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12v disconnecting periodically

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by tonymats, May 27, 2022.

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  1. tonymats

    tonymats Junior Member

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    The strangest thing happened to my Prius several times already: I turned off the engine after a short drive and the car went completely non-responsive as if 12V battery is dead. 30-60 minutes later (or maybe sooner) everything was back to normal except that the clock needed to be reset.

    This happened 3 times already over the past year, with several months between incidents. I have a 2013 Prius with 110k miles.

    I looked at the battery terminals for signs of poor connection or corrosion and everything seemed normal.

    Has anyone else had this issue and found a solution?
     
    #1 tonymats, May 27, 2022
    Last edited: May 27, 2022
  2. ASRDogman

    ASRDogman Senior Member

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    If you read the post here, you'll find that the 12v battery will cause strange things to happen when it gets weak.
    How old is it? If it's 6-7 years or older, might be a good idea to replace it.
    If it's less than 7 years old, Toyota will replace it, for free. 84 month warranty(7 years).
    I just replaced mine, It was 9 years old.

     
    #2 ASRDogman, May 27, 2022
  3. tonymats

    tonymats Junior Member

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    Thanks. I replaced the battery about 4 years ago, so it's not that old. I doubt it's under warranty as it's not the original one. But there was a period of about a year, before these problems started, when the car was getting very little use, so that probably wasn't very good for the battery.
     
    #3 tonymats, May 27, 2022
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  4. ASRDogman

    ASRDogman Senior Member

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    Have you tried putting a charge on the battery?

     
    #4 ASRDogman, May 27, 2022
  5. CR94

    CR94 Senior Member

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    Merely looking may not suffice. Check that those terminals are tight. If so, loosen them slightly, then shift the clamps slightly, then retighten.
     
    #5 CR94, May 28, 2022
  6. jerrymildred

    jerrymildred Senior Member

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    And don't forget the point where the ground cable connects to the car's body.
     
    #6 jerrymildred, May 28, 2022
  7. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    For test of the battery itself: hook up one of the new gen of load testers; it'll read the volts and the Cold Cranking Amps, and deliver a verdict, the battery's "viability". Dealerships have these, but will likely ding you a half-hour's labour. Automotive retail stores often have such testers and will test for free; it's good for business. Or you can pick one up, for somewhere between $50~100.

    I'm using a Solar BA5, and I believe it's current iteration is BA9.
     
    #7 Mendel Leisk, May 28, 2022
  8. tonymats

    tonymats Junior Member

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    Thanks! Tested at AutoZone and sure enogh the battery failed the test.
     
    #8 tonymats, May 31, 2022
    jerrymildred, Half Vast, Mendel Leisk and 1 other person like this.
  9. ASRDogman

    ASRDogman Senior Member

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    :whistle:WHAT? The 12v batter failed? Hard to believe!
     
    #9 ASRDogman, May 31, 2022
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