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P0A93 - Sign of battery issues?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by DeterminedDIY, Apr 28, 2019.

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  1. DeterminedDIY

    DeterminedDIY Junior Member

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    Gen 2 Prius 08 215,000 miles. While driving yesterday, several lights came on the dash. (Red triangle of death, VSC, tire pressure warning light, check engine light, and the one on the touch screen display (car and exclamation point)). I drove it way further than I should have (I was working and didn't really have a choice). Lights were intermittent on and off until I got home. VSC and tire pressure light went away and haven't come back). I did notice the engine revving above 60 mph on its own (my foot was steady on the gas). It's harder to tell what's happening there. (I'm used to all gas vehicles w/ more gauges than the Prius, like RPM, vehicle temp, etc.) but that eventually went away and didn't happen on my hour+ trip home.

    Research here tells me it's my inverter coolant pump, which seems like an easy fix. (Not going to even check for warranty coverage at this point). My question is - Is this the sign of early hybrid battery issues? I bought this car used from some college friends of mine hoping it would last a year or so until I could buy a new one. (Looks like "friends" were getting out from under it before it fell apart. & Thanks to the City of Houston Mayor Turner, my husband won't get his job as a Houston Fire Fighter so our budget is strapped and we can't afford to get a newer car, as I originally hoped.) Personal ramble aside, should I brace myself for future expensive repair? My dad says I should replace the coolant pump and then sell the car for what I can while it's functional (not exactly the most ethical thing to do, but I suppose he's thinking practically). We just replaced the ABS actuator for around $500-600 and I'm exhausted from the back and forth of having a car that runs and then having to repair something every month. My dad does all the repairs and he lives an hour+ away from me.

    Any advice is appreciated. I'll get to work ordering a new pump and my husband and father in law can do the replacement pretty easily. If you'd like to take this car off my hands for cheap, I'd appreciate it!
     
    #1 DeterminedDIY, Apr 28, 2019
  2. strawbrad

    strawbrad http://minnesotahybridbatteries.com

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    Have you checked for coolant flow in the reservoir? What you described does not seem to match a failed pump.

    That could be a sign of a failing battery. Does the battery display bonce from full to empty? Have you heard the battery cooling fan running?

    Your next step should be getting the codes read before buying parts.
     
    #2 strawbrad, Apr 28, 2019
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  3. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    You may also have multiple problems, possibly the actuator pump again, failed inverter pump, and failing HV battery You don't have to guess at it, the codes will tell a big part of what's wrong.
     
    #3 JC91006, Apr 28, 2019
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  4. sam spade 2

    sam spade 2 Senior Member

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    Your NEXT step should be to get the 12 V battery tested and the connections checked........BEFORE you order any parts or start chasing codes which might be totally misleading.
     
    #4 sam spade 2, Apr 29, 2019
  5. strawbrad

    strawbrad http://minnesotahybridbatteries.com

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    Doh!

    I missed the code in the title. Start with the pump.
     
    #5 strawbrad, Apr 29, 2019
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  6. DeterminedDIY

    DeterminedDIY Junior Member

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    I have checked the flow in the reservoir, it's a no-go. There's no motion whatsoever. This is the only code my car is throwing, so I think I might start here. I haven't noticed any issues with the battery performance. 12V battery was replaced before I bought the car last year.
     
    #6 DeterminedDIY, Apr 30, 2019
  7. DeterminedDIY

    DeterminedDIY Junior Member

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    What is the difference between DTC codes and ABS codes? Auto Zone only pulled one code from my car (P0A93). When I had my actuator issue, I had to take my car to the dealer and they pulled 5 or 6 different codes, which I believe were all ABS. In other words, do I have to take my car to the dealer to pull codes that Auto Zone can't read? Specifically in relation to this issue?
     
    #7 DeterminedDIY, Apr 30, 2019
  8. strawbrad

    strawbrad http://minnesotahybridbatteries.com

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    ABS stands for Antilocking Braking System. The ABS codes are just a subset of the DTC, Diagnostic Trouble Codes.

    For $20 you can buy a Mini VCI cable at Amazon or Ebay. They all come with a bootleg copy of Toyota Techstream software. You also need an old Windows laptop, XP is the easiest, to run the software. This will give you the same setup a Toyota dealer uses. Kinda a must have for a determined DIY'er.
     
    #8 strawbrad, Apr 30, 2019
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  9. pumpanddump

    pumpanddump Junior Member

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    Mind if I bump this, because is exactly what is happening with my 2005. Same codes more or less - just that the hybrid battery codes are not specifically saying any cells are failing or failed. So I think the failing invertor pump is triggering the hybrid battery faults since it cant cool properly. What did you end up doing, did the repair to the invertor pump clear the hybrid battery codes? Or did the red triangle of death return even with a new pump?
     
    #9 pumpanddump, Sep 27, 2022
  10. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    What codes are you displaying? Do you have a Prius capable code reader?
     
    #10 JC91006, Sep 27, 2022
  11. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    That would be super remarkable if true, because the judgment about a P0A80 code is made by the battery ECU, way back inside the battery, not dependent on the underhood cooling pump that cools the inverter.
     
    #11 ChapmanF, Sep 27, 2022
  12. ColoradoCrow

    ColoradoCrow Active Member

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    Yes. I would replace the hybrid coolant pump with an OEM if I were you ASAP $168 at the dealership or Toyota of Olathe has great prices. The job is not that hard especially if your dad replaced the ABS unit. Just remove the drivers headlight first and clamp off the hoses to reduce loosing coolant. Aside from the combination meter going out or the MvD unit on the dash still working you have already fixed all the big jobs. I personally would keep that car for another 3-4 years and start putting away $100 a month to save for a new one. If you can.
     
    #12 ColoradoCrow, Sep 27, 2022
  13. ColoradoCrow

    ColoradoCrow Active Member

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    You can buy a cheap aftermarket pump on Amazon for like $50. It will work… for a month or 3 or maybe a year…. And then you will have to do it again. It took me about 90 min to do it and I went pretty slow and cleaned everything I could. Also clean your hybrid fan motor search you tube. Cost nothing but time and some alcohol and q tips. Well worth it. Also new clean cabin air filter works wonders. Cheap and easy.
     
    #13 ColoradoCrow, Sep 27, 2022
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  14. pumpanddump

    pumpanddump Junior Member

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    After replacing the invertor pump today--- I didn't bleed it yet --- I put it through techstream and I am not getting P0A80 error codes - but it is marked as pending. I'm going to do the bleeding tomorrow afternoon... test drive, and tech stream it for codes.
    I have a few generic codes - B1421, B1271, and P3000 -- the last one probably because of the non bleeding. My girl drove the car briefly to the grocery store a few miles away and the check engine light clicked on - but not the triangle of death.
    I have a much longer thread about this... I will link this info here.. and stop posting here.

    Triangle of Death appeared today... | Page 2 | PriusChat
     
    #14 pumpanddump, Oct 2, 2022
    Last edited: Oct 2, 2022
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