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New member needs some advice please.

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by chrisleroux, Jan 12, 2018.

  1. chrisleroux

    chrisleroux Junior Member

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    Hello prius chat:
    Brand new member needing advice/help?
    ---2007 toyota prius with problems starting 1-7-18
    so I checked 12 volt battery three years old and all tests seem good, and the problems started
    after very cold weather bellow zero, and salt on roads
    ---I have these lights on dash lit.---
    red triangle
    tps
    vsc
    check engine
    red excalamation point with in car icon on top left display screen.
    --------------------Had advance auto zone scan codes stored.------------------
    These are them, with what I think from google search they may correspond to??
    Please correct if wrong??
    -c 1241 (Low battery positive voltage.)
    -c 1259 (HV System Regenerative Malfunction)
    -P 0A80 ( it means that the powertrain control module has detected a malfunction in the hybrid vehicle
    battery management system (HVBMS). This code indicates that a weak cell failure has occurred in the
    hybrid battery pack.)
    -p 3019 ( BATTERY BLOCK 9 BECOMES WEAK).
    Car still drives and can hear battery fan running also.
    Anybody have any insights, on where to start????
     
  2. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    You can start by replacing the hv battery. Your troubles should go away after that
     
  3. chrisleroux

    chrisleroux Junior Member

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    that sounds expensive.
    what would you do?
     
  4. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    Toyota reduced the battery by $400 this year. The part lists right around $2000 now. With labor, maybe around $3000.

    How many miles are on your car? If it's under 150k miles, you can try and ask Toyota to help pay for some of the replacement cost. You'll call their corporate customer service number and ask for a goodwill warranty

    Phoenix hybrid batteries sells it for $2000 installed
     
  5. chrisleroux

    chrisleroux Junior Member

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    Thanks for the info...
    I'd like a brand new toyota battery, that sounds like the best solve
    Car has 97k miles, low for the year (2007), spoke with toyota today, ask about warranty, 9 months too old, yet, still 52k under mileage-wise, a good-will warranty???. perhaps I'll try I.
    ---Do u know if there is a way to tell if it's the original battery, or the 28 modules are all original to battery pack and vehicle??? I ask bcuz somebody may have tampered with it or swapped out before??
     
  6. Dxta

    Dxta Senior Member

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    Recharge or replace the 12volt battery also.

    If the mileage is under 150+.., you could rebuild the pack yourself, or have the it replaced completely
     
  7. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    Call their corporate number and they should be able to help you. You have really low miles
     
  8. chrisleroux

    chrisleroux Junior Member

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    Thanks, after picking it up from body shop, the car lost mpg and battery capacity lessened, (i drove it from Florida in 2014 and for 9 months always had 53 mpg), until rear ended and a body shop had it for over a month after I was rear ended in accident, the shady guy had other priuses in there, battery meter was in purple when picked up, mpg's went to 44 for last three years till now the battery has failed. That's why i asked if I do pull the battery cover, to check the modules serial numbers and cross reference to vin if possible,
    Whoever gets rear ended you are going to go back into the seat, then hit something solid then spring forward, I ended up bending the seat too.
     
  9. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    After a battery sits for a month, it would deteriorate. It's normal characteristics of a 10 year old battery.

    I think you should just call Toyota corporate and go from there. No need to look at the body shop integrity at this point
     
  10. chrisleroux

    chrisleroux Junior Member

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  11. dolj

    dolj Senior Member

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    On the basis of what? There is no info in this thread to indicate there is anything wrong with the 12 V battery, especially since the OP in the opening post states he tested it and it came back with ok readings. Why would you advise him to spend upwards of $200 for no reason?

    I just don't get some people on this forum. :rolleyes::mad::(
     
  12. Bob Comer

    Bob Comer Active Member

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    He also said recharge. Anyway, a failing 12-volt battery can do all sorts of weird things on a Prius, so at the very least getting it checked when you have any kind of problem is a smart first step because if it's failing, you're not going to get anywhere fast in troubleshooting the problem.
     
