Brake Accumulator

Hi Stacy,

If you have a 2003, that's a Generation 1, and you might get more views for your question if the mods can move it into the Gen 1 forum.

You can look around there for posts by PriusChat member rlin78, who proved that it's possible to DIY the accumulator replacement and do so without having to evacuate and open the air-conditioner lines (part of the expense of the usual procedure, because they're in the way). The alternative was a bunch of work in tight space and apparently took about ten hours, but would save a bundle over what the dealer is proposing.

Interesting that the problem was flagged just after hard braking. I don't have any model in my head for how that would cause an accumulator problem, or even be more likely to expose it than normal driving (the accumulator gets pumped up pretty much every time you start the car, and every several uses of the brake, hard or not). Can you give any more detail about the hard braking incident? Was there hard pumping of the brakes involved? Did the buzzer go off right away, or some time later?

-Chap

 

In searching the 1st-gen area of the forum, it looks like you're not alone with this issue.

There are alternatives for sourcing parts. Some have had success with used or salvage parts. They can be found on Ebay and other sources.

A mod will likely move this to the 1st-gen area, here:
Generation 1 Prius Discussion | PriusChat

Here's one of the threads with a similar situation:
2001 Brake Accumulator going out... | PriusChat

 

Hi Stacy,

As you've already learned, the car monitors the operation of that pump very closely and will give you a light show and a buzzer if it isn't doing what it needs to. You also know what to expect if you get the light show and buzzer: leave yourself lots of room for long stopping distance and higher pedal effort. Therefore, putting in a used part comes with a chance that it works just fine, and a smaller chance that it doesn't and you already know what that will be like and how to react. Seems like a nonzero but manageable safety risk. (Now, if it happens, and you don't manage it effectively, and an accident results, it could become a matter of convincing the insurer that your choice was rational, but you ought to be able to make that argument.)

However, nobody in this thread has asked you for the actual trouble codes from your brake computer yet (and that's usually my job, so I apologize for my laxity). Before spending any money, we would want to do what the dealer might not have, and determine whether you've got a problem with just the accumulator proper (a $281 dealer part), or just the pump/sensors/valves part ($679), or it's just not your day and you need the whole works ($987). Those are dealer new prices, used'll be less. OR, the problem could be in the wiring to that animal or back to the brake computer and the correct fix could turn out to be a lot less. That's why you really don't want to skip reading the codes.

You might be able to ask the dealer for what codes they read. Searching around this forum you can see what others are using to read codes on their cars; there's a nifty gadget around $25 if you have a laptop to use it with. But the brake computer also has a backup method where you don't need anything at all except a short piece of wire and the ability to count light blinks on the dash. That will give two-digit blink codes that are a bit less specific than the 5-character codes a tool can read, but still helpful in assessing your issue. Again, a bunch of posts here cover the exact steps.

-Chap