1. Attachments are working again! Check out this thread for more details and to report any other bugs.

Proactive 12V battery replacement: good idea, or waste of money?

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by prmp945, May 14, 2022.

  1. prmp945

    prmp945 Member

    Joined:
    Oct 10, 2014
    79
    59
    1
    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    Hi all,

    My 2011 Prius had its original battery replaced by the dealer (under warranty) in August 2014, just before I purchased it. The replacement battery is the OEM Toyota TrueStart with 84-month warranty.

    I am coming up on the 8th year of service without any problems. I am thinking about proactively replacing the 12V battery to avoid a surprise non-start experience. If I replace the battery now, I can order online and save ~$50 compared to the local dealer.

    This seems like a good idea to me, but I think some people would argue that it is a waste of money to replace the battery before its dead.

    How long could an OEM battery possibly last? 9 years? 10 years? From my perspective, waiting until the battery is actually dead seems like a bad idea, but I'm open to suggestions.
     
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    107,571
    48,862
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    8 years is a good run. if you don't want a no start in a bad situation, replace it, or buy a jump pack and ride it out.
    it could last a few more years, depending on climate and usage.
    be careful buying on line, warranty can be a pain.
     
    jerrymildred likes this.
  3. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 17, 2010
    54,470
    38,103
    80
    Location:
    Greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Touring
    Yeah, unless you're really on top of it, monitoring with one of the newer automotive 12 volt battery testers (they do an electronic "load test", give a verdict), 8 years is a good run. I changed our last in September of 2015. It'd be "sensible" to change by this fall, but I have/use one of the aforementioned testers. And, while our usage of the car is almost nil, I keep it on a smart charger. And have a jump pack.

    And I keep an eye on Canadian Tire, SaskBattery, et al, see what the current replacement options are. I'll often say just go to the dealership parts department, but for 12 volt batteries their prices are nuts. I checked with them a few months back: $340 CDN please, for the Yuasa battery. I'm on west coast Canada, and these batteries very likely are coming from across the Pacific. I can get the same Yuasa, shipped back to me from SaskBattery (in Saskatchewan), for $229 CDN, free shipping, and about 6% sales tax, vs 12% from local dealership.
     
  4. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
    Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 2, 2004
    44,767
    16,016
    41
    Location:
    Canada
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    I had a 2010 bought in Aug 2009 and changed it at 7 or 7.5 years as preventative maintenance. It didn’t show any signs of getting weak but I was going on a 1,000km road trip and didn’t want any surprises.
     
  5. PriusCamper

    PriusCamper Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 3, 2012
    10,767
    4,370
    0
    Location:
    Pacific Northwest, USA
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Best approach is to buy a decent 12v smart charger that goes up to at least 8 amps and also buy a replacement 12v battery to keep on your shelf ready to go once your effort to keep your existing 12v fully charged and functional gets annoying. As in maximizing the lifespan of the things we own is a virtue that reflects the original spirit & intent of the Prius' reduced carbon footprint.
     
  6. prmp945

    prmp945 Member

    Joined:
    Oct 10, 2014
    79
    59
    1
    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    My local dealer wants $255, but I can buy it from a different dealership from parts.Toyota.com for $205 shipped. That's $50 savings, even with the $17 core charge. I don't think I can bring the old battery to my local dealer for a refund, but I think local auto parts stores pay cash or a gift card for auto batteries.

    At the bottom of the homepage for Parts.Toyota.com it states:
    "The Toyota Genuine Accessory Warranty will only apply when the installation is performed by a trained Toyota-approved installer. Please see your participating Toyota dealer for details."

    So it sounds like I will lose the 84-month battery warranty if I don't waste half a day and a $50 premium for having a "trained installer" drop it in.

    I never buy extended warranties, and that's what I'm thinking this $50 premium is.
     
    bisco and Salamander_King like this.
  7. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 30, 2008
    23,069
    14,973
    0
    Location:
    Indiana, USA
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    The little lithium jump pack in my glove box feels to me like a more worthwhile investment than aux battery replacement before it's needed. It covers me not only for expected, age-related failures (which I've never had in a Prius aux battery younger than ten years, and I'm semi-abusive of them), but also for unexpected things like something left on, parasitic drain problems, etc., which leave you just as stranded but with less predictability.

    So it doesn't mean I never experience a surprise, it just means I can take the surprise in stride, get to my appointment or whatever, and then spend whatever money needs to be spent when it needs to. Meanwhile, I can use the same jump pack to help out other people with their own surprises, which ends up being the bulk of the use that it sees.

    I tend to agree about long battery warranties. The way the major US makers, anyway (how many of them are there really? Johnson Controls? Exide? East Penn?) fragment their branding into a dozen private labels (whoever makes them for Costco labels those batteries "Kirkland", and to use the warranty, from wherever you break down, you still have to find another Costco and buy another "Kirkland") just made it seem to me like an exercise in selling you something that sounds good but complicates your life to try to use.
     
    #7 ChapmanF, May 15, 2022
    Last edited: May 15, 2022
    CR94, Tombukt2 and Mendel Leisk like this.
  8. Tombukt2

    Tombukt2 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 29, 2020
    7,790
    1,348
    0
    Location:
    Durham NC
    Vehicle:
    2009 Prius
    Model:
    Base
    Noco 2500 box here stays with me . Universal battery is better cost too have em 8n all power sports equip here on onan gens too
     
  9. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 17, 2010
    54,470
    38,103
    80
    Location:
    Greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Touring
    @Tombukt2 please, please, please: proofread your (presumably) voice-dictated contributions.
     
    Foxglove and bisco like this.
  10. ASRDogman

    ASRDogman Senior Member

    Joined:
    May 29, 2018
    5,834
    3,136
    0
    Location:
    Florida
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    itisjusttoohardtotrytounderstandwhatisbeingwrittenandfromwhatlanguageitsbeingtranslatedfromUsingvoicetranslationjustisnt'goodenoughandwhentherearenotspacesorperiodsorcommasoranythinglikeitnothingmakessense.
     
    Foxglove, bisco and burebista like this.
  11. jzchen

    jzchen Newbie!

    Joined:
    Apr 9, 2012
    3,295
    1,005
    0
    Location:
    Arcadia, CA
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Five
    Depends who's driving and the need to get places. For my at home life, I'd just wait until it's actually giving trouble. For my elderly parents I switched it out just in case, (when it tested borderline). If it tests good I wouldn't change it even for my parents.


    REVVL V+ 5G ?
     
  12. CR94

    CR94 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Dec 2, 2014
    2,642
    1,133
    0
    Location:
    Northwestern S.C.
    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    There's nothing magical about Toyota's battery tp justify its high price. That's a lot to pay for a warranty you probably will not need.

    My $65 generic U1 AGM battery is a few months older than yours, and still getting its job done. That's even though I've abused it a few times by leaving a door ajar for several hours. I do have a new back-up one ready, just in case.