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Another traction battery question

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by philipc, Jun 14, 2021.

  1. philipc

    philipc Junior Member

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    Hey,

    So want to pick some peoples minds as i'm a little stumped but i think i know what the answer will be.

    i have a 2006 with ~285,000km. Bought the car used from Toyota in 2009 and i've not replaced the battery pretty sure its original. New 12V battery (3 months). nothing else wrong with the car aside from rush near the rear wheel well due to canadian winters. and a tail pipe that is 1/4 missing (rusted through on the weekend getting it fixed Wednesday) current "hole" is right above the rear sway bar.

    Today while running out on a errand the following events occurred
    - battery heads up display started at 2 purple bars,
    - within 50m dropped to 1 bar
    - another 200m l jumped to 6 blue
    - held between 5-6 until i approached a stop light 1km down the road.
    - Got to stop light, it went to full 8 green bars and started using the ICE to bleed of additional charge.
    - upon moving again it seemed fine.

    On my way home ~1km into the drive it tossed the red triangle and MIL and just knew it was because of a P0A80.

    Getting home boot techstream and i do see that block 9 is much lower then the others.
    prius battery.PNG

    save the data clear the code and go for some more drives. But yet the battery and all their levels seem to be consistent resistance values are equal and no odd behavior. battery 2.PNG battery 3.PNG

    My questions are,
    1) could the exhaust leak heat the battery and wires to a degree that it would cause issues?
    2) Does anything look wrong from the data? I dont get why it would set the code and yet 30 minutes of further testing it wouldn't do it again.

    I know the battery is on its way out as it drops quickly when the ICE is cold. but it charges back up just as quick and then acts "normal" even with the A/C running full blast.

    Anyone have a recommendation for a decent replacement in Canada (Toronto area)? I worry about going the refurbished route but the dealer wants $3032 + tax for a new one. (no idea if that is before or after a core charge they say no core charge but he didnt sound confident).
     
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    if youcan diy, or have a mech: 'newpriusbatteries.com' $1,600.
     
  3. philipc

    philipc Junior Member

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    Yeah anyone like that in Canada do you know.

    After $430 in shipping + conversion its still like $2600 CAD so almost the same as the dealer.
     
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  4. davecook89t

    davecook89t Senior Member

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    You need to clarify whether the dealer would add the core charge to their price. It is typically $1,350 US. If not, that seems like a pretty good price. If they don't expect you to return the core, you could sell it to a wrecker for several hundred dollars and recover part of your cost. If they are going to add a core charge on to the $3,032 CAD, you should check other dealers in the area to see if they can beat that price, as it seems rather high.
     
  5. Aaron Vitolins

    Aaron Vitolins Senior Member

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    Block 9 is toast! I’m surprised it even lets you clear the code. That’s a big voltage difference when it comes to a hybrid battery.

    if the car is in good cosmetic condition and the engine doesn’t burn buckets of oil, I’d put a new battery in it. If you go the refurbished route it is only a short term fix, but hey maybe you’re okay with that?
     
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  6. philipc

    philipc Junior Member

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    I tried calling 2 separate (it was just before closing so couldn't try others). They were within $3 of each other. Neither parts dept could advise if it was including a core charge (would get some back for returning the old), if the core charge would be on top of that, or even if there was a core charge.

    I'll call around to a few others try to get a parts manager on the phone get some more clarity.


    Yeah, looking after i got home to my computer everything became equal and all was "right" with the battery and it drove around for 30 minutes without further issue. It half appears to me like a miss read but i dont think thats the sort of thing that "happens"

    There is some rust on the body just in front of the rear wheels and one side their the body panel is a little crumbly but doesnt look terrible. only burns about 1/2 quart between oil changes (every 8k) and had a full overhaul of the suspension 2 years ago, new tires, newer breaks. The plan was to drive it into the ground. I'm just not sure if shes hit rock bottom yet.

    The only place i can find locally is Prius - Global Hybrid Battery and they arn't even refurbished but rebuilt so all the old crap cells. sure the price is right, but likely end up in the same spot soon with one of those.
     
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  7. mr_guy_mann

    mr_guy_mann Senior Member

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    What you see with the block voltages is typical for a failed cell in a module. Depending on load and state of charge, you can see "normal" voltages, but the bad module will drop (1.2V) lower on heavy discharge, then go higher than others on charging (regen).

    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
  8. philipc

    philipc Junior Member

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    Got the answer, its $3,032 CAD and no core charge. Called a few other dealers and that was the lowest price. Another wanted $3,487 + core charge, and the biggest rip off was the one that wanted $5380 + core charge (they also said it wasn't available anywhere and would take 15 days to come in, others are next day.)

    As Toyota is going to warranty the battery for 8 year/160,000km its looking like a better option vs a battery that is remanufactured. As i said the car otherwise is in good shape and needs ~$500 of other parts tossed at it though they are minor (sun sensor, blend door actuator, canister vent valve).
     
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  9. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    good deal, only a 3 year warranty in the states.
     
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  10. philipc

    philipc Junior Member

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    New battery in more of a chore then expecting having to switch the whole sub assembly but started right up.

    After a scare this morning of a P0afa caused by not pushing the connector in far enough and it becoming loose it appears to be running much better (4.9l/100 vs 7.5l/100) oh how I miss how this car use to drive.
     
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  11. dolj

    dolj Senior Member

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    Do you mean you did not slide the lever down until it locked into place with a click (Step 3)?
    Prius safety Interlock.jpg
     
  12. philipc

    philipc Junior Member

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    No, With a OEM replacement you only get the battery cells not the sub assembly (hybrid computer modules, amp sensor, relays, ect). Upon transferring the sub assembly over i guess i didnt connect the volt sensor connector to the HCM until it clicked. I tested everything and it started up fine and was able to drive about 50km before it threw the P0AFA (Low hybrid battery voltage).

    After a quick search i was worried i broke a connector pin or that there was extensive corrosion (which after spend $3500 on a 16 year old car another issue was not high on my "want" list). Took the subassembly apart and upon taking the HCM out that connector pretty much just fell out. A poor connection is my guess for the lower voltage (everything was still reading a value but block 14 was "lower" then the others). Pushed the connector in hard till it clicked and its up and running again.
     
  13. dolj

    dolj Senior Member

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    By HCM, do you mean the battery ECU?

    Prius Battery ECU with labels2.jpg
     
  14. philipc

    philipc Junior Member

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    Yup that would be the one.
     
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