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Discussion in 'Generation 1 Prius Discussion' started by ronlewis, Jul 2, 2022.

  1. ronlewis

    ronlewis Active Member

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    Thanks, everyone. Mr. Pete will be glad to hear that in my haste to do a test drive, I touched my jumper cables backwards and blew my main fuse. LOL, that's the third time I've done that. Such a PITA to replace, like they made it as difficult as possible. We've been back to 100d temps here and that car's outside, so I haven't done anything except kick myself in the butt. Trying to decide whether it's worth taking the one out of my parts car - again, a PITA. I wonder if anyone besides Toyota has that fuse? Last one was over $50.

    I probably need to look at my settings here - I don't get email notifications of your replies.

    For Mr. Pete: there's no fear whatsoever. I've explained my philosophy in another post here to similar criticism. To sum it up for you: yeah, I know that, and don't care. IMHO, this forum needs conversations of any types, even useless ones like yours, and even ones that are frustrating for some people, like mine. The alternative here, sadly, is no conversations.

    But yeah, these cars are not a priority for me. I got so many projects, and I'm so old, and my XP PC fizzled out. But, I like them, just not because I get nerdy over the tech, like most people in a forum like this would. But, I appreciate that y'all do, that's why the forum is useful. I think with the other side of my brain, I can't help that. I'm simply never going to understand many of the concepts involved with these cars. All my other vehicles are Ford Diesels, and I don't understand them either. But their forums have a lot more traffic, and they accept that I'm a noob.

    Maybe if I pretend to be a child or woman, you might be gallant or nurturing and allow yourself to just feel good offering ideas to help folks learn. I could upload a pic that flashes cleavage. Or, if this involves testicular diameter, I'll just claim monorchism right now and let you have the floor. LMK

    I didn't either from what I've read. So I watched it over and over, I think. Once I get the fuse replaced, I'll do this test again.


    Great to hear, because that is the most obvious known problem with this car.

    I pulled that ABS wire going to the rear passenger wheel. It seemed loose on the car, but I couldn't see any shorts once I had it off and when I put it back together, it tightened back up. Not sure what I have.

    Folks, I'm not the best help here, another problem is some of my tools are at my storage lot and I haven't been over there either. I'll try to make some progress this weekend and update.
     
  2. rjparker

    rjparker Tu Humilde Sirviente

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    I would buy one of the lithium jump start boxes for use with discharged batteries. They check polarity before allowing the jump pack power to energize.

    0EA937F6-895F-45FF-AD19-A8DD3AEE4E6C.jpeg
     
    #42 rjparker, Aug 18, 2022
    Last edited: Aug 19, 2022
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  3. ronlewis

    ronlewis Active Member

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    Yeah, my charger does that. Just couldn't carry it in the trunk for my test drive. I'm back on that car some day this week, replacing the main fuse, charging up a good battery and see what I got. Maybe the brake issues go away too. I'll update.
     
  4. rjparker

    rjparker Tu Humilde Sirviente

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    The lithium jump packs are not chargers and are not intended to stay in circuit after the car starts. In fact they will automatically drop out. They are safe jump starters that can be stored compactly in the cabin for a year.
     
  5. ronlewis

    ronlewis Active Member

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    Yes, I understood that. I have one of those too. And a jump box.
     
  6. ronlewis

    ronlewis Active Member

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    OK, I'll be reviving this thread - I finally got around to replacing that main fuse. Now it starts again. The first time, there was immediately a triangle and exclamation icon, and after maybe 30 seconds of idling, it died. Turned it off, unplugged that 12v to clear, and started it back up. Idled just fine for 5-10 minutes, charged the main battery back up, never threw a code. Shut it off, came back 5 mins later, started it up, and again the immediate triangle and the engine died after about 30 seconds.

    Gotta go fetch my code reader from my truck at the storage lot. Maybe I'll learn something. Otherwise, need to get a new Techstream PC configured after my old XP died. Update when I know something. But, if those symptoms sound like anything y'all've heard before, LMK.
     
  7. ronlewis

    ronlewis Active Member

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    Well, that didn't help a lot. I have TorquePro on my phone, but all it pulls up is a P3191.

    So, I'm assuming that the electric motor came on, but when it tried to start the gas engine, it failed, which throws the code and warning lamps, which appears to make both motors die, although I guess the gas was never on, and the electric may still be "on" at that point.

    However, when I cleared the codes, and tried again, everything worked seemingly fine for quite a few minutes. That suggests to me that it's not anything major, of course not a locked up gas engine, etc.

    I'm thinking again that it might just be 12v battery issues. It has been sitting there since (scrolling up to see) August 18th. I'll go put a charger on it and see what happens.,
     
  8. ammdb

    ammdb Active Member

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    Might be time to clean the throttle body.
     
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  9. Trombone

    Trombone Member

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    Also clean the MAF sensor. Simple procedure to remove, spritz with MAF cleaner, replace. One of the two screws holding the sensor is tight access, but a stubby phillips-head screwdriver worked for me.
     
