Hybrid battery charge weird fluctuation

If it's the original battery, that's classic bad battery symptoms. The display goes crazy because the battery is also going crazy. Charging and discharging really quickly, strange step functions, etc.

You need a NEW battery. I know Toyota Australia is not the best when it comes to hybrid repair pricing, but it is one of the only options if you are going to keep the car.

 

Those are the initial signs of a battery-pack nearing end-of-life. You'll be fine continuing to use it until a code is thrown (engine light comes on). That will confirm its time. If the engine is still running well (most are at that age, since the system is so easy on them), you can replace the battery-pack and keep on driving the car for years to come.

 

He replaces the whole pack with more soon-to-fail modules. This, if done properly, is about as good as a reconditioned/refurbished pack can get. And that should buy you 6months to a year. Maybe 2 years if it was done with really nice late year Gen-3 modules. Don't do this. This was perfectly acceptable in the late 2000's and even a few years after the Gen-3's came out. But now there is no new stock and limited to exhausted old stock coupled with record numbers of replacements being required. So just no...

Nobody has a magic eight ball, but usually this is the last legs, like less than a few thousand miles before codes are thrown. What you should have been seeing is a continuous decline for the past few years. Most people won't notice because they just drive it and it is not something to really pay attention to. After this continuous decline where it just works less well it dies. Yours is dead. It is now fluctuating so wildly the car has no idea what to do with it. This will inevitably lead to codes thrown. If you limit any battery draw like never using reverse, never flooring it, and try to stick to long highway drives you may get a good while out of the battery in this state. But it will fail eventually. After it throws a code, it will behave even worse but usually you can continue driving on it for another few months at least. It will no longer be reliable in the sense you would continue to use this car to do daily mandatory hospital visits or something. It will probably work just fine 99% of the time but that 1% could leave you stranded at the road. So be prepared to hoof it when it does, or Uber it, and tow it somewhere. If that's acceptable to you, like most people, then keep on trucking as you wait for a new battery. Do NOT put off attempting to purchase or saving up to purchase a battery until the car refuses to move because then you might be stuck with a huge paperweight not going anywhere versus a car that can hobble places if need be. Don't procrastinate.

If I were in your shoes, I'd be shopping for a NEW battery right now. Anything that doesn't come from a Toyota dealership or parts counter or me, is not new, it is refurbished. Run away from such batteries.

 

Sold out until October shipment. I expect them to arrive near the end of September. I am also offering an express option now and for $300 I can air freight a pack in the middle of August for delivery end of August.

 

Todd quit doing that a couple years ago because he was finding out the same stuff about refurbishing as we were. He only sells either new or lightly used intact batteries and will not rebuild your battery. And his new battery price is well below a dealer's price. For my wife's '07 in May of 2017 I got one with a full set of cells from a totaled 2015 with only 18,000 miles on it and a Carfax report.

That's what I assume Rivieraman meant by:

 

Good that there are still some reputable shops out there. I get shops calling me all the time for rebuilding advice and they don't seem to understand that if they offer a warranty they're going to lose money when they start having to redo all these installs for a second or third or fourth time not too long from now. That takes away shop time. So not only are you tying up shop resources for a job with zero income, you have less resources available to take on paying jobs. I am genuinely worried for some of these shops when they discover this down the road.

 

That's how I bought mine. Except it was before Toyota lowered their new battery prices. He gave me a discount because I've bought four cars from him and referred another buyer to him. It's nice to know his prices have followed Toyota's lead, assuming what he pays has also gone down.

I'm sure that was a major factor in his decision, but he was also hugely concerned about his reputation since without that he'd soon be looking for another job.

 

You have a 10 year old battery that's lived (I assume) it's whole life in hot Florida. It is not in perfect health. It's old and getting weaker with every day. Plan accordingly.

GOOD LUCK!

 

hit or miss from what i've read here.

 

are you too far from tampa hybrids? did you talk to todd?