  13. dolj

    dolj Senior Member

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    Repeating an urban legend does not make it true.

    There is nothing in this thread to indicate suspicion of the 12 V system. Too many threads are getting derailed by people who get fixated on things that are not there.

    As long as the battery has been checked and found to be ok, as the OP said in his opening post, there is no point repeating urban legends. All it does is waste peoples time and energy, clutter up the thread with irrelevant red herrings, and possibly derail the thread.
     
  14. Bob Comer

    Bob Comer Active Member

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    Sorry, I just don't agree with your "urban legend", it really can cause strange effects with the Prius, but anyway if it was really checked, then that's all that's needed, which is what I said.
     
  15. 05PreeUs

    05PreeUs Senior Member

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    With the P0A80 code, the HV pack cannot keep the 12v battery charged due to low HV voltage and the software in the DC-DC converter that will not allow the HV pack to sacrifice itself for the 12v; which is a GOOD thing.

    If you are handy, you *could* find out which HV module is giving trouble and replace it, but that is time consuming to say the least and even with care a crap-shoot.

    Replacing the HV pack with new cylindrical modules might be an option as well. That's what I would do, but I am not risk adverse.
     
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  16. chrisleroux

    chrisleroux Junior Member

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    Yes, I was hoping it was the 12 volt myself, it was replaced brand with Toyota battery, after rear ended accident at the repair shop, the battery is 39 months as it sits in the car, I did check the battery test(s) through the screen, and it passed, and the outside temp was about 40 degrees (F), I might recheck it when the temp. drops to see if it changes, tonight will drop much colder, so I will do it then to see if it passes cold. My local autozone has optima in stock for $184.00 greenbacks. I just spoke with 2 dealers, they sell the traction battery for $1950 retail price with one year warranty, and with installation both about $2,850, I may plead my case to Toyota to see if they will help somehow, seeing the car is at 97k and under 100k miles warranty, and barely over the time frame 10 years warranty. I dont know if selling it over the counter is an option to myself yet, because of the hazard of high voltage, and I think they will request the purchaser be certified to avoid liability problems. I think they are charging around 700 dollars for labor and maybe a computer scan charge, I don't know what their shop rate is or the time hours allotted for the service, i would imagine 5.5 hours or so.
     
  17. chrisleroux

    chrisleroux Junior Member

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    I would like to find the faulty module, I think no. nine is a candidate from code??

    Does anybody know if I do purchase a new toyota battery?? Is there a way to assure the battery modules are new, and not old stock, I wouldn't want to buy a battery, pay all that money, that's been sitting on a shelf for many years, I would want new manufactured, wondering if the price drop reflects old stock inventory needing to be moved.
     
  18. 05PreeUs

    05PreeUs Senior Member

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    You CANNOT test the 12v in these cars like you do in a regular car, because this is NOT a "starting" battery, not at all. In fact, the Prius does not even have a starter!

    About all you can do is place a 10A-20A load on it (about 10% of what you would for a normal battery) and see if the voltage holds above 12.0v after 15 seconds or so.

    Replacing the HV pack takes about 30 minutes if you have an assistant to help lift it out-in and you study one of the multiple videos on the topic first. We have done it in under 20 minutes, but not all the trim was in place when we started and it was the second round, so we had experience.
     
  19. 05PreeUs

    05PreeUs Senior Member

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    https://www.youtube.com/edit?o=U&video_id=AFEAxDvbgAs describes how to find a bad module.

    The HV packs are "new", as new as the one in the car when it was produced at least. Losing 6 months of service life, assuming it sat in a warehouse that long, for a pack that generally lasts 10 years is really nothing to worry about.
     
  20. chrisleroux

    chrisleroux Junior Member

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    05PreeUs, that youtube link yielded a youtube page saying no videos found??
    The battery can't be tested in car??
    I was under the assumption it could be tested through screen, from a videofor initial no load voltage, then load it by pressing start button again, and loading it through cars accessories, then check charging system voltage by pressing in brake, and hitting start button closing the the charging circuit, and reading voltage on screen