Tanim likes this.
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    sounds like the hybrid battery, how many miles on her?
     
    #2 bisco, Apr 5, 2015
  3. aliasbody

    aliasbody New Member

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    Dear Bisco,

    Before anything, thank you for your answer. The car has 178.000 Km (around 110.600 miles).
     
    #3 aliasbody, Apr 5, 2015
  4. Dino33ca

    Dino33ca Member

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    #4 Dino33ca, Apr 5, 2015
  5. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    good point by dino^ do you carry pets regularly, they tend to clog the cooling fan.

    it wouldn't hurt to check the 12 volt battery, it should read 12.5 volts or better, after the car has been off for a few hours.

    the dealer, or someone with the correct scanning equipment, will need to read the trouble codes, which will give you (and us) a better idea of what is wrong.
     
    #5 bisco, Apr 5, 2015
  6. aliasbody

    aliasbody New Member

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    I thing that some of the errors are there for no apparent reason, but I can be wrong. I really need to try cleaning the Battery Cooling fan before testing anything else, but can I simply reset and remove all errors in order to wait until the actual errors show ?

    About the 12V Battery, can I trust the diagnostic mode of the prius or should I use a voltmeter ?
    The dealer ask me 80€ (almost 100USD) for any diagnostic and only writes some lines on the paper, but I can try again :)
     
    #6 aliasbody, Apr 6, 2015
  7. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    best method is to crack the hood before retiring for the night. in the morning, before turning on the car or even opening the drivers door, (which activates a ton of electronics) open the hood and dive into the fuse box. inside under a hinged red cover is the front 12v + jump point. put a dvm there and a grounding bolt. if it's below 12.5v, replace it.

    the mfd i s a good place for a quick health check, but not the definitive source for replacement.
     
    #7 bisco, Apr 6, 2015
  8. valde3

    valde3 Senior Member

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    You also need to turn smart key system off if you have it. If you have only driven short distances or Prius has been sitting low (12V) battery reading can also mean that it needs charging.
     
    #8 valde3, Apr 6, 2015
  9. aliasbody

    aliasbody New Member

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    A little updated. I've went to the dealer and he told me that the problem was in the prius inverter, it could be a simple piece like it could be th whole thing. I don't know if it an help but they talked about a P3000 code for the problem.

    Has anyone already had a problem like this one ?

    Best Regards,
    Luis Da Costa
     
    #9 aliasbody, Apr 9, 2015
  10. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    sure, it happens fairly often. when they give you the price, keep in mind you can pick up a used one cheap.
     
    #10 bisco, Apr 9, 2015
  11. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    1. Get Mini VCI so that you have your own means to retrieve the DTC. This can be purchased on amazon.com, at least in the US.
    2. DTC P3000 would normally point to an issue with the high voltage traction battery or traction battery ECU. Usually some other DTC would be logged by the traction battery ECU which would confirm the problem.

    It is questionable that the inverter is the problem and this needs to be confirmed before you spend a four-digit amount (in Euros) to have that part replaced.
     
    #11 Patrick Wong, Apr 10, 2015
  12. aliasbody

    aliasbody New Member

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    Where can I get a cheap one ? (I'm not in the USA)

    Can I buy any Mini VCI Cable or do I need a specific one ?
     
    #12 aliasbody, Apr 10, 2015
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 10, 2015
  13. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    ebay/salvage
     
    #13 bisco, Apr 10, 2015
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