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Quick and dirty rebalance...

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by ChaseE, Nov 14, 2021.

  1. ChaseE

    ChaseE Junior Member

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    Picking up a very low mileage (52k) 2005 prius this week that was in a city government fleet till it's catalytic convertor was stolen...purchased an replacement cat pipe, denso o2, OBD-II bluetooth scanner that works with the Dr.Prius app, and a HLG-80H-C350A to use as a grid charger. I have a 12v 6a trickle charger to hook up to the traction battery fan, other than running some inline fuses and multimeter, is there anything else I need here?
     
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  2. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    before you do all that, you should take the battery out and check all the modules. clean off all the corrosion.

    If this is a city vehicle, it may have already had a new replacement battery at some point, so look for multiple warning stickers on the battery cover, that's usually indication of a new replacement. The original battery only had 1 warning label in the middle of the cover.

    If this indeed is a newer battery, it may not need anything to start and drive
     
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  3. nancytheprius

    nancytheprius Active Member

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    a fresh oil change would be nice too
     
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  4. ChaseE

    ChaseE Junior Member

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    I can check the modules with Dr. Prius right? Clean corrosion on buss bars...got it. Fingers crossed for multiple warning stickers...they did a 10min idle power with high beams, AC, and fans full blast up by request, had a check engine light (no cat) but no RTOD...some of the other priuses they had up for auction did have RTOD however.

    Yes I have Motul 8100 ECO-clean 0w-30, Bosch 3325 filter, some DOT4, and Redline D6 ready to go for when I get home, will likely replace the air and cabin air filters for good measure as well...maybe even a set of those new NGK ruthenium plugs for the fun of science! :) I like to always start with a clean general maintenance slate with any "new" used vehicle.
     
  5. nancytheprius

    nancytheprius Active Member

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    yep you can check the voltages and Internal resistance values thru the obd2 sensor and dr prius app (i use an app called carscanner bc my current scanner isn’t compatible with dr prius
     
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  6. ChaseE

    ChaseE Junior Member

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    Just picked it up today, forgot to bring the OBDII module with me but after installing the new cat on o2 sensor I filled up the tank, inflated the tires to 44psi, and drove 130mi back home...total trip average according to the consumption screen was 55.7mpg?!?! I thought the EPA rating for highway was 45?? Battery was going back and forth between 6-7 bars from blue to green so I'm assuming that's a good sign? Air filter is clean, motor oil is clear (though a 1/4" over the full line on the dipstick), tires have tons of tread (Goodyear assurance). I'll report progress tomorrow once I scan it and clear the check engine light. Is there some sort of ECU reset-learning procedure I need to do so it can trim fuel now that the new cat is installed?
     
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  7. nancytheprius

    nancytheprius Active Member

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    I would drain some of that oil out and make sure it is at the proper level. I had a very bad experience from an express place overfilling my oil. Ideally you want the battery level staying at 6 bars/blue, but 55 mpg is impressive, so you seem to be in good shape. Were there a lot of hills? That could cause it to go to green. Did you have to charge either of the batteries to get it to drive? Congrats tho, seems to be a successful job
     
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  8. ChaseE

    ChaseE Junior Member

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    Yeah I'm gonna do the oil today, I found a receipt in the glove box and it looks like the change was done 2 years ago...the listed odometer mileage was only 900 mi less than it is now, crazy! Most of the highway was flat but there was some gentle grades that went on for a quarter mile or so here and there.
     
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  9. vvillovv

    vvillovv Senior Member

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    I can't see all the things you see, but from what I've read so far it sounds like the cars in decent mechanical shape, 55mpg at 130 miles. Was that after the cat install and/or getting some data / DTCs from DrPrius?
    The oil is the only thing I'd do right away, unless you see something else that needs immediate attention.
    I'd get some numbers with shorter trips first, both stills of video of DrPrius and mpg data for warmup cycle and trip length. Compare what you find with what you get after finishing up the rest of the maintenance.
    Just some suggestions from me about what I would do it I saw the same things you already wrote about above.
    I have oil overfill stories too, one of the reasons I'm wondering if you can tell the diff between your motul 0-30 and mobil 1 0-16 or 0-20. I've never had 0-30 but I can't tell the diff between 0-16 and 0-20, probably without a microscope.
     
