1. Attachments are working again! Check out this thread for more details and to report any other bugs.

PiP Won't Start!!!

Discussion in 'Gen 1 Prius Plug-in 2012-2015' started by Ph33zy, Sep 4, 2013.

  1. Ph33zy

    Ph33zy Junior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 21, 2012
    26
    0
    0
    Location:
    Irvine
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    Mt 2012 PiP didn't start this morning nor would it charge. I was running late for work this morning so I didn't get a chance to troubleshoot yet, but I'm hoping I just left the lights on (even though I thought I have the lights set on auto) and the 12V battery died.

    Has anyone had a similar situation? If the 12V battery dies, does that mean I cannot charger the larger battery for EV? Nothing turned on when I tried to start the car.
     
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    107,785
    48,987
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    since the 12v turns on the computers, that is a strong possibility.
     
  3. Ph33zy

    Ph33zy Junior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 21, 2012
    26
    0
    0
    Location:
    Irvine
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    Is jump starting a Prius PiP the same as any normal car (Don't have the manual with me since I'm at work, but will check it out once I get home).
     
  4. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    107,785
    48,987
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    yes, you can jump the battery of from under the hood. DON'T CROSS THE CONNECTIONS! sorry for yelling.:cool:
     
    Ph33zy likes this.
  5. Ph33zy

    Ph33zy Junior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 21, 2012
    26
    0
    0
    Location:
    Irvine
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A


    Just for clarification, what do you mean by hatch? Do you mean the trunk? Is that where one would normally jump the 12 volt battery? I just downloaded a PDF version of the PiP manual and I only see mention of jump starting under the hood using the "exclusive jump starting terminal."

    Also what battery charger would you recommend? I'll sift thru the reviews, but was wondering if you had a preference since I haven't even thought about this before.

    Amazon.com: 10amp battery charger
     
  6. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    107,785
    48,987
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    yes, the trunk is the hatch as in hatchback. if the battery is dead, the hatch won't pop electrically. but you can crawl in the back and there is a manual release. if you can get charging cables of charger to the hood, there is a jump starting terminal. it's plastic on one side of the positive terminal, so make sure you're connected to the metal. if you go with a charger, get the right size (search here unless the owners manual has it) you don't want to charge the 12v too fast, you can damage it.
     
  7. mrbigh

    mrbigh Prius Absolutum Dominium

    Joined:
    Sep 6, 2005
    3,686
    699
    2
    Location:
    Long Island, NY
    Vehicle:
    Other Electric Vehicle
    If after you jump start your car and everything is operational, let the vehicle be in "ON" mode to recharge the AUX battery for a while. If you decide to recharge the AUX batt, you must disconnected the positive lead from the vehicle and then start charging for several hours.
    You can NOT recharge the AUX batt while connected to the vehicle, you may fry the on board computers, navigation or radio systems. I seeing it happened.
     
  8. iplug

    iplug Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 21, 2012
    2,450
    1,698
    0
    Location:
    Rocklin, CA
    Vehicle:
    Other Electric Vehicle
    Model:
    ----USA----
    prius_in_pa = Dan Cathy = jnet = Bean Counter,

    He's back...
     
    chesleyn, Ken Blake and Tracksyde like this.
  9. 3PriusMike

    3PriusMike Prius owner since 2000, Tesla M3 2018

    Joined:
    Jun 21, 2009
    2,938
    2,288
    0
    Location:
    Silicon Valley
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    I accidentally must have left my dome light on when I went away for 10 days. (I know I went to get something from the car while it was dark before I left). Anyway, when I returned the car was dead...wouldn't start, lights wouldn't work, nothing when I pushed the start button. When plugging in the charger, nothing happened.

    I connected a 12v external charger to the car (via the underhood connection on the fuse box) and it started right up. I re-plugged in the EVSE and it started charging right away.

    NOTE TO TOYOTA. This is a bit of a silly "the way its always been" design. It is a plugin car. It has a big traction battery. We shouldn't have to go through this...make the car more fail safe in two ways. First, it would be best if you couldn't drain the 12v battery by leaving something on for hours and hours. Second, but even if you do there should be some easy way to manually cause the traction battery to give the 12v battery some charge (in PIP and all hybrids).
    Third, we have a PIP, we have a power source, we have a cable. Why make us go to all the trouble of connecting a 12vdc source to the 12v battery?
    Be creative...fix this shortcoming.
    In conventional gas cars the 12v battery is the only way do get juice to start them (short of a push start). With a big traction battery and possibly a electrical connection via the EVSE we shouldn't need to "jump start" with 12v cables anymore (except as a final last resort). And it isn't a safety issue...anything can be made safer than 12v jumper cables where people don't know plus to plus, minus to minus, connecting order, connect one minus to the car body, etc.

