MY 2004 Prius is acting strange and wont start this morning. When I opened the door I got a beeping sound similar to the sound when you walk away with the key while the car is on. When I pressed power, the power seemed to only partially come on, the screen did not power on, and every warning light is on including the red triangle !. The car would not activate past that stage. Is this how the car responded when the 12v battery in the rear is low?
I managed to drain my 12v on two separate occasions. Yeah, that's pretty much the reaction I got. If it's the still the original battery then it's time for anew one. For what it's worth, I also got the same pit-of-the-stomach, what-is-wrong feeling you got when you saw it. Relax and take a deep breath. Read the manual and get a jump. Then drive it to a place where you can get a new battery. Jump it from the rear hatch if you can get it open. If you can't, use the termination point under the hood. If you have a set of tiny jumper cables, those have worked the best for me. Good luck and keep us posted.
Just how old is your battery? If it's more than 4 years old you have made a major blunder in basic auto maintenance. How old are your tires?