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  10. Another

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    Go to Toyota owners website and get free service history. Likely they took it to dealer for service. If no, then buy a carfax report to track what has been done and when.
     
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  11. ChaseE

    ChaseE Junior Member

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    Did the full life expectancy test on the Dr Prius app...90% is a new pack apparently, so 88.68% is pretty darn good I think! One thing I noticed is that module #7 is consistently lower than the rest, but I don't think being off by 0.13v from the best looking one (module #1) is too bad, but the internal resistance reading makes me think I'm going to have to clean some corrosion...10-15mohms is ideal I've read.

    Amazingly, that was BEFORE putting the new cat in and clearing the ECU...had to have been running rich with no o2 sensor, and yet still crazy efficient. Oil changed out yesterday, interesting that the Bosch filter I got is longer than the OEM one? Threaded in fine, so I guess it can't hurt to have a little extra filtration media.
     

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  12. ChaseE

    ChaseE Junior Member

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    Update: cleaned the MAF sensor and throttle body along with replacing the spark plugs with new NGK ruthenium ($11 each, oof). Noticed some rat pellets on the valve cover, fingers crossed I don't have to deal with chewed electrical wires at some point!

    Idle is smoother now, transition between electric motor to ICE is not as obvious (I don't feel it through the car vibrating as much), and it feels like the motor has a bit more power when accelerating or maintaining speeds on positive grades.

    Just came back from a 75mi round trip highway excursion that has about 1200ft of elevation changes...54.2mpg. I've got to say I really wasn't expecting this kind of mpg, especially since it's using winter gas formulation which is terrible for efficiency in any other car I've ever owned. Next test will be post rebalancing/corrosion cleanup.
     
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  13. TMR-JWAP

    TMR-JWAP Senior Member

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    Don't over-think this. If you're planning to disassemble the HV battery, you're more likely to mess the battery up than to make any significant improvements. Your IRs are very consistent. You're voltages are very close, the one block only looks odd because of the scaling on the graph. You found a gem. Drive it and enjoy it.
     
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  14. vvillovv

    vvillovv Senior Member

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    I doubt any of us were expecting reports like yours about a 2005 GEM 2
     
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  15. TMR-JWAP

    TMR-JWAP Senior Member

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    Nice play!!
     
  16. ChaseE

    ChaseE Junior Member

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    Good point...what about maybe just spraying CRC contact cleaner on the posts and bus bars and a light wire brush scrub without removing them? I've had great success with that stuff fixing gremlins on 40 year old circuit boards in home stereo gear.
     
  17. ChaseE

    ChaseE Junior Member

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    Just did that...ECU update in 06', recall 60C (??) In 06', recall 90L pedal modification in 10', A0N REPLACE HV ELECTRIC LSC in 11' (inverter water pump?), C0T - STEERING SHAFT in 13' and that's it. So it looks like its all recalls, and scheduled maintenance was done by the county in house.
     
  18. vvillovv

    vvillovv Senior Member

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    I had to go back to the OP for the actual year, model. since the current report sounded a lot like a Prime, with a not yet update profile. The DrPrius attachment should have given it away, but for some reason, I was not sure.
     
  19. Another

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    Depending on how many other cars or Prius’s they have they may have an in-house mechanic to do oil and fluid changes. Maybe call them and ask? Also a carfax report isn’t expensive and shows many other service items from jiffy lube etc and independent shops. If it’s an independent shop, most will give you history if the prior owner approves it.
     
  20. vvillovv

    vvillovv Senior Member

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    Now I'm starting to wonder if the county did some experimenting with the Gen 2 cats. Since yours didn't have the triangle of death and the other(s) you looked at for sale did. And the regular maintenance was done in house by the county.
    Were you able to use an aftermarket cat or did you have to get the OEM cat?

    See Gen 2 Cat in Prisuchat search

    one bad search try and search gets lame real quick
    or here
    or
    https://www.hotcars.com/heres-why-prius-catalytic-converter-theft-is-such-a-prominent-issue/