    Mike
     
    Andyprius1, srzbae and Jeff N like this.
  10. Jeff N

    Jeff N The answer is 0042

    Joined:
    Oct 23, 2010
    2,382
    1,304
    0
    Location:
    California, USA
    Vehicle:
    2011 Chevy Volt
    YES!

    It's just bizarre that all of the traction battery cars have these small 12v batteries that completely disable the car when they die due to some parasitic drain after a few hours or even days.

    The cars are periodically waking up to check one thing or another. I would think they could add an ocassional 12v battery check and be able to tap the big battery to recharge it if needed. They should also set a warning code so the driver gets notified the next time they get in and possibly a telematics push notification could be sent to drivers via an SMS message to their phones as well.
     
  11. Lourun

    Lourun Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2011
    289
    35
    0
    Location:
    Glen Rock NJ
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    I inadvertently left my hatch ajar and didn't notice the warning light or the inside roof lights on lucky in was only for a few hours, but when I started it up in EV the ice came on right away, I guess it had to charge the 12 volt battery.
     
  12. Jumpjet

    Jumpjet Member

    Joined:
    Nov 21, 2012
    77
    25
    0
    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Advanced
    I don't understand why Toyota did not implement some type of power kill timer when the door/hatch is accidentally left open for an extended amount of time. Especially since we have such a small 12v battery. Most cars will turn off lights after a certain amount of time to prevent battery drain.
     
  13. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    107,785
    48,987
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    whoa, did this thread get edited?:eek:
     
  14. Ph33zy

    Ph33zy Junior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 21, 2012
    26
    0
    0
    Location:
    Irvine
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    whew... jumped my car from the under the hood and everything is working again.

    It looks like i may have left my light on. My headlight switch was set to the "on" position, which I had previously thought was "auto" this whole time since my headlights usually turn off when I lock my car via the remote. I'm guessing I forgot to hit the lock button after locking so my lights stay on until the battery dies (can anyone confirm this?).

    In the manual, it states that there should be an "auto" position for the headlights but there doesn't appear to be one in my PiP base model. Am I overlooking something here?
     
  15. Ph33zy

    Ph33zy Junior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 21, 2012
    26
    0
    0
    Location:
    Irvine
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A

    what do you mean?
     
  16. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    107,785
    48,987
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    i see quotes from prius in pa and bean counter, but i can't find thier threads?
     
  17. mrbigh

    mrbigh Prius Absolutum Dominium

    Joined:
    Sep 6, 2005
    3,686
    699
    2
    Location:
    Long Island, NY
    Vehicle:
    Other Electric Vehicle
    I went through the same circumstances and I can only said " stupidity has it's own consequences "
     
  18. Andyprius1

    Andyprius1 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 4, 2013
    2,327
    859
    1
    Location:
    Cool CA
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    A warning: If you have drained the 12v to the point that itwillnot go into Ready, you have injured the 12v. You should leave the car in ready for at least 8 hours so it can charge from the traction battery. OR: Go thru the proper technique with a off board 12V charger. If you don't go thru this, you could have problems down the line.
     
  19. fuzzy1

    fuzzy1 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 26, 2009
    17,118
    10,045
    90
    Location:
    Western Washington
    Vehicle:
    Other Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    Take it as a sign that the moderators are playing whack-a-mole with a certain banished member, who repeatedly reappears under new names.

    (I missed the squabbles causing the original banishment, so don't know any of the backstory, but have seen others in similar situations.)
     
  20. Allannde

    Allannde Just a Senior

    Joined:
    Jan 7, 2006
    874
    138
    0
    Location:
    Washington State
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Advanced
    My "two cents " to this discussion:

    I have discovered by using a current tester that the 12 volt battery charges when the traction battery charges. If you are in the habit of charging just before you drive (as the owner's manual suggests), you should always have at least some charge in the 12 volt battery.

    There is another rule which works. Keep the car locked. The car will not lock with a door or hatch which is ajar. Your smart key will let you into a locked car without any fuss.

    I don't have any trouble with my 12 volt battery.

    As for Toyota assuring that the 12 volt battery can not be run down, this requires that all sources of power be cut off when the car is stopped. Actually, the 12 volt battery exists so that drains on the traction battery CAN be shut off. There are all sorts of things like the clock, the smart key system which eliminates the need for a key and all manner of electronics which require some juice which we would miss if they were shut off. The traction battery could be left on but that would affect the available range. There is no simple solution or it would be in effect.

    It is amazing how nearly "bullet proof"our car is even though it is one of the most complex.