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My Toyota dealer is selling refurbished traction batteries

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Tj S, Nov 16, 2016.

  1. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    Wasn't there debate on that tho. I wonder if the dealership slipped up on that statement too, ie: the $2700 brand-new battery was in fact 3 year warranty. Sorry for bringing up all the negative bits.
     
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    3 year warranty on the new one only if dealer installed.
    there's a pricing thread here somewhere, i've been trying to find it without success so far. i think it's @wjtracy or maybe @JimboPalmer ?
     
  3. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    oh yeah, and $1000 install.
     
  4. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    i think i've seen as low as $400.?
     
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  5. fotomoto

    fotomoto Senior Member

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    Yup, when I saw all those arbitrary ink markings on the bottom of the modules in your pictures I knew something was up and it was most likely a rebuild/remanufacture with old modules.
     
  6. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    If you're referring to his pic in post #29 that's his old battery.
     
  7. The Electric Me

    The Electric Me Go Speed Go!

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    I'm not going to speculate or even debate whether it is possible for Toyota...or anyone to refurbish old battery cells and have the expectation that they would be as good or have the life expectancy one would expect from new cells.
    I'll leave that to those that deal with Batteries and Their Chemistry a whole lot more than I.

    But I would say, the thing that would upset me the MOST about this situation is that if the refurbished battery was sold to you as "NEW" cells in an old case.
    If that is NOT the reality...then the product was misrepresented to you.

    The dealership or the counter person...whomever...needs to present the product, as the product actually IS.
    Give you the option between REALLY Brand New...OEM...or some Toyota pilot program--Refurbished...with the exact definition of what that means you are buying.

    If I was told....New Cells in an Old Case...I would of assumed it was some used Battery Case...recycling program..and my expectations would of been indeed that the cells were new..matched..cells.

    Sounds now, like the discovery is NO...that the cheaper option IS some type of Toyota refurbished option. Which is potentially OK...maybe even great if they are doing it right....

    But the presentation and definition of the product needs to be clear, shouldn't have to come on line, go to Prius Chat, and painfully, slowly discover what you "actually" purchased.
     
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  8. fotomoto

    fotomoto Senior Member

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  9. CooCooCaChoo

    CooCooCaChoo Senior Member

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    Well you bought it knowing full well that its a refurbished battery pack with a 1 year warranty so it shouldn't be a surprise that some of the cells in the pack are older. I'm just surprised that some of the cells are 10 years old!

    Drive it as much as you can in the one year you have the warranty for and pray that something breaks.
     
  10. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    he was told that they were new cells in an old case, see post #1.
     
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  11. jadziasman

    jadziasman Prius owner emeritus

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    Well, I'm disappointed for Tj and everyone else who've bought these -84 packs. Thanks for being the first to actually provide the information Tj. If a deal seems too good to be true, it probably is.

    I hope that someone from Toyota Corporate eventually reads this thread. Toyota needs to make sure that anyone who buys the -84 pack knows exactly what they're getting. This information should be included on the bill of sale in BOLD LETTERS!
     
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  12. ILuvMyPriusToo

    ILuvMyPriusToo Senior Member

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    Packing a bunch of 10 year old cells together and reselling it at that price with the Corporate brand sure sounds like a steal to me . . .
     
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  13. Tj S

    Tj S Member

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    So I made some calls today looking for what I want - new battery pack. It seems that the only place to get them is through Toyota. Is that correct? I guess you can get Gen 3 cell battery packs but they are still reman. Wish I knew someone at Panasonic....
    So in retrospect, the dealer is giving you something that everyone else is offering - perhaps at a higher price because it is backed by Toyota. So the decision is new from the Toyota dealer network or used from same place or somewhere else.... If no one steps up making new cells, I guess there will be a day in the not-to-distant future that the car will get mothballed due to a primary component NLA
     
    #53 Tj S, Nov 18, 2016
    Last edited: Nov 18, 2016
  14. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    some rebuilders can buy new cells, but only toyota sells a whole new battery.
     
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  15. Tj S

    Tj S Member

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    *delete- duplicate post*
     
  16. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    i think i would go dorman for $1,450.? unless toyota discloses what makes their process better.
     
  17. jadziasman

    jadziasman Prius owner emeritus

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    Yes, it's Toyota and only Toyota that sells brand new genuine modules/packs. Gen 2 modules are no longer being manufactured. Gen 3 modules are now placed in Gen 2 cases so you get stronger modules with the new pack.

    Most dealers have the G9510-47031-01 or can order it for you. I've seen some dealers pricing them for as low as $2000 + tax and $1350 core charge.

    There's a big difference in price across the US. Some dealer want as much as $3000 for a pack without core charge or installation.
     
    #57 jadziasman, Nov 18, 2016
    Last edited: Nov 18, 2016
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  18. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    It's installed and working? I would give it a chance, maybe it will be fine?
     
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  19. Tj S

    Tj S Member

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    That's what my wife is thinking. Even if oe is avsilable, the price difference can pay for a few days of a nice vacation - something we desparately need.

    The dealer sweetened the deal by offering discount which makes the pack in the ball park of the 3rd party guys. I think we wiped out his profit. I would really like to know who is selling these new packs for 2k as quoted above. the cheapest I could find was 2300 from camelback.
     
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  20. Tj S

    Tj S Member

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