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Dashboard illuminated with too many warning lights

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Ambrosia5, Jan 13, 2016.

  1. Ambrosia5

    Ambrosia5 Junior Member

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    I finally found the Prius I wanted. It's used. 2006. Gen II 220k miles. Bought at auction almost completely dead and no gas. After adding gas and driving so the main battery charges. It starts up great however the dash looks a little scary with nearly every warning light on.

    Lights on:

    Check engine
    VSC
    (!)
    Triangle of death
    Car with exclamation

    Went to autozone for test with a multimeter and no codes came up. It will get me from point A to B however, its super slow at acceleration. What happens is it sometimes will not go faster than 35 mph.

    Please help. I want the warning lights to stop:(
     
  2. S Keith

    S Keith Senior Member

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    Try another code reader. There are codes. Without knowing them, we can't help.
     
  3. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    Get Mini VCI to read the diagnostic trouble codes.
     
  4. Ambrosia5

    Ambrosia5 Junior Member

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    Any suggestions on a brand of code reader?

    Ok I'll do that and see what comes up.
     
  5. S Keith

    S Keith Senior Member

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    MiniVCI is best of if you have a 32bit WinOS to install it on (XP or Win7).

    There are tons of cheap ($12) bluetooth OBD readers and Torque Pro for Android ($6).

    There are wifi readers and equivalent iphone apps for a little more $.
     
  6. Ambrosia5

    Ambrosia5 Junior Member

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    Ok I got the codes:(

    POA80
    P3019
    P3021
    C1231
    C1241
    C1253
    C1256
    C1259
    C1231

    What do I do?
     
  7. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    Replace the high voltage traction battery.
     
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  8. Dion Kraft

    Dion Kraft Member

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    Replace the 12 volt battery also - you would save time by starting with new batteries
     
  9. Dino33ca

    Dino33ca Member

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    It all depends how much you paid for the car. If you got it for cheap then great, just drop a used or new battery in it and drive her away...
     
  10. Ambrosia5

    Ambrosia5 Junior Member

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    I replaced the 12volt. And that definitely helped but didn't solve the problem.
    merged
    I got it dirt cheap. But how much are we talking on a used battery. It is difficult to put in myself?
    merged
    I'm guessing you the mean the main huge battery right?
     
    #10 Ambrosia5, Jan 14, 2016
    Last edited by a moderator: Feb 6, 2016
  11. Dino33ca

    Dino33ca Member

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    Depends how many miles. High mile hybrid batteries can be bought for as little as three hundred bucks. As far as a do it yourself job, it's definitely doable. it's easy to access and a clean job compared to working in an engine compartment. There is a really good you-tube video on how change it out...

    gen 2 used hybrid battery prius | eBay
     
  12. Ambrosia5

    Ambrosia5 Junior Member

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    Could you send the link? Definitely gonna do it myself. Could I get away with just replacing the faulty cells?
     
  13. Dino33ca

    Dino33ca Member

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    I've heard that replacing cells is pretty much hit and miss. There's some threads here about it, some guys have had good luck, many others not so much...

    Also make sure you clean the hybrid battery cooling fan while your at it.
     
  14. Dion Kraft

    Dion Kraft Member

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    Yes - the traction battery which resides under the back seat. Check out Youtube on a host of many repairs related to the battery and aquaint yourself. Seeing the various videos will aquaint you with the dry run so as not to psych yourself out. Many have done it - so can you.
    Just take time to review the cautionary procedures so as not to electricute yourself. The Toy engineers have designed this to be as humanly fool proof as possible but as always - its possible to take a shortcut which would put yourself in peril.
     
  15. stockdaddy

    stockdaddy Member

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    I would use a power drill with socket adapter, it would take at least 4x as long doing it with socket wrench.
     
  16. Ambrosia5

    Ambrosia5 Junior Member

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    Great because I want to save time doing this! Power drill it is!! Now my next task is actually obtaining the battery. I hope I can find one cheap near me instead of online.
    merged
    Thanks that video was helpful!
     
    #16 Ambrosia5, Jan 16, 2016
    Last edited by a moderator: Feb 6, 2016
  17. DRACO

    DRACO Member

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    Yes, but before that you should use your scanner to getting reading of all of the blocks so you have a good idea of how many cells you may be dealing with.

    Also using the scanner, what is the SOC ( State of Charge %)? Try to do a forced Discharge and then a Charge to a minimum of 70%

    Take a pic of the discharged and charged state or better yet record it on the scanner or TIS

    If you are going to tackle this but a New Bus Bar with sensors. The back bus bar can be cleaned up and re-used.
     
  18. Ambrosia5

    Ambrosia5 Junior Member

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    How do I do a forced discharge and charge to 70%? Sorry I'm new to this, what is the bus bar? Is it the component that holds the cells together?
     
  19. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    suggest you do some research here on battery threads. this stuff isn't for amateurs, the hybrid battery can KILL you.
     
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  20. DRACO

    DRACO Member

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    ^^^+1

    You MUST read allot and watch allot of videos to absolutely insure you do not injure yourself or worse. SAFETY FIRST. Any doubts, Don't Do It! Never Ever cause the two leads (+/-) to make an errand/unintentional connection i.e. wire brushing or metal tool connection or ou for that matter.

    Yes, the Bus Bars are the strips that connect the cell leads together to create the high HV battery voltage ergo the DANGER

    [​IMG]
    from a G1.

    1. Forced discharge: E-brake, wheel chocks, put in REVERSE and press the accelerator completely down until SOC drops below 30%
    2. Then immediately place in Drive, press pedal all the way down ( ICE should start ) until SOC goes to a minimum of 70%
    3. Then place in Park and let the car normalize and once ICE stops, leave car on to allow the fans to cool the battery down before shut off. You will hear the fans slow down.

    I suggest lowering the windows and insure air intake for the cooling fans are not obstructed in anyway.

    Please do a search to insure I have not missed a step. Yon can charge first then discharge if you wish but you must allow the fans to do a cool down cycle after this forced event.
     
    #20 DRACO, Jan 16, 2016
    Last edited: Jan 16, 2016