2002 Wont start after replacing aux battery

Help!

I pulled the traction battery...remanned it with great success computer very happy with results... drove it for a week. Took it to Walmart to have oil changed... Got in car , started fine...new oil made motor even smoother....then in 200 yards at traffic light , motor died with unusual sound... pulled over and restarted...but would die.
lights all over dash on

made it back to oil bay...engine would not restart.

pushed inside and would start and then die... then was rattling when dying

checked aux battery with testers , both indicated dead cell 10.25 volts

tried to substitute a new battery via heavy jumpers... got it to start then die..,..then no try at all


I have read forums ,,,that indicate after 3 tries on a dead aux battery , computer will immobilize it

Have tried replacing with a new lawn tractor battery .but seems the car is immobized . Read codes with Mini VCI, and was able to clear all codes but the immobilizer code.

I had planned on ordering a battery rather than give dealer $280. ,,but fear that this is a code than cannot be removed by mini VCI... and will have to have dealer clear the codes for it to start. They want $98 to diagnose and clear codes if they deem nothing else wrong...and it will take a tow to get it there/and or back is not affordable.

Is there anything I can do (have already tried the master reboot holding in start pos for 30 seconds with foot on brake) to reset the codes and start the motor with a good battery in aux location?

Am financially strapped right now starting new job and following a horrible winter....and need this 50 mpg in the work.

 

Been working a lot ...with major troubles on my backup vehicle...(changed started this morning)...still more troubles on it....so did not see responses

Ok...Tech at WallyWorld checked dip guage and showed exactly even with full mark....after the 200 yard drive and return.. ...so oil <may> not be a suspect. I did clear some codes with the Mini VCI...and heard the motor start sounding normal...but immediately die sounding like computer immobilized it.

ran into this page
Entering the Maintenance or Inspection Mode on a Prius (1st Gen and 2nd Gen) &laquo; Russ&#039; Do It Yourself Home Workshop
which may be a way to clear the codes.using the lawn tractor battery as substitute.

Having to juggle my FT work (that requires a reliable car) with fixing my 300,000+ backup car and helping wife with her 84 Y O mom (lives with us) with severe Alzheimer.... so will attempt some day soon to call ericbecky but tomorrow (Friday) have to work in the office calling work orders end to end all day long (10 hours)...so next hopeful time to work on Prius may be Sat or Sunday Morn.

my email is [email protected]

 

will look at dipstick in the morning Friday before work... maybe take a pic and upload.Its been sitting in level drive since Monday...so should be totally settled down for a good reading

 

Ok... well...guess who is right!....looking at the pic (if I can get it uploaded)

 

May need a bit of legal advice here...because I'm now gonna hafta deal with Walmart... They are clearly responsible here. IMO...the battery issue was moot. I think it was driving all week on the low battery...but was exaggerated by the multiple cranking of the restarts. Remember....It started and ran fine to the first stoplight...then went south. If the battery was this issue , it should have been raising hades on the first start...not after it was started and driving.

 

EricBecky....you are truely the "Hybrid Battery Hero"

You 'nailed it' on the oil overfill. ...as the original cause of the ICE shutdown..and the exact reason the car would not restart. Perfectly diagnosed and carefully explained.

Allowed me to go right to the 'fix' (even had some innovative solutions for this) and get this car back on the road WITHOUT...towing to the Money greedy Toyo dealer...not even a call to them!

Solution was remove the excess oil , charge the main battery (yep there are innovative and super cheap ways of doing this) and make sure the 12v aux (in this case a $20 lawn battery from Wallyworld) was full charge.

I will post a timeline here as to exactly what happened , when...and what was 'caused'

First and formost... the goons at Wallyworld overfilled it.... and I trusted the employees checking the dipstick...and lie that he started at 3.5 quarts and topped it off.. Should have checked it myself...picture proves it.

The Car started normally when I got in it... and died about 200 yards away....then died several times and began revving...etc. Would not restart at oil bay that I made it back to

Several restart attempts caused the motor to start knocking and act real crazy then die.
(by this time the aux battery which was probably at 10.2 volts the whole week was getting below the computers needed theshold voltage)...

th senior shop dude checked the aux batt and it showed dead cell.(10 volts)

I then assumed it was the battery (what THEY wanted me to assume)... and after many (maybe 20 restart attempts) would not even grunt.

Then I left and came back next day ...for many hours... trying to clear the codes with the mini VCI...an the lawn battery. No luck... then had it towed to house.

Spent more time online and found a way to get into the display mode and clear some old codes..from dressed up old posting from elearningaid.

Still no start...and I called Eric of Ericbecky on Sunday....and was soooo happy he had time to direct me to what he felt the problem was...and how to fix it cheaply..

Eric said the main , even if in good shape can only take about 10 restart attempts...so the main was the current major problem

Since I was the one who remanned the main, I took Erics advice and immediately pulled the cover as I had already been familiar with it. Then removed the battery lines to the mid point of the battery to split the pack in half electrically. Then I could use my Medion Smart charger with dual 10 amp outputs to charge two modules at a time at 4 amps each...taking each module to approx 8.64 volts while charging cyle...and 8.11 in the rest cycle....putting approx 300-500 mah in each module.

Eric said that the 5 volts I found the modules at would not destroy the module..and they can be charged various ways.

This was easy as the modules are in series,,,and I would work my way along the modules one at a time on opposite ends of the split pack.

• took approx two hours Sunday and 4 hours today to get charge on 38 modules finished. (about 15 min each with constant supervision) so this is one way to charge the main... Eric has other ways as well.

• removed the oil to 1/16" below top mark. Oil removed was about a pint.

• Cleaned Throttle body (Bob Wilson method with just Advance carb cleaner instead)..it was sticky

• Hooked up lines to mid point of pack...then the ouput lines....Left the cover off and plugged in the main disconnect (orange)

• Hooked up fresh charged lawn battery..

• Crossed fingers and hit the start.... bingo...ICE fired up... then started knocking....for about a minute..then smoothed right out....(forcing unburned oil out of intake through cylinders). Well Eric didn't say to cross fingers as he knew it would run...

Everything settled down and I took it for a ride.....ran perfectly and was showing normal HV battery readings in the energy display.

Had two bars of gas...so filled it up (all $13 of it)(BTW that gets me approx 335 + miles of route driving in hilly East Tennessee.

IMO...best built car I have ever owned and that is at 200,000 miles on odo. (Bought a New Saturn SL1 in 01)..

Eric , I am indebted...I can now dig myself out of my financial straits as my little 'lectro-bug' lives again.

If you wanna know who is who on this forum...Eric is 'da man!'