2004 Prius failing battery....replace or sell as is?

Oh man just over 150k miles, which in MD is the battery warranty over the state line. You have to decide what you want to do...some of us here just replace the battery and keep going. You might want to check with this hybrid shop (MAC's below). However, the situation has changed....the Re-Involt people were bought out by Dorman, so I don't know if MAC's still has the business. Anyways a Dorman re-built battery is approx. $2000. Sounds like you have the valuable left logo HOV plates so you want to keep buying a clean fuels car. I have not used MAC's yet but am thinking of it for some regular maintenance.

OK folks, got the Prius back Saturday with a new Re-Involt hybrid battery. Battery plus installation ran about $2,200. Car is running great. Averaging about 2 MPG better than is was. 80 mile trip right after averaged about 54.5 MPG. I'll keep you posted now that it's colder. Work was done by Mac's Service Center in Ashland, VA Mac's Service Center - expert auto repair - Ashland, VA 23005 804-368-0213. Mac is very nice and professional. He details all cars after every service. I even got a follow up phone call on Monday. Feel free to contact me regarding this service. For DIY, he did say that replacing pairs of modules would be dicy, Since balance among all of the modules is key. And it's really bad to let a hybrid battery lay around i.e. salvage battery. Also, he said that most batteries don't need to be replaced, that it is usually terminal corrosion. I had that plus several burned cells. I can provide much more detail/tech specs if anyone wants.

Read more: http://priuschat.com/threads/bad-hybrid-battery-independent-mechanic-in-northern-virginia-anyone.101907/#ixzz2ygK5jZD9 ​

Follow us: @PriusChat on Twitter | PriusChat on Facebook​

 

Well, depending upon your car's problems that might help - or might not.

 

Search here in the forums to learn a little more about the hybrid battery. If I remember correctly it is twelve individual cells wired in pairs. The individual cells can be replaced and if you only need one or even two cells replaced that might be the way to go.

I had a 2004 that I thought might be heading towards a hybrid battery problem and was starting researching solutions, but then a lady ran a redlight and totaled it at 295,000 on the odometer. I was hoping to try for 400,000. Btw I would not consider my care of a car to be meticulous, lol. Gas, tires, light bulbs and good oil kept it on the road.

Last summer I found reference to a couple of people offering this battery repair/replacement service within an hour of D.C. It is absolutely not something I would attempt myself. The closest to me was in Annapolis and I think several offered to come to the car. Before I tried to contact any of them my prius got totaled.

I spent quite a bit of time on this forum trying to guage the rate of hybrid battery failure in Priis and came to the conclusion it is pretty rare.

 

The 2G traction battery is composed of 28 battery modules which are wired in series. The traction battery ECU monitors the voltage of each of the 14 module pairs to determine if a module has a problem.

Each battery module contains six cells so 168 cells comprise the battery. Nominal rated voltage of the traction battery is 201.6V (28 modules x 7.2V each) and the actual voltage is around 10% higher.

 

Premature failure is rare. But in the case of this OP? 10 years and 150,000 miles and eventually battery "end of life" becomes inevitable.

Some owners get varying degrees of life out of the battery, but when we buy Prius, we all know the battery will eventual reach an end of useful life, one way or another.

I'm currently living in a CARB state, which means my Hybrid Battery is currently warrantied for 10 years or 150,000 miles. Which is nice. BUT...

If I keep this vehicle anywhere near that length of time, once I approach or pass 10 years, I'm going to face the fact that the Hybrid Battery could fail, at basically any time.

I guess what I would really hope for? Is that it would fail at 9 years and X amount of miles below 150,000, so that I could get a new Hybrid Battery right before the end of the warranty. But I'm not counting on it.

Any point after a decade all bets are off, and you just have to be prepared for the reality that batteries do not last forever.

 

Thank you Patrick. Also, i have enjoyed many of your posts here in priuschat.

 

Electric Me, all good points. I chose another direction. At 50 mpg summer and 43.5 mpg winter I rarely drive my truck (1996 T100). My Pri that was totaled had no major issues up to its demise. Tires and brake pads were its biggest expenses. So I think keeping a prius at 150,000 miles on the odometer may be the most economical path to follow. But, it is a car and over time there will be some maintenance issues. And on any vehicle some of those issues can be very expensive.

A friend of mine several months ago had his wife's car totaled and he replaced it with a new prius. It is sooo nice.

I replaced mine with a 2004 with 211,000 miles on it I found for an ok price. These vehicles do retain some value.

 

Xtgirl, check out this thread

Bad Hybrid Battery/Independent Mechanic in Northern Virginia? Anyone? | PriusChat

It references several service options in your area, one who will come to you for a fee.

In the thread is a nice picture of the battery while being serviced.

Whatever you do, good luck ;-)