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New Battery Vs Refurbed Battery

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by Seth Holloway, Jul 16, 2020.

  1. Seth Holloway

    Seth Holloway Junior Member

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    This is my first post, so first want to say thank you to anyone that helps me. Second not sure if this is the correct forum for this question, but here it goes. I have a 2012 Prius, I had a wreck about a month ago hit a curb, insurance is taking of it. The problem I am having is I started getting the warning check hybrid system stop vehicle in safe place immediatly for about 4 months or so. I learned that if you remove the postivte plug on the 12 volt battery it woudl reset it. The hybrid system would shutoff and the car would run on the gas motor until reset. When it first happened I of course went on the internet and started researching, some suggested it was the 12 volt battery, so I had that replaced and the problem continued. Intially, the warning would mostly come on when the car needed to pull extra power like a hard turn, going up a hill, so forth. Then the warning started coming on when I was just driving down the street. Well I got an OBD Bluetooth and ran the codes and it came up with the code hybrid batter needs replacing.

    While in the shop at the Toyota Collision center being repaired from the current wreck, Toyota calls me and tells me than ran the diognostic test and it needs a new battery. And of course they quoted me the dreeded $3,500 with a one year warranty which I had heard from other is what a new battery would cost. I quickly did my research and found several places that offer replacement batteries of course at half the price. I am not a mechanic and don't plan on putting the battery in myself. So I was looking for a place to by and it and they would put it in.

    I came across a few options and wanted to get some advice. Here are the options, all of these will come out to my location and do the work.

    1. Replace dead cells in the current battery price range $50 to $150 a cell. All with 1 to 2 year warranty on that cell.
    2. Refurbish current battery cheapest I found $999 with one year warranty.
    3. New Battery with install $1,999 to $2,400 with 1 to 3 year warranty
    4. Replace with refurbished battery $1,799 to $2,300 with 1 to 4 year warranty
    5. Replace with revatilized battery $1,749 with 3 year warranty or $1,999 with 5 year warranty and option extend warranty after that. They offer subscription based lifetime warranty on the battery, but got price on paying for 3 year and 5 year upfront.

    Does anyone have any advice on this, is their a difference between a refurbished battery and a revatilaized battery.

    Thanks,

    Seth
     
  2. Grit

    Grit Senior Member

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    Since total miles on car remains a secret, and we love guessing, I’ll say get a new battery for you 30,000 miles driven car. New because it will last longer than a bandaid refurb battery that you’ll revisit in a few years.

    Or if under still under 150,00 miles, battery will still be under warranty.
     
    #2 Grit, Jul 16, 2020
    Last edited: Jul 16, 2020
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  3. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    agreed. depends on mileage, and how long you want to keep her.

    i'll assume beyond warranty since it's 8 years old and 100k is around average.

    these cars have a long lifespan, but sometimes with expensive repairs. after the battery, could be head gasket, a/c compressor, brake actuator and etc.

    unfortunately, your list of options comes down to this: we have no idea how long any of them will last. usually, it's short, and you spend a lot of time calling the company for warranty service until it runs out.

    no, there is no difference between rejuvinated and refurbished or even remanufactured. the truth is, most are scam.
    see iff you can find a mech who will install an oem, or a 'newpriusbatteries.com' for $1,600.
     
  4. ASRDogman

    ASRDogman Senior Member

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    You could try this: Prolong Battery Charger | Hybrid Automotive

    You only need a little mechanical ability. Nothing is too hard for installing the harness...


     
  5. fotomoto

    fotomoto Senior Member

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    Check out my link in my signature.

    GOOD LUCK!
     
  6. Seth Holloway

    Seth Holloway Junior Member

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    thanks for the advise, forgot to say the miliage on the car is 117,000
     
  7. Seth Holloway

    Seth Holloway Junior Member

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    Ok so here is a weird thing, I got the car back yesterday from the Toyota dealer collision repair and I am not getting the hybrid warning lights and the dreaded Christmas tree anymore, I haven't pulled the codes yet. But I drove it for a few hours yesterday and never got the warning and it drove better than it has in years. The dealers has two different departments collision and service. While it was at the dealer collision shop, I did get a call from service telling me I had a code and the battery was going bad, and asked if it was doing this before the wreck. I told him yes, because it had been giving me the dreaded warning for about a month and a hlaf and the way I was fixing it was first by just taking the connection of the 12 volt battery and reseting the codes which would also reset the warning and return the car to normal and then I found out I could reset the codes and warnign with an obd unit so I started doing that. When I would get the warning the nybrid system would turn off and the car would just run on the gas engine, so I woul djust pull over and reset everything.

    Well now after the collision damage was fixed it isn't giving me the warning, as I said I drove it for a few hours yesterday and put iit through som rough paces, climbing hills, accelrating real fast and so forth and it never pulled the warning.

    Any thoughts.
     
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  8. sam spade 2

    sam spade 2 Senior Member

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    Summary for the original question:
    The only good rebuilt / refurbished / re-manufactured, HV hybrid battery is one with ALL new cells.
    Any other partial rebuilding techniques are just a partial fix.......and you will likely be using their "warranty" over and over again.
     
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  9. ASRDogman

    ASRDogman Senior Member

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    Maybe they killed the 12v battery and set it on a charger and got it a full charge.
    Maybe there was a blockage for the air intake(hybrid) and they cleared it.
    Be happy. But, start saving for a new batter! :) Just in case.

     
  10. Seth Holloway

    Seth Holloway Junior Member

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    So bad thing happened today, I am running errands and got the hybrid warning, so had to plug in the OBD device and use Dr. Prius to reset it. The 12 volt battery was brand new, I bought it when this issue first started happening. ASRDogman you said something about clearing the fan, can you give me a little more info about that ???
     
  11. Grit

    Grit Senior Member

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    6) Check if your battery is still under warranty with Toyota, and if it is, Toyota will replace it for free.
     
  12. ASRDogman

    ASRDogman Senior Member

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    Here is a video:



     
  13. Seth Holloway

    Seth Holloway Junior Member

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  14. ALS

    ALS Active Member

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    As far as getting a new battery check around on the internet many dealers will sell you one at discount. Check to see if your Dealer will price match an online dealers price. At 117K, I doubt Toyota will help you out with a credit. Here is a new battery from an Arizona Toyota dealer for $2071

    2011-2017 Toyota Battery Assembly G9510-76012 | Camelback Toyota Parts
     
  15. kenoarto

    kenoarto Senior Member

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    If you shop around, a brand new, genuine Toyota battery can be found for less than $1600. I paid my local Toyota dealer $1700 plus $445 for install, taxes and a rental car. $2145 total. Toyota installation includes full three year, nationwide Toyota warranty. Why worry?
    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
    ALS likes this.