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Preparing for hybrid battery failure?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by DaveFromDecatur, Dec 15, 2012.

  1. drulanier

    drulanier Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 9, 2010
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    Location:
    Louisville, KY
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    I highly recommend Steve at Autobeyours. A very cost effective fix if you regularly maintain your Prius and plan to keep it until the wheels fall off. Just in case anyone wants to know - I left with plenty of time to go the 220 miles to get the refurbished unit; it ended up taking me 4.5 hours one way (total avg of 48 mph). For the first 100 or so miles, it ran like it always has, getting 42 mpg and averaging about 60 mph, all with the check engine, triangle, and similar lights, but solid power/performance. At about 102 miles, the engine started racing, high revving and the engine had about 30% of its original power. I could only hit about 45 mph unless going down hill; the hills were brutal, and so was merging into I-65 traffic in the morning hours. The cooling fan was running non-stop. I arrived at Steve's right before 9am ET, Steve did the swap and conducted a test drive, and I was gone by 10am. By the time I got back on the interstate (10 min later), the Prius battery had a solid charge and it drove like it did the day I bought it. Made the trip home averaging about 70 mph and 42 mpg. I was worried that I would tear it up driving it that far but Steve said a lot of his customers with a HV fail did the same thing and they all made it. Looking back, I am glad I drove it there to help with the install, but I was very close to pulling the HV myself and driving our other car. Let me know if anyone has any questions. Glad to have this forum to learn from experiences! Drew
     
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  2. jadziasman

    jadziasman Prius owner emeritus

    Joined:
    Jan 17, 2011
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    Location:
    District 6
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    Total cost of the swap - parts and labor?
     
  3. drulanier

    drulanier Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 9, 2010
    24
    4
    0
    Location:
    Louisville, KY
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    HV Battery was $895, labor $200: $1,095 out the door

    * Steve also swapped my MFD for about $350 at 164k
     
  4. jadziasman

    jadziasman Prius owner emeritus

    Joined:
    Jan 17, 2011
    1,355
    487
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    Location:
    District 6
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    Thanks. That is an excellent price.
     
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  5. usnavystgc

    usnavystgc Die Hard DIYer and Ebike enthusiast.

    Joined:
    Jul 29, 2011
    3,159
    989
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    Location:
    Tucson, AZ
    Vehicle:
    2005 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    Glad it all worked out for you. That is indeed an excellent price and I'm predicting you will have many more pleasurable miles in the future.
     
    drulanier likes this.