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06 Prius, Red Triangle - Code C2318

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Haze63, Jul 12, 2021.

  1. Haze63

    Haze63 New Member

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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    My 2006 came up with the red triangle along with the check engine light and brake system warning light while driving. It had been sitting for 10 days a few weeks prior but had no issues up until now. The code reader showed C2318 along with C1259, and C1310.

    When the light first came on, the battery was showing that the levels would overcharge (completely fill green) and then the battery level would fluctuate more than usual, and when I would first turn it on and start driving, it would be down to just one or two bars. The rear fan turns on and off when the car does too, I've never had it come on in the 7 years I've owned it.

    I checked the 12V battery level and it came up as 11.4V at rest and would decrease to 11.2 if I turned on the headlights. The dashboard has been flickering every once in awhile over the past year while driving with headlights on but it's only a few times here and there. So after pulling the C2318 code up, I thought it would be a good idea to change the 12V battery since it's been 6 years since it's been replaced anyway.

    When replacing the battery, I noticed some water by where the spare tire is (just learned that it was a common issue with Gen 2...) but I'm wondering if that could be related to everything going on? After replacing the 12V, the red triangle and other lights disappeared but came back on again after I had driven a few miles. It drives fine overall minus the dashboard lights and a little bit of a grinding noise in the front when I first start driving (I don't think it's related though). I've already replaced the hybrid battery a few years ago (I replaced it with a refurbished one) so I'm hoping it's not that but I don't know what else it could be.

    I don't know much about cars in general, never mind hybrids, so any advice would be appreciated!
     
    #1 Haze63, Jul 12, 2021
    bisco likes this.
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    that water has never been shown to affect anything but corrosion of the body it is resting in.

    it does sound like your battery is going out again, which is pretty common for refurbs. only new will last like the original.
    your brake actuator could also be going, but what you need is a thorough exam on tech stream diagnostic, and then service manual troubleshooting. you just can't expect a 15 year old car to keep on keeping on,and prius are especially complicated to diagnose and repair.
     
    #2 bisco, Jul 13, 2021
  3. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    As always, when those lights come on, it means there are trouble codes you need to read. Because you have changed the battery and therefore the situation, there is no point assuming that the trouble codes you have now are the same ones you had before. It's just a matter of getting out the code reader again to see what trouble codes you have now. If you post those here, we might have better information to give.
     
    #3 ChapmanF, Jul 13, 2021
  4. Travis Sanders

    Travis Sanders Junior Member

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    When water gets in there it gets sucked into the high voltage battery cooling fan and sprays the entire HV battery with water. Corrosion sets in and creates you all kinds of problems. High moisture in the battery sense harness where the battery sense harness connects to the battery computer corrodes and shorts out inside the connector. It starts draining the blades and can also catch on fire. My point is moisture in this area is most definitely a problem!
     
    #4 Travis Sanders, Dec 19, 2022
  5. Travis Sanders

    Travis Sanders Junior Member

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    Your 12 volt battery voltage is very low. Those two numbers you gave were dead and deader. Was that with the car running? Or was that after the car had been off for a while? If it was when the car was running then your power supply that's keeping the battery full is not functioning properly. However if those low voltage ratings were with the car off but the voltage is fine while the car is on then your 12 volt battery is bad. You need to check the voltage while the car is off after it has been off for 2 hours. Then you need to check the voltage again with the car running and report back here.
     
    #5 Travis Sanders, Dec 19, 2022
  6. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    o/p hasn't been seen in a year and a half

    idk how the cooling dan can pull water from there, when it is pulling from cabin, through the battery and discharging it there
     
    #6 bisco, Dec 19, 2022
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