My very first turtle sign. Hot weather, recent climb, 144K miles. Advise, please.

I can't answer most of those questions, but in high heat I have had the turtle warning light come on a couple of times--usually after it had been sitting, not while running. Cooling it down and even driving moderately made it go away. So while it may not be a fluke, it doesn't always indicate something permanently wrong.

 

1. The warning light was not a "fluke" if by fluke you mean an unnecessary warning. The light means that the battery overheated and needs a rest break.

2. Seeing the turtle does not mean that the battery is impaired. It just means that the battery overheated due to the mountainous terrain.

3. It is certainly possible but I would not assume that the occasional presence of the turtle means that your drivetrain is actually impaired (see #2 above.)

5. There isn't much to the remanufacture process, as far as I can tell, other than balancing the charge of the used 2G modules which are installed in a Classic traction battery case. Hence the use of a remanufactured battery in Classic is the redeployment of 38 modules which otherwise would be scrapped. I'm not sure what you mean by "relative energy balance" but recycling is usually considered to be a good thing to do.

 

1) How likely was it that the warning light was a fluke?

It was real, heat is the enemy. I caused it by doing a forced charge on a hot day and failing to leave the car on long enough for the fan to cool the battery.

2) How long will the battery survive after the first light?

Impossible to predict.

3) Is it possible that the car won't make it the 70 miles to Columbia?

Once it has cooled down, no problem. Charging the battery is exothermic. When possible, use "B" in long descents to minimize charging thermal effects. Once the car is turned off, power to the battery fan is lost and the ducting isn't very good about conductive cooling. Try to park in shaded areas.

4) How long have Re-involt batteries lasted? (more of a curiosity)

I upgraded the traction battery in November 2008 and it is still going strong. I have the original modules and they measured 5.5 Ahr with no evidence of any problems. I upgraded for the lower internal resistance and better terminal seals.

5) Since I'm gong to have to talk with this battery change with my hybrid-hater friends, does anyone have any good data on the relative energy balance in getting a re-manufactured battery as opposed to a new one?

The battery modules comes from salvage or crashed Prius. Given the low prices we are seeing for traction battery modules, it looks like more Prius are crashing than traction batteries failing. The traction battery is just another part of the transmission so a replacement is the same as rebuilding or replacing an automatic transmission and for the same price.

Odds are good that I'm going to have "Dust To Dust" waved in my face again, and I want to be armed.

Smile and let them know the report has been throughly discredited. Share your odometer reading and point out the report claims a Prius only lasts 109,000 miles. Then let them know your MPG and you can't afford to give it up until it can not be repaired or something equal to or better comes along.

Bob Wilson

 

Sorry, I forgot to mention how to test the 'health' of your traction battery. You'll need an OBD scanner that can read out:

• minimum traction battery temperature
• maximum traction battery temperature
• minimum voltage, module cell index
• maximum voltage, module cell value
• minimum voltage, module cell value

You want to see:

• 3-4 C temperature difference, anything higher and something is wrong but there are only four sensors
• Max volt - Min volt greater than or equal to 1.2 V ... one cell has gone bad
• Min volt cell index does not wander ... that is the one

A Scangauge II with XGAUGEs or AutoEnginuity are scanners I've used to take these metrics. I also have a Graham miniscanner but these are out of manufacture.

Bob Wilson

 

General question, maybe i need to make a new thread, but on hot days, is it advisable to leave the car in ON too keep inverter pump running and the traction battery fan running?

It seems like the HV battery fan is needed, but on the other hand, in ON, the DC-DC inverter is running to power the 13.9V to 12V battery, the pumps, the HV fan, etc. So the inverter is still heating up a little and it is also drawing current from the HV battery in this mode.

I wish they designed the HV fan to run for 5 mins after key off.

 

I don't know that anyone really has that answer. In my case, I make sure I'm parked in the shade. But I agree, I wish the traction battery fan would run on its own for a few minutes.

BTW, I did observe in 100+F heat the other day the ICE fans continued to run. I was surprised but there they were running when I opened the hood.

Bob Wilson

 

Interesting.. They kept that part of typical car design, but neglect the part where the inverter pump runs after the engine is off. (Or the battery fan)

I guess they didn't want to drain the 12V battery and cause more problems.

I also forgot about this: "If the HV battery becomes to warm (from MAX A/C) the A/C will switch to FRESH in order to increase the airflow across the HV battery."

So the best procedure if to go to ON for a few minutes after a hot day and run the fan on fresh air and max speed to force air out over the battery. I guess maybe I have been thinking about the HV fan wrong and the reason it isn't on is because I have the cabin fan running instead doing the same job as the HV fan.