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Can a bad 12v Aux Battery throw a P0AA6 613 code?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by tstab, Sep 25, 2017.

  1. tstab

    tstab Junior Member

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    Hello everyone,

    I've searched around a bit and I want to make sure I'm on the right track....

    Got the Triangle of death, I can clear codes and drive once and then she wont start... when she does start she drives fine, no loss of MPG

    I've gotten a P0AA6 526 613 as seen here:

    Screen Shot 2017-09-22 at 9.49.46 PM.png

    Screen Shot 2017-09-22 at 8.20.40 PM.png

    Points to a bad transaxle but I was told in another thread that i could have a leak/corrosion in the pack and I should check...

    I pulled the Hybrid battery,didn't see a leak, cleaned these contacts :

    52797097198__9459F455-C265-4C65-ADF5-B3717520ABAC.JPG

    All modules test 7.97

    threw her back in , cleared the codes... it took longer (15min sish)but I got the good old codes back

    I've had my 12v charged at autozone twice during all this fiddling, both times they said she was full and in good health... I'm not sure if I trust the diagnosis...I'm thinking about trying to order an Optima Yellow Top just to be sure.

    I had smartkey issues leading up to this error code as well. Just trying to be realistic and wonder if I should be trying to find a salvage transaxle soon....

    Car has 103ish,000 and she's an 08

    Thanks everyone!

    Tyler
     
  2. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    It is unlikely that the 12V battery is at fault here. However if you are worried about the battery charge level, charge up the battery prior to your testing, and leave a 10A charger on the battery while you are doing your testing with the Prius IG-ON. (Disconnect the charger before you try to make the Prius READY.)

    Either the transaxle or the inverter has a ground fault. Most likely the transaxle is at fault. As you've already learned, you can get one start out of the car after disconnecting the 12V battery. Hence, that is a workaround which will allow you to defer repairs.

    You might try disconnecting the high voltage cabling from the inverter to the transaxle. The factory repair manual suggests using a megohmmeter to test resistance from the transaxle stator windings to body ground, for both MG1 and MG2. If you get resistance readings lower than infinity, that shows the transaxle is at fault. (The spec is 10M ohms or greater.)

    If you don't want to buy a megohmmeter, you might try disconnecting the cabling and using a regular ohmmeter. If the ground fault is bad enough, a regular ohmmeter will show low resistance readings.

    Another possibility is to disconnect the cabling, then power up the car to see if the ground fault goes away. If it does, that is proof that the transaxle is the culprit. Of course you should plan that other DTC will be logged, associated with the transaxle being disconnected. Obviously you need to be careful not to zap yourself in the process, and you need to look out for the interlock switch on the inverter, which is closed when the cover is installed.

    I suggest you consult the factory repair manual info at techinfo.toyota.com

    Incidentally, it appears that your tire air pressure is low on two tires.
     
    #2 Patrick Wong, Sep 25, 2017
    Last edited: Sep 25, 2017
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  3. Sam Spade

    Sam Spade Senior Member

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    I suggest that the Optima is no better than other major brands and there have been several time periods recently when they have had a high failure rate.
     
  4. tstab

    tstab Junior Member

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    Thanks for the info, what's a good alternative?
     
  5. tstab

    tstab Junior Member

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    I appreciate the quick and thorough reply Patrick ... I've seen your great advice all over these forums.

    I'm gonna give this all a shot tonight when I get home. Thanks for the link. It's a shame because the car seems to drive great.... luckily car-part l.com lists transaxles with under 100,000 miles from 150-350 depending on mileage . I'm thinking of doing it myself as I've seen some good tutorials on here. Anyone know a decent mechanic around the Detroit area that is reasonable ??? A good price might be able to talk me out of it ‍♂️
     
  6. Sam Spade

    Sam Spade Senior Member

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    Toyota.

    If price is important, check auto parts stores.
    Just be sure that it is an EXACT replacement.
    Slightly different sizes and post configurations can cause problems with installation.
     
  7. tstab

    tstab Junior Member

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    Oh yea I saw the debate over the oem vs optima ... I'm gonna go with cheapest
     
  8. Sam Spade

    Sam Spade Senior Member

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    Most of the time you get what you pay for (cheap).

    IF......saving $10 is really not that important right now, you might want to reconsider that.
     
  9. tstab

    tstab Junior Member

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    I mean cheapest decent battery not out back of my brothers house ;-)
     
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  10. JimN

    JimN Let the games begin!

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    Keep in mind that Suzy's 12v Toyota battery was replaced just outside of the 1 year warranty. Sometimes one gets what one pays for. Sometimes one gets less.

    The battery Liberty Toyota sold me in 2009 didn't last 3 months. It doesn't sound like Toyota's quality has improved.

    I'd find a battery with a longer warranty and have it delivered to me but to each their own.
     
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  11. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    You have a transaxle issue that's covered by a Toyota TSB, maybe you can contact Toyota and ask them to cover this repair? Not sure of your mileage, but you can always try and ask

    TSB attached
     

    Attached Files:

  12. tstab

    tstab Junior Member

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    Unfortunately my car is at 103,000 miles… I doubt that I'm going to be able to swing that ... has anyone else been this close out of warranty it and gotten away with it?
     
  13. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    Call the 1800 Toyota corporate number and ask them for a goodwill warranty assistance
     
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  14. tstab

    tstab Junior Member

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    Thanks for the advice, I didnt even know this existed... I'll roll the dice tomorrow ;-)
     
  15. tstab

    tstab Junior Member

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    Where on the inverter are those plugs to the transaxle... gonna give that a shot tonight... Thank you btw
     
  16. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    You need to remove the inverter cover after disconnecting the HV battery interlock.

    There are six orange cables connecting the inverter to the transaxle, those are what we are talking about.
     
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  17. tstab

    tstab Junior Member

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    Alright went to the dealer they just ran codes ( waste of time and money but it made me feel better) they told me about the TSB and said it was the transaxle. Picked up a used transaxle for 150 bucks and I'm gonna give her a swap this weekend hopefully. Car is still driving great after pullin the 12v negative.... bummer that a ground fault is all thats causing this.... thanks for the help all. Depending on if I can get a hold of a go pro i might try to shoot some video since I haven't seen any video breakdowns of the swap
     
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  18. fiberoptx

    fiberoptx New Member

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    Did you ever make a video for this, if so, could you provide the link? Im going to probably have to do this swap soon as well. :/
     
  19. edthefox5

    edthefox5 Senior Member

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    4 year old post. And your posting in the G2 forum. Your 2010 is a. G3.

    use the search forums link up top and search away. Search transmission removal. Trans swap. Etc.

    many trans and motors replaced on this site. I have heard it is easier to pull the trans and motor as one.