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Gen 3 prius wont start or Jump Start

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by TheKracken5, Mar 15, 2018.

  1. TheKracken5

    TheKracken5 New Member

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    so I used to be a member here for a while and have owned quite a few hybrids. I couldn't find my account so I made a new one. This is a 2011 prius II

    Anyway, I went to my university campus today with my wife and she hung out in the car for an hour in aux. mode. Anyway when I got back and tried to start the car, it died. I tried jump starting it and that didn't work, I tired it quite a few times and nothing worked. Eventually my wife noticed an icon on the dash and I looked it up and it wasn't recognizing our key, the red light was flashing on it. I assumed the key fob battery was dead. Anyway, I tired the technique of putting it up to the start button and it still wouldn't work.

    I call AAA for a tow and he was able to jump it with his cables from under the hood (where I was trying too). So the car starts but unfortunately the hybrid warning system flashed all over the place and the car wasn't working anymore.

    I got a tow home and I would really like some idea's where to start. I just pulled the 12v and I have no idea if it is the original or not. It is made in the USA by toyota it looks like, very plain looking but I cant find any dates. I am also going to get the battery for my key fob and try to find a decent price on a battery if this one is no good. Also, after I tried jump starting the car the car started whining a bunch and took a really long time to start, I am pretty sure it was from the inverter, the brake pedal also become very hard to depress.
     
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    welcome back!
    you need a new 12v. if you'd rather not spend the money, get a tickle charger, and monitor the voltage for a few weeks to see if she holds up.
    at 7 years old, i recommend replacement if it is in the financial cards.
    you shouldn't really sit in the car with anything on unless in ready mode.
     
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  3. TheKracken5

    TheKracken5 New Member

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    I think I do too, but I am hoping there isn't any other reason why it's not working. Why would it have the hybrid system throw codes right after a jump start?
     
  4. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    a bad battery can cause the computers to do all kind of funky things. unless you can borrow a good battery or put a charge on it, i'm not sure what else you can do.
    try leaving it in ready for 8 hours, or drive around for a few hours, if you don't have a charger.
     
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  5. scona

    scona Active Member

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    An hour in Aux probably lowered the voltage enough to cause problems. Try charging the battery up now that it is removed and see if it will start the Prius. If not then you may be looking for a new 12 volt. There have been some very recent posts here about who makes good 12-volt batteries for the car.
     
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  6. TheKracken5

    TheKracken5 New Member

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    Okay, I really appreciate it. I was just searching this forum for an hour and couldn't find anyone else with the exact same issue. It looks like the optima yellow top is available for 238$, is that a reasonable price?
     
  7. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    sounds like the oem price, have you checked?
     
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  8. TheKracken5

    TheKracken5 New Member

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    I have not checked, but I can call the dealership tomorrow and see.\

    We just have a baby and the my other vehicle is a extended cab truck that doesn't really work for shuttling baby around
     
  9. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    to me, the most important thing is ease of warranty and return, if there is an issue. others may disagree, battery choices seem kinda personal for some reason.
     
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  10. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    you want a fresh, fully charged battery.
     
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  11. TheKracken5

    TheKracken5 New Member

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    Looking on toyota's website it looks like the battery costs 239, I will go with that as long as they have it in stock. Should I ask them to charge it? I don't really have a way to charge it myself. Just a battery powered jump starter.
     
  12. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    yes, ask them to test it, and charge if needed. should be 13 volts. also check the date code. i would want something no older than 6 months.
     
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  13. TheKracken5

    TheKracken5 New Member

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    Will do. I appreciate it. I will post back tomorrow if I am able to get everything up and working.
     
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  14. TheKracken5

    TheKracken5 New Member

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    Alright so I got a OEM 12v for 210$ today and bought a keyfob battery. Car started no problem and there are not any codes or pending codes yet.

    BUT I am still worried about the inverter. I checked after I turned on the car for turbulence and I didn't see any. I replaced the coolant at 98k miles (at 103k now) and it was able to circulate to fill it up and get air out. I even had my wife push on the gas and the only movement I saw was it shaking slightly due to the engine. What could be wrong?
     
  15. padroo

    padroo Senior Member

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    Sounds like your inverter coolant pump went bad. Is it full and is there any movement in the reservoir when the car is running?
     
  16. TheKracken5

    TheKracken5 New Member

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    Yes it is full. But I do not see any movement while running. I replaced the inverter coolant pretty recently with Amsoil approved coolant.
     
  17. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    seems odd that the pump would be dead, but the car would be running fine.

    you say that you are still worried about the inverter, but looking through the posts, i don't see where you mention it.
     
  18. TheKracken5

    TheKracken5 New Member

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    I haven't tried driving it yet. I just left it running for an hour and I didn't get any new codes. I posted a new thread on this and haven't really figured out how to confirm this.
     
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  19. TheKracken5

    TheKracken5 New Member

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    I might not have mentioned it. I was worried about it because I head some noise under the dash that I thought could be the inverter.
     
  20. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    I assume that you replaced the inverter coolant yourself. I further assume that at the time you did that work, you were able to purge air out of the system, and you were successful in seeing fluid turbulence in the inverter coolant reservoir.

    If those two assumptions are correct, and you currently do not see fluid turbulence when the Prius is READY, then it seems likely that the problem is that the inverter coolant pump failed and needs to be replaced.

    Otherwise, another explanation may be that air has entered the system, hence although the pump may be running, fluid is not circulating.
     
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