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2003 Prius, 200,000 Miles main battery failure

Discussion in 'Generation 1 Prius Discussion' started by statultra, Jun 6, 2009.

  1. statultra

    statultra uber-Senior Member

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    A friend of mine has a 2003 Prius with 201,000 miles, I believe is at the end of life in terms of the high voltage battery.

    The dealer was going to charge her 1200 bucks for a engine control module, so i replaced it with the one from my working 01 prius just to try.

    Heres the symptoms

    Symptom 1 :Turn the key to start, the engine cranks for 3 seconds and shuts off, no warning lights, no check engine light.

    2. Turn it off and turn it on again, the ready light blinks and the car would not turn on, keep holding it at start the ready light blinks, and turtle light comes on.

    Turn it off and take out key for 5 minutes and come back and itll go back to Symptom 1.

    I inspected the engine for any damage, or any problems, and spark plugs, coils, fuel injectors are all fine.

    Eventually the MFD shows a MAIN battery light and the vehicle would not enter ready mode anymore, my guess is the high voltage battery has a bad cell and was not providing enough amperage to start the gasoline engine.

    No engine problems, checked for DTC's and no problems.


    The inverter coolant is topped off, and the pump is running, 12 volt battery load test is good, tried a different 12 volt battery just for fun.


    Considering the car is a 03 with 201,000 miles is it worth it replacing the HV battery with a used one? I found a couple between 3 and 5 hundred bucks used but im not sure if they will ship it, plus the labor involved in replacing it will cost my friend also.
    Could it be something other than the HV battery?

    No codes other than the main battery light and no start now.
     
    #1 statultra, Jun 6, 2009
  2. FireEngineer

    FireEngineer Active Member

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    There was a service campaign for this type of problem. The engine ECU needs to be updated to allow enough time to let the engine start. Also a dirty throttle body and MAS sensor can contribute to the problem. Sometimes the fuel pump relay is bad as well.

    First have a load test done on the 12 volt battery, 12 volt batteries not able to hold a good charge can cause these symptoms. Then clean the throttle body and MAS sensor. If still having problems then replace the fuel pump relay, it's a DIY project and only costs $50 or so. Next replace the engine ECU with one with the proper programming, Bob Wilson, Patrick Wong or others can give you the serial number sequence to look for. A salvage engine ECU is fine. I don't have it handy but hopefully someone will let you know the SSC for this.

    After all this it could be a Hybrid battery, but try all the above first.

    Wayne
     
    #2 FireEngineer, Jun 6, 2009
    1 person likes this.
  3. tochatihu

    tochatihu Senior Member

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    FireEngineer refers to TSB EG011-03, which is posted on PriusChat somewhere. As the vehicle in question is a 2003, it may not resolve the problem.

    It should have a 89661–47054 engine control computer, and not with any smaller numbers in the last 2 digits. If the VIN is after JT2BK12U#30087717, it should have.

    Another problem area is the throttle butterfly getting enough soot deposit to limit its motion. but I suppose that statultra has checked for this.
     
    #3 tochatihu, Jun 6, 2009
  4. FireEngineer

    FireEngineer Active Member

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    Knew you'd come through for me Doug.

    Wayne
     
    #4 FireEngineer, Jun 6, 2009
  5. statultra

    statultra uber-Senior Member

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    i checked the MAF and throttle butterfly, both of which were clean, looked almost brand new.

    it almost soudned like the car couldnt wait long enough for the engine to start, but the HV battery charge was low on the screen.

    What leads me to believe its a HV issue is the ready light blinking when i attempt to start.

    I used a good 12 volt battery just to check, and the same issue still happens.

    also the ECU i replaced it with was
    Part number:
    #89661-47054
     
    #5 statultra, Jun 6, 2009
  6. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    Since the MFD shows the MAIN icon, that is good evidence that the traction battery is bad. No surprise that you are not able to retrieve DTC, since the traction battery ECU and/or hybrid vehicle ECU produce codes that cannot be retrieved by a generic code reader.

    You can have the car towed to a Toyota dealer for confirmation of the failed traction battery diagnosis. I doubt that it is worthwhile to spend $3K+ on a new battery considering the odometer reading and market value of the car.

    An alternative is to purchase two salvage 2G traction battery assemblies and pick the best 38 to populate the existing Classic battery case. The benefit of this approach is that the salvage modules will be newer and hopefully in better condition compared to a more expensive Classic salvage battery.

    However this probably goes beyond the effort that you wish to expend on behalf of your friend.
     
    #6 Patrick Wong, Jun 7, 2009
  7. statultra

    statultra uber-Senior Member

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    the issue is , i need to explain this to my friend, she does not want to pay more than 1000 and im pretty sure that it would cost her about that if I did this project.

    thinking about 400 for a used battery and 100 for shipping and another 300 for the labor in my opinion its not worth it.
     
    #7 statultra, Jun 8, 2009
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