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Electric module fail?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by schoen28, Feb 4, 2020.

  1. schoen28

    schoen28 New Member

    Joined:
    Feb 4, 2020
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    Location:
    Louisville, Ky.
    Vehicle:
    2009 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    Hi folks, thanks for the add. Sorry for the long story, but ciphering this out feels a little like a Sherlock Holmes.
    I was in a wreck in Xmas Eve, driving straight in the left hand lane when, at an intersection, a woman took a right from the middle lane into me. Impact was from the drivers side door to front of car, that whole panel, but mostly starting just before the wheel. She hit me with enough force to bend the left front control arm and send me careening across the intersection. I hobble the car home, it drives but is very unsteady. The next morning is Christmas, and I decide maybe I can drive very slowly to the holiday gathering. I figure out quickly that the car is unstable, and so we stop, leave it and arrange for a tow. I leave for vacation the next day so everything is put on hold for awhile. Car gets ok for partial coverage of loss, shop does the work, then sends it to dealer to program tire sensor. While the sensor is being tested, car dies. Dealer calls me up, says, 'You need a new battery, it's failed the battery test. You'll owe us $400.' Turns out I have a warranty on the battery. When I called the dealer back to say as much, they say, 'Oh - no worries, it's working again.' I double check that - didn't their tester just say it WASN'T working as supposed to? 'Nope,' they say, 'all good now. No charge for that.' I am miffed b/c I think they're just trying to sell another battery.
    Day 1: I pick up the car from shop in the am, drive to work, no problems. I leave work, and while circling down from my 5th floor parking space, the car jolts a little and the dash lights up. All of the sudden, I'm in rush hour traffic, and the lights are still red and the car starts to die, then revs, then starts to die. I pull over, turn it off, can't reach anyone. Try again after 5 minutes, and while some lights are still on, the light indicating a brake problem goes off, so I very slowly drive home.
    Day 2: Next morning, the system, hybrid system and tire sensor lights are still on. I take to the body shop, they check it out, put some air in the back left tire, and say they see no other problems, good to go. I drive an hour away for an appointment that evening, no problem.
    Day 3: I drive to work, no problem. The next day en route home, dash lights up, and the car sputters, then dies in the middle of rush hour traffic. I get it towed back to body shop who sends back to dealer. A note - when the tow truck came, the car was completely dead. No flashers, nothing. The wheels were locked, and when he charged the car's12v, he was able to drive the car up into the tow bed. He charged again, and it drove again when dropping at body shop, but it died while being maneuvered into the space.
    Today I get a call from the insurance adjustor to say the issue is electric module failure. They don't see any correlation between that and the accident. Bill will be $650.
    How likely is it there's no correlation? I brought the car from Autobeyours in Sellersburg, In., who essentially rebuilds car from ground up, so I don't believe there was a previous issue. They contend of there wasn't an issue before accident, but there is after, it was the accident. But I need to be able to argue this w/ adjustor. Also, if Toyota dealer experienced an issue like that, shouldn't someone have asked some questions right then?
    Any insight appreciated!