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Please tell me this is a mnor problem

Discussion in 'Generation 1 Prius Discussion' started by mommawave, Mar 19, 2011.

  1. mommawave

    mommawave New Member

    Joined:
    Mar 19, 2011
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    Location:
    Ringgold, GA
    Vehicle:
    2002 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    We bought a 2002 Prius last year to replace our murdered Toyota Echo. We love the car, but this triangle of death is driving me nuts! The lights came on again last night so while my husband was taking it for an oil change today, he asked them to do a diagnostic and came up with error code P3011 Battery block 1 is weak. As I've been checking the forums, I've noticed everyone with a battery block error seems to be getting multiple error codes, but we just got the one. Is this good news for us and our poor car? And what should we do next? The dealer we bought the car from has hybrid certified mechanics, and we plan on calling on Monday, but we have a vacation coming up that can't be canceled at this point so money is tight. Is it possible it can be a minor adjustment? (fingers crossed)...
     
  2. SageBrush

    SageBrush Senior Member

    Joined:
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    Location:
    Southwest Colorado
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Two
    reinvolt.com

    I suggest you do not ignore this until the car stops driving, since your repair cost will go up when you cannot drive the car, and you will likely be more inconvenienced.
     
  3. JimboPalmer

    JimboPalmer Tsar of all the Rushers

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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
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    Three
  4. mommawave

    mommawave New Member

    Joined:
    Mar 19, 2011
    2
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    Location:
    Ringgold, GA
    Vehicle:
    2002 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    Thanks for the advice. The lights for this problem just came on last night, and I have no intention of letting it go. I know the guy we bought the car from had mentioned replacing single cells in the battery, so I'm betting he could do it for us, and when he quoted us a price for the catalytic converter last month he was very reasonably priced, so I feel he'll be fair. We'll need to try to get it to him on Monday. Keep your fingers crossed for us that it's not the whole battery!
     
  5. bobofky

    bobofky Member

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    Jun 18, 2007
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    I don't know if you have solved your problem but a faulty 12v battery can cause the problem you described. If the car doesn't exhibit any abmornal opearting behavior try swapping the 12v battery and see if the warning lights stay off. You may save some money.