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Multiple dashboard lights flashing/ blinking when car is off

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Tyson, Mar 31, 2017.

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  1. Tyson

    Tyson New Member

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    Hey all,

    searched around these forums, but didn't find a similar situation. I have a 2007 Prius. I get an occasional dead battery and need to jump the car, after the most recent time, I drove the car around for ~20 minutes and when parked, turned the car off but several of the dashboard lights kept blinking, even after removing the key.

    The Drive/ Park/ Reverse/ Neutral etc... lights all flashed and the gas gauge also flashed, showing a full bar, or showing 1 bar. (I started and stopped the car several times which is why the difference in the gas guage, and it has a full tank of gas)

    I don't know what caused this, don't know what to do, so of course the car is dead again as the whole dashboard kept blinking, I checked it 30 mins, an hour after it was off.. so it drained the battery again.

    Any ideas as to why it would behave this way?

    Any suggestions are very appreciated,

    Tyson
     
    #1 Tyson, Mar 31, 2017
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    welcome!
    i would start by replacing the 12v.
     
    #2 bisco, Mar 31, 2017
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  3. jerrymildred

    jerrymildred Senior Member

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    Welcome. Yup. I think @bisco has probably got it. You might check the voltage on the 12V first, but I'm guessing it'll be low. How old is it?
     
    #3 jerrymildred, Mar 31, 2017
  4. Tyson

    Tyson New Member

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    Thanks for the replies, it's a 2007, and I've never replaced the 12v. I'm the 2nd owner, but my guess would be then the battery is as old as the car. Will look into the 12v then, thanks.
     
    #4 Tyson, Mar 31, 2017
  5. jerrymildred

    jerrymildred Senior Member

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    If that's the original, it's 10 years old. WOW!!! That's a really old 12 volt battery. You more than got your money's worth out of it.
     
    #5 jerrymildred, Apr 1, 2017
  6. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    unlikely, but possible. without a properly functioning 12v, it's impossible to know if something else is wrong with the car.
     
    #6 bisco, Apr 1, 2017
  7. valde3

    valde3 Senior Member

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    Around 12 years seemed to be the normal time that original 12V batteries last in Toyotas and other Japanese cars here.

    Prius and many other cars newer cars seem to keep their 12V battery partially discharged all the time which will then cause the lead acid battery life to be fraction of the normal.
     
    #7 valde3, Apr 1, 2017
  8. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    really? what do you mean by 'partially discharged'?
     
    #8 bisco, Apr 1, 2017
  9. valde3

    valde3 Senior Member

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    Partially discharged means less than fully charged.

    Unless you drive a lot 12V is rarely charged to 100% full. This is partially because many charging systems don’t wont to charge batteries with constant 14.4V (or 14.7V in cold) anymore and partially because there’s more current drain from the 12V battery while just sitting unused (keyless entry etc.)

    Storing lead acid battery in anything other than 100% full will age it a lot faster.
     
    #9 valde3, Apr 1, 2017
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  10. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    interesting, thanks!
     
    #10 bisco, Apr 1, 2017
  11. Tyson

    Tyson New Member

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    I have a fairly lengthy commute, so perhaps it kept the 12v more regularly charged, but interesting to hear about the life cycle. Any unexpected problems are never welcome, so either way it's good to hear that I got a pretty full life out of the battery.

    I don't know enough about the mechanics, the odd part to me is how it was behaving with the car completely off.

    Anyone have suggestions for a replacement battery? Any OEM model with do?

    Thanks again all for your help and suggestions, very much appreciated.
     
    #11 Tyson, Apr 1, 2017
  12. jerrymildred

    jerrymildred Senior Member

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    Here in Florida, I think the average for a car battery is about four years, although some have told me it's only two years. Mine usually last a little longer than four. But then the Prius is a bit of a different animal.
     
    #12 jerrymildred, Apr 2, 2017
  13. valde3

    valde3 Senior Member

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    In hot climate battery’s just don’t last that long. In those hot climates lower charging voltages of modern systems actually increase battery life because battery life isn’t ending from sulfation.
     
    #13 valde3, Apr 2, 2017
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