GEN 2 Lemon

Hey Everyone,
This post is about a 2008 Gen 2 with 194k miles

This will be a long post and hopefully I can remember everything and relay it to you all for some advice. I recently purchased a 2008 gen 2 prius from work (used to work for a towing company). The vehicle was a tow away from a local college so as to the background of the car I am very limited and most of what I have figured out is going to be an educated/uneducated guess. As to what I have found while working on the vehicle:

1) No key fob with vehicle as it was an abandoned vehicle.
2) 12v battery was dead.
3) Hybrid battery securing bolts were loose meaning I think I will be continuously chasing someone elses repairs/diagnoses.
4) Torx bolt that secures the inverter/ converter cover down is missing, (I believe someone has previously removed it for whatever reason)
5) Tubing for the hybrid blower fan was removed, ( I think this was done due to the dead battery but that's a guess and there may have been some sort of issue with the fan)
6) Broken dash pieces and the dash comes apart very easily ( someone has definitely been inside of it)
I'm probably missing something but I'm sure once people start responding it will jolt the mind.

So far as to what I have accomplished, it isn't very much,

I replaced the 12 V battery and I have replaced the modules in the hybrid battery. I replaced the hybrid battery because when i finally got a key fob made after the 12V battery was installed i was able to see which lights were on the dash. Had the typical red triangle, VSC, ABS, etc. basically a christmas tree. Initially I read the codes with a Zurich ZR11S, I didn't write the codes down like an idiot because I hadn't done any research on Prius' and didn't realize that the codes would disappear and not be saved in history. I'm going off memory as this was about 1.5 months ago but I believe the code I had was P0A80 which in turn caused me to replace the hybrid battery. I had suspected when I purchased the vehicle that I would have to do this so this wasn't surprising and I got the car for a good price of $200, ( so I thought)...

After replacing the hybrid battery the red triangle went away and my Zurich code reader stopped communicating with the vehicle. After reading numerous posts about which readers to use I borrowed an Autel Maxicheck MX808 from a friend while I wait for my Mini VCI techstream to arrive. ( should be here monday 7/1). With the Autel reader I have been able to read some codes but not all of the systems will communicate, hybrid system won't communicate, engine ecu won't communicate, things of that sort.

With the Autel I have gotten some codes off the ABS/VSC computer which is also what lights are on currently. Lights on currently are:
Red BRAKE light
Orange (!)
Orange VSC
Orange ABS
Orange Traction Control (vehicle with squiggly line)
Red AIRBAG

Codes I have:
C1203- Current
C1345- Current
C1392- Current
B1260- Current
B1271- History and Current
B1412- Current
C2122- Current
C2124- Current

With these codes I have started to go through some of the troubleshooting processes and now I am at a loss and am not sure which direction to go. I believe that I overstepped some of the steps and jumped the gun due to reading too much into common issues with these vehicles but I will try to state everything I have tried and where I think I may need to go next..

What I have done:
1) Replaced the inverter coolant pump ( it wasn't running when I put fob in slot and pushed the start button twice with no foot on the brake or when i pushed start with a foot on the brake) I currently have turbulence in the coolant reservoir for the inverter so I believe that is no longer a problem.
2) Tested all fuses and relays. All of them tested out with a meter and the relays clicked when I put 12 V to them so I believe them all to be good.
3) After replacing modules in the hybrid battery I found corroded pins on the female plug side of the Battery computer assembly, Part # 89890-47092, three of the pins had corrosion and it looked like it made it all the way to the circuit board. I attempted to clean them up but I didn't feel confident that I was getting the proper connections because when I checked with a meter I had intermittent continuity. I replaced the computer with a used one off ebay that has no corrosion.
As a note: all of the modules that i purchased read 7.9-8 V individually and i purchased them off of ebay from Hybrid Reconditioners with a 1 year warranty.
4) Cleaned corrosion up on Black and Brown wires in the white plug that is in the passenger side of the truck near the hybrid battery fan.
5) tested the hybrid battery fan and it spins when 12 v is applied.
6) Double Triple Quadrupple checked that i have good 12V battery connections and theyre good and I have kept a trickle charger on the battery as i have been trouble shooting battery has been showing 12.8 volts while testing with Autel code reader.
6) I overlooked checking the brake light switch right away due to the lights functioning properly but i tested that and it shows continuity as it should ( Continuity when button is NOT depressed and no continuity when it IS depressed) at this point i believe that i am the one that is becoming depressed.....
7) I replaced the spark plugs on the gas motor just to get a baseline for the normal maintenance on the vehicle. They didnt look too bad.
8) I have checked most if not all electrical connections to computers and anything that has wires coming out of it due to the other corrosion i have found in the vehicle and they all seem to be fine.

Now for the fun part that makes me want to take a gas can and light this thing up...

What i currently have going on:
When i try to start the car I never get a ready light. (possibly cause the key never was programmed correctly due to the other issues that were goin on with the car) I should also state that the lock/unlock and panic buttons on the fob dont work which has led me to question if the key is fully functioning. It is a smart key vehicle and when the fob is NOT in the slot the no key light on the dash shows up. When the fob is INSERTED into the slot it recognizes the key and allows the vehicle to power up but never go to ready mode. This is where i believe i need to start cause without the ready mode I'm basically shooting from the hip.
The other thing that is happening and has been going on since I installed the new 12V is the gear symbol on the dash is blinking all of the gears and the fuel gauge is blinking. The fuel gauge was showing 1/2 tank and i have since put 5 gallons of gas in it just to make sure that i dont have a malfunctioning fuel level sensor.
This is leading me towards having either a bad ABS actuator or potentially a bad shifter. Hopefully someone out there can give me a little clarity as i have read a few posts about these similar issues but it seems the posts drift off and no one replies with what the issue was after they brought the car to the dealer. Maybe i missed the posts where there was clarity.

I'm going to leave the post there as that is alot to process and i feel as if my head is going to explode just from trying to relive this nightmare.

As a note, from the car fax report i got i see that the vehicle was rear ended and i believe they also rear ended another car. Minimal damage ie. small crack in rear bumper and scuff marks on front bumper. Thats not to say the front bumper wasnt replaced but the car fax doesnt state significant damage.

Hopefully one of you out there can maybe lead me in a positive direction or tell me if i overlooked or forgot something. I'm learning with the prius/hybrid systems and my background is in diesel motors. Im not a full time mechanic but I have done a lot of diesel engine repairs and would consider myself mechanically fit to work on vehicles. I really appreciate everyones time that reads this post and replies as i have spent alot of time researching the issues and dont like to waste anyones time. I may have also missed some things that i have tried/trouble shot so feel free to throw out any ideas. Thanks much

 

That was the nicest way I could put it....

All of the steering wheel buttons work as they should.

 

@mr_guy_mann

I'll work on getting the service manual and wiring diagrams.

Pin 6 shows 2.09 V.
Pin 14 shows 1.94 V.
With battery disconnected between Pin 6 and Pin 14 i show 61.1 ohms.

Haven't been able to find out what voltage i should be reading at pin 6 and 14 any idea what acceptable voltage is? As for the resistance based on the CAN Communication diagram I'm looking at 54-69 ohms means its OK. 69+ means open 54- means short on the circuit. I believe the circuit would be good then as long as there's enough voltage at the pins