2008 Prius dead? Help!

Howdy folks,

This is my first post here, I hope I'm doing this correctly.

I am looking for some advice. I'm pretty sure my 2008 Prius with 130k miles is dead. I woke up one morning and I had a check engine light on, as well as the large exclamation mark in the triangle as well as a few other codes that meant nothing to me since I am not car literate.

I have a local mechanic in my area (southern California) that works on nothing but Toyota made vehicles (scion, lexus) He ran some codes and it came back with an error that he determined was either the main hybrid battery or the main computer and suggested I take it to Toyota to see what they can do. After spending all 5 hours and $200 bucks later, they came back to me with the same outcome. They wanted to charge me another $1k to take apart the car to determine exactly what the issue is, but they said if it is either one of those two problems (the computer or the battery) it would cost more than the vehicle is worth. I couldn't afford the $1k to have them take a closer look (I'm on disability at the moment and money is tight) So now I've got this vehicle that I'm pretty sure is a non operational anymore.

A few weeks prior to finding all of this out, I had the 12 volt battery replaced.

A few months ago, my catalytic converter was stolen and I had that replaced for $3500.

I want to at least make some money back on this vehicle, I just don't know how or where to go. I am hoping someone on here has an idea I didn't think of.

So, I went through Craigslist to find a similar car for sale, and of course there are none. I called a few dealerships, including Toyota, they only are offering me $400 to $500 for a trade in value.

I called my local junkyard (pick a part) and they are offering me $600 in cash to pick it up.

All the time and money I put into that car and I feel like I'm getting shafted. Anyone have any ideas?

Thanks in advance!

 

Hey man, thanks for responding, sorry for the late reply. To be perfectly honest I have no idea what you mentioned. I have very little automotive skills (tire change, oil change, etc, I can do) but when it comes down to the really technical stuff I'm lost, so as informative as your post is, I am completely confused.

Hey man, thanks for responding, sorry for the late reply. I'm not sure if this is the correct code but I got "P0AFA - hybrid batter system voltage low" from my usual mechanic. Toyota didn't give me a code per say, but in the paper work they gave me says the same thing "P0AFA Hybrid battery system voltage low - Inspected Data List and found bat vol 1,4,5 abnormal voltage reading.

Hey, thanks for the response. They wanted an extra $1,000 to do a full inspection, I don't have the money for that. And the only code they gave me was "P0AFA - hybrid batter system voltage low"

Hey Kris, thanks for responding, I just went out to check the 12volt just incase and everything looked good.

Hey man, thanks for the information. I checked his shop out and its an hour North of me. I don't think the prius would make the drive up there, and a tow truck is too expensive for that distance. I'll give him a call and see if he has any advice for me. Thanks again!

 

-Thanks dude!

-The only codes I received from both mechanics was "P0AFA - hybrid batter system voltage low"

-I do not have the tools to remove the converter, I'd need to find a shop to take it off for me.

-Those are great ideas and I plan on doing those today. Thank you!

-I didn't realize there was a "for sale" section, but I'll def. check it out!

-Understood.