jump starting another vehicle

Not recommended! The Prius battery (Management Battery, as my dealer calls it) is only a little chap, and its primary use is to power the computers which control the systems in the Prius, and to expect it to be able to crank a great hunk of a Caddy 500 cu. inch V8 is just asking bit too much in my book, sort of like asking a wimp like me to bench press 500lbs
(BTW - Welcome to PriusChat! )

PS: If you'd like to be a samaritan, get one of these: I have something similar and have helped out a neighbour a number of times, as well as helping myself recently when my "Management" battery started to fail: http://www.batterymart.com/p-gb40-boost-plus-lithium-jump-start.html

 

You will be able to jump start another Prius, that's it. The 12VDC Aux battery will NOT start another vehicle ICE starter.

 

As other's have stated, the answer is basically NO. You could jump start another Prius, but that is the limit. If you want to jump start someone, your best bet is to do it with a portable jump start pack. You can purchase those at your local parts house. It is also a good idea to have one just in case you ever need to jump start your Prius.



Be aware also that jump starting a Prius is a RISKY thing to do. If you ever reverse the polarity even for just a split second, you can damage the electrical system of the Prius and furthermore expect repairs to cost a expensive 4 (four) digit bill (thousand dollars or more).

Best advice is to monitor the voltage of the little 12 volt auxiliary battery and replace it before you need to jump start.

Best of luck to you and "Welcome" to Prius Chat!

 

I just got another one of these, and had the old one refurbed and passed it to one of my sons. They're heavy duty and fit nicely in the underfloor tray:

Jump Starters - 1700 Peak Amp Volt JNC660 | Call us at 1-800-328-2921 |Clore Automotive

 

If you absolutely must assist another vehicle using the Prius, it is advised to do it this way:

Make sure you get the polarities correct when connecting the jumper cables. Don't try to start the car with the dead battery while the Prius is connected to it, run the Prius for a while in Ready Mode, this will supply 14.4v of charging voltage to the car's battery that you are trying to start. Disconnect the Prius, then and only then, try to start the other car.

Note that this will only work if the dead/weak battery will accept a sufficient charge to start their car, but as long as the connections are made with the proper polarities, it is the only safe way to ensure no damage is done to your Prius.

 

I mostly agree with xliderider's post. You don't need conventional jumper cables to assist a dead vehicle that way. In fact, for that purpose thinner jumper wires would not only suffice, but also might be safer, by limiting current. You'd also need to leave the wires or jumper cables connected a fairly long while.

 

PowerAll PBJS12000R Rosso Red/Black Portable Power ...

I use this!

 

I have jump started 2 ICE vehicles so far & I didn't fry my battery/electronics & I still get great MPG's. They were either 4 or 6 cyl vehicles. One was a VW Jetta & the other a minivan.

I now have one of those lithium jump starting packs because it was worrisome every time I did it.

What I did was connect the jumper cables correctly to each battery terminal post. I then left my car in "Ready" mode for about 3-5 minutes. I then turned my car off to minimize any voltage back feed when the other car started while leaving the cables attached. We then started the other vehicle using their battery & my battery. Once the other car was running I disconnected the jumper cables, put them away & started my car & drove off.

I believe the risk potential is real but HUGELY overblown on PriusChat when done in a reasonably safe/logical/competent manner. I do however live more "dangerously" than some apparently.

This will do my future jump starts: Lithium Jump Starter and Portable Power Bank

 

Ha! A LOT of things are hugely overblown on PriusChat, some more than this one.

 

I'm not sure, maybe if "a while" was hours.., still I do not know.

I've gotten away with starting a Maxima with the puny battery on a Civic Hybrid, multiple times, 'till I read it was maybe not such a good idea. Mainly due to the dimunitive size of the civic battery. That motivated me to get a jump pack.

 

The content of your post are right on the nail's head but the broad diffusion to the masses of carefully explained tech topics most usually are taken lightly and overlooked and them ...PUFFF.
All technical discussions must be with a preamble of WARNINGS and a closing argument with the same WARNINGS of blowing your stuff if not followed to the dot and all precautions to the case.

 

Your absolutely correct. I'm not very good at giving out extra warnings for stuff like this.

 

I have started a Ford F150 with a 351 V8 with my 2006 Prius in ready mode without hurting the car or bringing about a nuclear holocaust. The Prius did better than the full size Chevy Silverado that was trying to start it before I showed up. I also think the potential for damage from jump starting is slightly exaggerated in the Prius community.

SM-T230NU ?

 

I was under the impression that I could jump start from the positive post that is within the fuse box under the bonnet of a Prius?

Is this not the case then, I have never tried it but seem to recall reading about it somewhere


iPhone ?

 

That positive terminal inside the fuse box is if YOUR car needs a jump, not the other way around, which is what this thread is about.

 

^ Yeah, Owner's Manual bears that out:

 

Yes, there is a fuse between the battery and the "boost terminal" in the front underhood fuse box. That is why you are TOLD NOT TO use that terminal to start another vehicle.

I can see why those in California can boost other vehicles without apparent problems. It's warm, and their starters probably draw less than 100 Amps. Try that here at -20 or -30, when most cars will draw 200+Amps and you WILL have a problem. The Prius 12V battery is not designed as a starter battery, and does tell you on it's case the maximum current it's designed for. It's not high enough to start a car! Yup, it will. How long it will last afterwards, I couldn't speculate on. Based on the cost of replacement it's a little silly to try! Especially with a Prius C. A friend has one, and had to replace the 12V battery last week. -GASP- was heard when the Toyota dealer quoted him $700+!!! He got an Exide (special order) for just over $200. It's a different size than the hatchback battery.
"Another fine mess Toyota has got us into".

 

Interesting! My local Toyota Dealer Checked the 12V battery on my Gen II recently when I suspected it was getting weak, they did a load-test, found the battery to be bad, replaced it, total cost = $238.53, ($184.03 for battery + $54.50 labour) - OK, I could have bought an appropriate battery on-line for about $150 plus shipping ($17->$106 depending on how quickly I wanted it), and done the work (in my cold garage) - so the dealer fixed the problem (and warranteed the work), while I went and had breakfast (discounted as I was getting my car fixed downstairs), and I was back on the road within an hour. Well, "…you pays your money and you takes your choice!" (…but I certainly would have questioned $700+ )

 

Don't forget we're in Canada. Still, $700 is nuts; I was quoted $273 by a couple of dealership parts depts recently. We can get the Optima for about $50 less than that, with free shipping and no provincial sales tax. That's 6% vs 12% for me in BC.