Need Advice on New HV Battery Purchase

There was a member a couple months back that was able to get a goodwill warranty from Toyota, he had a 2005 with similar low mileage. He got half off a new battery

 

Sounds like a solid goodwill candidate to me, also.

$2210 if you're willing to drive up to Camelback with her core, and perhaps they will match a lower online price?.. This is assuming they will sell to a regular customer...

2005 Toyota Prius Parts - Camelback Toyota Parts - Genuine OEM Parts - Free Shipping

S Keith offers new installed for $2440. Maybe he'd sell one outright to you for less?.. Again means tripping to Phoenix.

NEW 2004-2009 Toyota Prius Hybrid Battery (same price for 2011-2014) — PHOENIX HYBRID
BATTERIES

Finally, salvage late model, low mileage Gen 3 pack and move the modules into the the Gen 2 case. Personally, I'm partial to this one. If you can find one salvaged in recent months, I bet you can just do the swap without all the balance work.

 

Definitely try to get goodwill compensation from Toyota. The goodwill replacement will have to been done at a stealership so it's likely that the total price with installation will be less than $2000. Going the DIY route will be a little more.

If you manage to get goodwill, do not accept a remanufactured pack as they contain used modules.

 

Excellent point.

 

Yes, give Steve a call. His price includes sales tax which puts it right in line with any online price. That price is just above cost for Steve. The value for him is your core and he can turn in absolute junk back to Toyota.

Salvage yards will not knowingly accept Gen 2 modules in a Gen 3 case as a core. Their core buyers will not pay the premium Gen3 price for a case full of Gen 2 modules.

Brad

 

Brad, Do you discourage Gen 3 modules for Gen 2 pack rebuild because of this? If this option is unethical or creating difficulty for rebuilders in sourcing decent modules to work with, I'll readily remove it from my preferred option for when (if) our '07 battery passes on.

Mike..

 

Check out this thread. My Toyota dealer is selling refurbished traction batteries | Page 2 | PriusChat

Posts #33 to #35 confirm that the -84 packs are using used modules. Post #34 should look familiar.

Salvage is a dirty dirty dirty business. Batteries turn the whole idea of cores upside down. In a classic core scenario the wearable parts are replaced and the old case is reused. This is how rebuilding things like engines, starters, altenators, ect works. The cheap things that wear out like bearings, rings, seals, brushes, ect get replaced and the block or case gets reused The result is a remanufactured part that is basically as good as new.

Rebuiding batteries salvage the wearable items, (the modules). The hard non wear items like the cases and relays are of absolutely no importance. It's like trying to rebuild an engine by measuring the bearings and piston rings and then selecting the least worn parts to put a engine back together. For an engine this is folly. For batteries it can make sense.

I fell it is unethical for salvage yards to require a core when they sell a battery. But it is a case of buyer beware and supply and demand. Maybe not so much unethical as just a really bad deal for the consumer. Salvage yard batteries come with at most a 90 day warranty. The only testing done is knowing the car still ran when it was in an accident. Many salvage yard batteries are no better than the customer's battery was a month before it failed.

For a DIY consumer buying a salvage pack and keeping your core is a great deal. One core battery could keep your 07 and your 10 working for the life of the cars. This is a great option for the family with a fleet of Prius. Some would call this wack a mole. For some swapping another module out every few months would be no big deal.

Brad