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Advice on Battery Issues?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by edt3592, Jan 20, 2022.

  1. edt3592

    edt3592 New Member

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    Hi everyone. I own a 2008 Prius that I've had for about 3 years with no major issues. Today, I took it to an instant oil change place to get the oil changed, something I've never had an issue doing before. While I was there, I asked them if they could replace the driver's side tail light that I knew was out. They did.

    As soon as they were done and I started the car and began to leave the garage, all of the warning lights came on, including the red triangle of death, the VSC warning light, and the brake control warning light (the circle with the exclamation point). As I drove it, I heard a clicking noise. I immediately circled the building and went back into the garage, thinking that, maybe they overfilled the oil or didn't put everything back together. They double checked everything, let out a little oil, insisted it was good, etc. I decided to drive it to a garage and get it looked at somewhere else. As I left this time, I got a signal that the battery couldn't charge when I took it out of park. The car then stalled out. I called a tow truck and had it taken to a Toyota dealership (Probably my biggest mistake).

    While I was waiting, I did some research and came to the conclusion that, while changing the tail light, something got messed up with the 12 volt battery. I figured it was probably just a connection issue. Well, the dealer called me back within an hour and told me I need to replace both the hybrid battery and the 12 volt battery. After some questioning from me, they admitted that all they did was plug in their diagnostic tool and react to what it said. They also claimed that the oil change was just a coincidence. I insisted they actually look at the batteries and I'm currently in a holding pattern.

    I'm not very knowledgeable about cars or how to fix them. I'm ill equipped to deal with these issues myself and I recently moved after having found a very reliable and trustworthy mechanic near my old house. Basically, I'm looking for any advice on how to proceed. I don't believe that it makes any sense that the source of my problems isn't something that happened during the oil change and I don't know how to communicate that to the dealer or what I should ask them to do going forward. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
     
    #1 edt3592, Jan 20, 2022
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    you definitely want to start with the 12v health. if that is good, they will give you the trouble codes and you can post them here.
    i'm not sure what the oil place could have done other than drain the 12v.

    overfilling the oil can contaminate the throttle body, but i don't see that being related to the battery can't charge message.
     
    #2 bisco, Jan 20, 2022
  3. mr_guy_mann

    mr_guy_mann Senior Member

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    If there are a bunch of warning lights on then there should be diagnostic codes. Please post those codes and we can then give you better advise (otherwise anything is just a guess).

    While you have an understandable case of "ever since you" (ie a problem occurred after someone touched the car), really the worst an oil change shop could do in their service would be to not tighten the oil drain plug (which could result in the engine failing from oil loss).

    If there is a "replace HV battery" code (typically P0A80) present, then there is nothing a shop could do that would "cause" it to happen when it did.

    That would be like claiming that having the dentist clean your teeth resulted in you having a stroke later that day.

    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
    #3 mr_guy_mann, Jan 20, 2022
  4. edthefox5

    edthefox5 Senior Member

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    The oil data book that the quickie lube joints use shows the Gen2 takes 5 quarts.

    It actually takes 3.9 quarts with a new filter.

    Few times I have had them do an oil change I bring them that exact amount
    In a jug so they cannot screw it up.
     
    #4 edthefox5, Jan 21, 2022
  5. sam spade 2

    sam spade 2 Senior Member

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    You should first replace the 12 V battery.......because that being weak can cause other false readings.

    The oil change probably WAS just a coincidence but leaving a door open could have "stressed" an already weak 12 V battery.
     
    #5 sam spade 2, Jan 21, 2022
  6. dolj

    dolj Senior Member

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    Half-truths are just as bad as lies.
    What you should first do is test your battery and this will decide which option you need to take. If that shows the battery is still good, charge it up, If it has failed, replace it.

    As for this ...
    ... that needs to be qualified. Depending on what system a particular code relates to, the voltage that could be the tipping point could be 10.5 V, 8 V, or even 5 V before "weird" things might happen. In any case if your battery voltage is 10.5 V or less, it is cause for concern and needs immediate attention, not because "weird" things might happen, but that you are damaging (if not already damaged) the 12 V battery.
    Agreed, this is the most likely consequence of your oil change.
     
    #6 dolj, Jan 21, 2022
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