Driving after Battery Failure is a Bad Idea (pic)

How does driving after a failed battery cause this?

 

There was a picture here a while back of a cell which had been charged outside of the box, with no clamping. It looked like an accordion, with many thin layers. Don't know where it is atm.

A common thread is emerging, with the GenII batteries failing more or less as expected (although some are giving much longer service). No one seems to have any funds for this unfortunately expensive repair, which was looming from day 1.

 

Toyota's design of the battery is how they keep folks coming back for another Prius. Once you get hooked on the MPG, you can't stand a regular ICE car. If the battery had perfect longevity, there would be fewer repeat sales...

 

I don't buy that. Sure it's true to a point but more likely due to economics than a conspiracy to get you to buy a new car.

I remember cars from the 1970's that would rot away to nothing within 6 or 7 years. I asked my Dad why they don't make them like VW's (which didn't rust as badly) and was told that manufacturers want people to buy new cars. Which if true would mean that British Leyland would still be making cars and VW would have gone bust (the opposite happened).

 

I do realize that my choice of words was not correct. I think my point is this. The traction battery with its rate of failure can be considered a downfall by some. Think about it for a minute or two. The naysayers or those inquisitive about Prius always to seem to circle around the battery more than any thing else.

If Toyota were to make a better battery, I think they would actually sell more cars than they do now.

I have to say this concerning the batteries being used today. I recently compared apples to oranges in the battery game.

During the hunt for our new Prius I seriously considered a Nissan Leaf and looked at the Volt and the Ford Hybrids. Focusing on the Leaf's battery I learned some things about the known degradation of the Leaf's battery along with their "rental replacement" program which left a bad taste in my mouth. When I combined that with the high premium price of the Leaf fairly well equipped it became pretty clear who the winner was.

It seems the biggest fear out of those who know little about Prius and hybrids in general is the battery. For now it seems that Toyota has the best thing going in the market. With competition the way it is today Toyota may be forced to improve their battery in that aspect. Time will tell as to how the competition's batteries hold up as well as the newer Li-Ion and other chemistries come into play over time.

Ron (dorunron)

 

My dad had a 2011 Leaf SL on lease which he turned in early because he can no longer drive. With 14K miles on the odometer and in immaculate condition, it sold for $14K by Nissan on auction. That helps to illustrate the unusually high depreciation taken by that car because of battery capacity and range issues.

 

After I read your post, I guessed you were from Arizona. I understand that one of Volt engineers publicly stated that he would not recommend his car for a hot climate. Are Prius batteries doing OK in Arizona?

 

I think that the battery capacity of the Nissan Leaf has been prematurely reduced in hot climates:
Nissan Testing New Battery Pack to Address Problems with LEAF in Hot Weather | PluginCars.com

That is one reason I haven't been interested in buying such a vehicle.

However my dad lives in Honolulu, which has moderate average high temps, typically in the high 80's F.

 

I don't see it that way. I have a top of the line model which was $35K. A new car depreciates about 20% the second you sign the paperwork. So I have a $28K car after I sign. $7.5K federal rebate means $20.5K and then $6K state rebate means $14.5K. With no miles on the clock I wouldn't expect to get more than $14.5K for a pristine new Leaf. The auction price sounds about right. The depreciation is not battery worries, it is taking the credits off of the retail price.

Range isn't an issue for those who have Prius backgrounds. I have gotten 104miles out of my Leaf in subfreezing temperatures (-17C) with the heater on most of the time. Battery capacity is the same for the Leaf as most other cars. The difference is without active cooling, hot climates are worse for it. I have never seen my battery temperature gauge go above 3 bars. It is usually at 1 or 2 when I start and 3 by the time I park.

 

No state income tax credit was offered in Hawaii.

Makes zero sense to buy a new Leaf then, just look for a gently used one.

 

Awesome picture.
I enjoy seeing this kind of photo.
Is a good illustration that can be used as a warning for my customers.

We need our own thread for things we see at hybrid shops.

On a related note, a fellow shop owner told me about, "Just Rolled Into the Shop" on reddit.
Sometimes it is a bit risque, so be careful, but some of the damage and destruction that is shown is spectacular.
Just Rolled Into the Shop

Your picture would fit in that forum perfectly.

 

Great pic and I'd expect the burnt modules were because of the climate down being so hot. I've been clearing it on mine for a while too but I will be curious to see if my battery will have lost any significant capacity after cycling the remaining good cells too since my climate is alot cooler than yours.

Also careful cutting them open because they are full of caustic alkali, besides someone already did it for you........
Patent 6,936,371 - Recycling Battery Pack | PriusChat

 

I'm quite sure I only have one bad cell on one module (waiting for my mini VCI to view actual blocks with the Techstream software). The interesting part is that the code will only appear on humid days.......when it's dry out the battery never throws a code (not even a pending one) and the vehicle will hit full bars on the display during driving. I suspect what you see down south is where the code is continually thrown/cleared and the battery gets torched due to continuous use (AC uses the battery heavily we rarely have it on up here and when we do use defrost it's pretty cold out) and the ambient temps down there are extreme so batteries tend to overheat quickly. I'm not too worried either way even if I need to buy a new pack since my sole purpose for buying a hybrid was to learn how to work on them - sick puppy I know (aside from that I'd probably just own an normal ICE powered car). I'll let you know what the damage is when I pull it apart, but again not too worried because most of the time the car functions great.

 

i believe alot of the issues with the batteries are ranging in states with really high temps, and mountain climbing. in north dakota it is a mix climate. brutally cold winters, and average to hot summers but never usually in the triple digits. the toyota dealership here has not replaced one hybrid battery on a prius or camry hybrid since they started selling them except for one camry hybrid which was of no fault of the car. apparently the lady had a astro start installed and it was constantly draining the traction battery. but im a firm believer that it is mostly climate and terrain dependent