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  10. Bruce Berquist

    Bruce Berquist Junior Member

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    With code p3101 there are a few possibilities of causes for the engine not starting or going into not starting after a few minutes of running. I'll star with the simplest first.

    Do you know that there is a good runnable amount of gas in the tank. It might have enough gas to start, but after a few minutes it runs out.

    Since you accidently reversed polarity on the jump start, you may have blown a fuse or 2 or 3 or more, maybe even a relay. I would recommend checking your fuses, especially every one that regards the engine, fuel injectors, fuel pump, ignition coils, engine ECU, Hybrid ECU, etc..

    Throttle body and MAF might be dirty, and a cleaning, or replacing MAF, might be needed. Check all of the vacuum hoses and connections because they can create conditions where the engine won't start.

    If you installed an aftermarket CAT, did you at least plug the vacuum tube or hose that went to the HCAC unit on the OEM CAT? That would create a huge vacuum leak. If you are also getting HCAC related codes, you are going to have to install a vacuum pot in the vacuum line, to make the ECU believe that the HCAC is still there and functioning.

    Are the main HV wires and grounds on the ECU and Regulator free of corrosion and dirt and tightened correctly.? Since the HV battery provides the power to the electric motor to start the engine, bad connections could cause engine start failures.

    Is he HV battery safety plug installed all the way. and latched/locked down properly all the way, and was it clear of corrosion or contaminates before you inserted it.

    I still am thinking that it is a 12v system issue still. First the battery has to be fully charged, holding a full charge all night, and does it pass a good load test. Doesn't matter if the battery is new, 1 week old, or 5 years old, it can still go bad.

    If the resting battery voltage is below 12.2 volts it is very likely that it cannot boot up the system and all the ECUs properly.

    If the Engine and the Hybrid ECUs do not boot up or reset completely, due to a weak battery, it is very possible that the system will not sense when to start and shutdown the ICE engine, and thus cause a no start engine problem and code.

    Finally, when you reset the system using battery disconnect, you should also disconnect the HV battery at the safety plug too and leave a door open to create a draw from the interior light. This assures that you get a complete reset.

    And also, many times a number of clearing codes and resets are needed to completely clear the system of sensor data regarding the previous conditions that cause codes.

    Run the live data on your OBD2 Reader and make certain that aspects of the engine running are free of issues, like with the Coils, MAP sensor, Fuel Pressure, Vapor Pressure, etc..
     
    #50 Bruce Berquist, Oct 19, 2022
    Last edited: Oct 19, 2022
  11. ronlewis

    ronlewis Active Member

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    .
     
  12. ronlewis

    ronlewis Active Member

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    Aside: is there an easy way to get that main fuse out of the plastic carrier that snaps into the fuse box? I had to bend the four little ears on the white plastic shield to get it to slide off. And I've not been able to get it back on. What a PITA. I'm thinking that I'm just a noob, that there was some easy way to make it slide right off.

    Also kicking myself - I bought that main fuse from the stealership the other time I had to replace it. It wasn't out of the car, so I didn't have it to compare to others and just went to the dealer. Almost $50, IIRC. Bought it at AutoZone this time for $5. Grrrr.
     
  13. ammdb

    ammdb Active Member

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  14. ronlewis

    ronlewis Active Member

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    Ok, thanks. That's what I did. I couldn't get the cover back on easily and gave up. After all the twisting to get to the connectors underneath, the wires that run through that white cover got bent our of shape. What a PITA.

    But, I spoke too soon - I had the brake alert flash again, like I described earlier in this thread. Seems to happen when I brake while making a hard right turn. The ABS letters light up and the CEL comes on - maybe a buzzer too, I forget - for about 10-20 seconds, then they go out. Brakes seem to work just fine throughout.

    I think the blinking lights told me it was the rear driver's wheel, which is right where the car got hit. And I could see that the ABS wire had been disturbed.

    Otherwise, I got the exhaust system welded up today, from the aftermarket cat to the resonator. Got rid of the flex pipe. Sounds nice and quiet now.
     
  15. ronlewis

    ronlewis Active Member

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    Well, I got my $23 out of that 12v battery. I buy those lawn mower batteries from Walmart, and today the interior lights/radio dimmed out while I was listening to the radio sitting in the driveway. So, I pull the battery and it has the original date sticker - 3/18. IDK what that's about. Hard to believe that cheap little battery lasted over 4 years. I recall having issues with it a couple of years ago, and for a long time I drove with an Optima battery in the truck hooked to it with jumper cables. (my son ordered that Optima and it came with terminals on the wrong side). But awhile back I noticed that the jumper cables had come loose, and it was still driving fine. So I got rid of the Optima and have been running on only this battery for sure about 6 months, which is all I ever figure to get out of them. So, it absolutely has lasted way longer than I ever imagined.