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LOUD Buzzing Sound from Hybrid Battery Compartment

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by CHART, Dec 7, 2005.

  1. CHART

    CHART Member

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    I left my 04 at the Airport (mostly below freezing) for the last 3 days. I was a good scout and turned off the SE/SS like I am supposed to :rolleyes:

    When I got back tonight and chirped the car, I put my bags in the back. I didn't notice anything at this point but as soon as I opened the driver door, I noticed a loud buzzing sound coming from the back (I had not started the car yet!) I initially though I had turned my razor on or something when I threw the bags in so I went back and opened the hatch. That is when I noticed that the sound was coming from below the storage area and was quite loud.

    I powered up the car (I can't say "cranked" anymore) and it started OK and the INFO screen showed about 4/5ths charge on the hybrid battery but the buzzing continued. I have not read anything about this, but it would not surprise me that the battery was cold so I turned on the heat. At this point I had hit the Interstate and it was getting hard to hear the buzzing over the road noise so I just kept an eye on it and kept driving. About 20 minutes into the trip, the SOC had risen to 7/8ths and was green. By the time I got off of the interstate, the buzzing had stopped.

    Any ideas from anyone?
     
    #1 CHART, Dec 7, 2005
  2. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    fan? although I don't know why it'll come on when it's cold.

    Did you remove the floor and storage bin and take a look at the battery?
     
    #2 Tideland Prius, Dec 7, 2005
  3. hdrygas

    hdrygas New Member

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    Keep us posted. The fan could come on to circulate warm air from the ICE as it heats up. I have to confess that I have never heard the battery fan. Sometimes the bearings on a fan will chatter when too cold but I would not expect that from Toyota. If you take it in let us know what they tell you.
     
    #3 hdrygas, Dec 7, 2005
  4. CHART

    CHART Member

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    I've heard the battery fan in summer and this was not it. I have to admit, I did not think about the fan being "bound" by something, but the sound definitely went away during my 30 minute ride home. OK....here is a reference that dates me... the sound was like the sound that the field from the old vibrating "Electrict Football" game made back in the 1970's!! ( http://www.backtobasicstoys.com/item/produ...c+football+game )

    The car has been fine today.
     
    #4 CHART, Dec 8, 2005
  5. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    Oh alright.


    Hmm, how do you play that game anyway? How would you control so many players at one time?
     
    #5 Tideland Prius, Dec 8, 2005
  6. PRIUSNC

    PRIUSNC New Member

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    On the original versions of the game you didn't control the players. You lined them up (offense & defense) and turned it on. The board vibrated and the players moved willy nilly. The player with the ball (pick one before hitting start) that was touched by an opposing player ended the down. I don't remember how or if field goals & extra points were accomplished. Keep in mind this was 50 years ago so our previous toys were sticks.
     
    #6 PRIUSNC, Dec 8, 2005
  7. tomdeimos

    tomdeimos New Member

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    Maybe you have a bad HV relay, or bad voltage level getting to it that makes it buzz.
     
    #7 tomdeimos, Dec 8, 2005
  8. CHART

    CHART Member

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    Thank you Tomdeimos for bringing us back to topic. I was a little worried there for a moment that this would devolve into an Electric Football topic...oh hell, to anser your question about kickers, priusnc, there was one player that had a moveable leg where you could put the felt football in front of him and his leg would "snap" forward and kick the ball.

    Back on topic now...the car has been fine the last two days. With it no longer making the noise, I'm just wondering if I should still take it to the dealer? I need my oil changed next week and I'll probably get the recall done at the same time. Maybe I'll say something then.

    CHART
     
    #8 CHART, Dec 9, 2005
  9. DanMan32

    DanMan32 Senior Member

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    There isn't a whole lot back there, certainly not much that is supposed to be active with the car off. I'd have to check but I don't think the battery fan runs with the car off, though I remember a few topics about a year ago where a few Prius went nuts with the alarm blaring and the battery fan going wild. Other times while in READY the fan went wild for no apparent reason.

    The brake backup power supply is back there, and so is the SKS oscillators (one for outside the hatch, one for inside the hatch). They shouldn't be able to make any noise.

    The battery itself indeed has the system relays, which should in no circumstances be activated if the car is not in READY or being placed into READY.

    Maybe you dropped a pager or cellphone down there? They can buzz like an electric football game. How about checking that little cubby on the driver's side of the hatch?
     
    #9 DanMan32, Dec 14, 2005
  10. 8AA

    8AA Active Member

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    I'm interested to hear if you find anything. I wish that I had a suggestion of what it might be, but not much should be happening before the hybrid system is engaged. If it were me, I would ask the dealership about it; even if the symptoms can't be duplicated, they may have had similar reports or even have a service bulletiin.
     
    #10 8AA, Dec 17, 2005
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