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2016 Prius C4 no MG2 operation, ICE on 100%

Discussion in 'Prius c Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by kpn, Oct 26, 2017.

  1. kpn

    kpn New Member

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    2016 Prius C4, 1500 miles,

    Dealer will not honor the warranty due to one of the four codes it threw.

    ICE on constantly (100% of time) NO MG2 power! No electric drive power! HV battery takes charges from ICE and MG2 (regen braking) and holds charge perfectly (80%) and tops off (~100%) on long downhill braking, AC runs strong forever, HV and 12v cooling fans work perfectly and clean, 600 of those 1500 miles are only powered by the ICE with the AC on, flawless performance of course at 1/2 the HP.. 12v battery in great shape after sitting, in Acc mode and while running all textbook voltages., 30 mile highway trips no problem . Many warning lights on, EV and Eco modes non-functional, throws four diag codes one of which is P0B60-123 which involves the HV battery smart unit. The HV battery holds charge great and accepts charge perfectly. MAybe a communication problem with the MG2?

    Any diagnostics/characteristics I should be looking for in diagnosing this problem?

    Basic steps to probe further? Possible problems?

    Zero MG2 (electric drive power) being used, gas mileage 25-29 MPG (very low).

    Help me get the MG2 motor operational!

    Thanks!
     
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    please tell us the reason toyota is refusing to warranty a car with 1,500 miles, then i think we will know the answer to your question.

    and can you post a print out of the dealers tech stream analysis with codes?
     
  3. kpn

    kpn New Member

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    Previous owner said she tried to get the dealer to repair it but (she said) the tec. said the due to what he diagnosed the warranty would not be in force or something to that extent. The Toyota franchise here has a 2-2.5 month backlog of appointments at all three of its maint. facilities so I have to wait another 1.5 months for them to look at it to get a more detailed explanation.

    What are some of the reasons a 3 yr/36,000 warranty would not be honored by the dealer?
     
  4. kpn

    kpn New Member

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    Are there diagnostic codes that, if generated, would specifically void a warranty? or is it up to the discretion/interpretation of an individual technician?
     
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  5. kpn

    kpn New Member

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    no accidents, clean title, car visibly appears to be in mint condition with no modifications.
     
  6. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    i think the previous owner may have scammed you. perhaps they modified the car, voiding the warranty, then unmodified it to sell it to you.

    if you can't get it to someone with tech stream, you will need to buy mini vci and compatible laptop to diagnose yourself.
     
  7. kpn

    kpn New Member

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    What would be an example of a warranty voiding modification? and how are typical modifications recorded by the computer? Are techs. specifically on the lookout for red flags to void warranties? Maybe a claim was made by the previous owner to her insurance for the mechanical issue. Would the dealer be informed of this insurance claim? Title shows no evidence of this. If true, this may be a reason warranty is supposedly not valid. However I asked the repair dept, giving the agent the VIN, and she confirmed that it was under warranty!
    So it seems that the records keeper in maint thinks it is under warranty (when I called) but the tech. evaluated it (under previous ownership) and said it was not under warranty. Will find out the verdict in about a month but just trying to make sense out of the inconsistency. Bought it expecting it would be a project car, just trying to make sense of the logic of the warranty.
     
  8. royrose

    royrose Senior Member

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    This is very weird. I feel like I'm reading a mystery novel where the author is holding back info for a surprise ending. If you really want help, you have to tell us a lot more.

    Where are you? What are the circumstances under which you bought the car. How recently did you buy the car? How far away are other Toyota dealers? Are there any independent Toyota/hybrid mechanics? How do you know MG2 is not working?

    Tell us the whole story!
     
    #8 royrose, Oct 26, 2017
    Last edited: Oct 26, 2017
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  9. kpn

    kpn New Member

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    Anyway, lots of speculation at this stage. Your logic is solid, that could be the case.
    Any place you know of that I can get a HV battery bus harness for this Prius C HV battery?
     
  10. kpn

    kpn New Member

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    There is only one Toyota franchise, they have a monopoly on the market. No non-Toyota dealer hybrid garages, well, there is one but he will not touch the 2016 because he can't get the full code explanations..car is too new he says. Weird answer IMO but bottom line he was not very interested in working on a 2016 C. I noticed all he was working on in his garage were gen 1 and gen 2 models of classic Prius.
     
  11. kpn

    kpn New Member

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    will post the codes when I get them, will have a OBD2 scanner shortly and will use tecstream.
     
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  12. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    only speculation, but maybe something like trying to tap the hybrid battery to make a high power emergency generator would void the warranty, or trying to add a battery for more ev miles.

    no idea what codes would constitute voiding the warranty. definitely an interesting case. why would you need a new bus harness?
     
  13. kpn

    kpn New Member

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    EV and Eco functions not operable, 26 MPG city 30MPG Hwy (typical ICE pattern where as hybrid should be better in city and worse on the hwy) , ICE always running, very sluggish acceleration though will travel at 80MPH, ICE revs with mild acceleration, no hybrid synergy power transfer animation action on dash, no electric motor operation (acceleration) when accelerating from standstill, it's all ICE.
    Regen braking charges HV battery very well (MG2 does this) so MG2 does operate as a generator moving electrons into the inverter/converter. But there seems to be no drive power going to the MG2. Of course this is all observed and somewhat subjective.

    hybrid synergy drive malfunction stop car warning flashes on LCD, triangle lit up, brake abs warning lights on, several other warning lights on.
     
  14. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    this is why you're replacing the bus harness?
     
  15. kpn

    kpn New Member

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    Yeah, too much speculation, will keep researching and get codes, thanks
     
  16. kpn

    kpn New Member

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    not going to replace it, still neeed to gather more info.
     
  17. kpn

    kpn New Member

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    That's why I posed my questions, to see what the experts might think about the symptoms...if anyone else ever experienced similar performance combination issues.
     
  18. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    gotcha. just seemed like an odd thing to bring up.
     
  19. jerrymildred

    jerrymildred Senior Member

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    It's been asked where you are and what the codes are. No codes, no diagnosis. If we knew something more specific about your location than just "US," someone may be able to suggest an alternative shop. But, without the codes, everyone is blind as a bat. No point in trying to guess.
     
  20. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    only hawaii has a two month backlog.:cool:
     
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