Technical (and legal) advice on HV battery replacement? SF Bay Area

Charging and balancing your battery pack after it's been sitting for a long time is standard operating procedure before starting it. But the thieves would rather tell you that you need a new pack. Problem is OEM replacement packs are on backorder and could be months and that $3200 price is a bit high. You might find a shop that will charge and balance for you via this map here: Dealer Map | Hybrid Automotive Approved Resellers | Hybrid Automotive Or you could buy the equipment and DIY via that website. Alternatively, you could build your own: Build Hybrid Battery Maintenance Gear For Under $100 | PriusChat Or maybe @SFO will see this and can loan you his charger.

 

I would pursue the battery claim with insurance. It failed as a result of the catalytic theft and delay in replacement

 

Except the battery is not permanently broken, it just needs a charge and balance.

 

It's permanently broken. There is nothing in the repair manual to repair that.

 

So that's why Dorman, GreenBean and GreenTec sell refurbished battery packs for $1600 that is exactly that?

The logic you're using is the same as once a car engine goes bad you can't fix it and have to get a new one. It's BS and it's a huge scam that Toyota built into to hybrid system to maximize profits, rather than repairability.

Apple actually ended up in court for slowing down phones that were older to force people to buy new ones. It's the same scam. Don't get ripped off for no reason!

 

The OP is inquiring on an insurance claim, Toyota is stating the battery needs replacement. He will submit that paperwork and give the phone number of the Toyota dealer suggesting the repair. Toyota does not have a repair option, just a replacement option. That's for insurance purposes.

 

Insurance company isn't going to cover that because cat repair in California combined with battery replacement is more than blue book value of vehicle... Besides OEM packs are back-ordered for a long, long time so it will be months...

 

A few years ago there was a similar event where the HV battery died as a result of another covered event. Insurance covered that battery

 

if the dealer put the new cat in, submit a claim, it can't hurt.

in the meantime, call luscious garage and avi's automotive for quotes.

in the end, you could try reconditioning, or if you don't want to diy, try companies like green bean, but run it through here first, there are a lot of scammers out there.

 

Depending on what the insurance has to say, the dealer in Walnut Creek usually has the best price for a new OEM battery OTC (they may have the best installed price as well), but call around for other nearby installed pricing and "over the counter" sales of such. Post the least expensive OTC price found, and I'll see if I can do better. If interested, I can assist with the install, and or have 28 spent modules (free!) that can be used for the 'core charge'. Either of the mentioned aftermarket options may work as well, including the installation of such. Be sure to clean up the HV fan when doing the battery replacement.

Personally concerned with your cat being restolen in the short term, my neighbor just had hers taken (again!!) the day after replacement.

You're also welcome to experiment with the 'grid charger' setup, though it may not be of much help at this point. Did you have any interest in DIY swapping of the failed module(s), the fix won't last even close to 10+ years, but then it won't cost 1600+ either.

FYI : you're moderated until you've posted 5 times.

 

Was that the "over the counter" price for the HV traction battery, not including tax, or the refundable core charge of around $1350.

 

This situation can usually be quickly resolved just by force charging the battery, if it's desired to get the car back on the road. It doesn't need to be complicated.

As an original battery ages, the 28 individual modules tend to "wear" differently. Each one develops a different "self-discharge" characteristic over time. This is when a battery loses charge during storage. If the car sits for a while, the self discharge may be enough to trigger a battery code. Very often, this can be overcome merely by starting the car, putting it into drive, holding the brake and giving it gas to keep the engine running so it charges the battery. Keep it charging until it's high blue or green on the display. Then turn the car off, disconnect the 12v battery for a minute to reset all codes. Restart the car and drive on. A weak module that shows up after sitting 2 MONTHS may very well never show up again for years when the car is driven normally.

 

Do try the force charge, but given the 1.3v difference, you likely have a failed cell in one of those 2 modules. Those DTCs may return again.

Driving home should be (mostly) fine, just drive slower with no heavy gas or sudden braking. Best to do the force charge at home in case you have an issue with a dirty throttle body after resetting the 12v battery, that way you aren't stuck at the dealership etc.

The force charge should only take a few minutes at most.

To clarify, with the vehicle "ready", engage the parking brake (safety 3rd), press and continue to hold down the brake pedal with your left foot, select 'D', press down on the gas pedal with your right foot, watch the MFD (center display screen) for a change in the HV battery SOC (state of charge), keep charging until "...it's high blue or green on the display. Then turn the car off, disconnect the 12v battery for a minute to reset all codes. Restart the car and drive on...". It will take 2 attempts to start the vehicle after reconnecting the 12v source, power cycle it once (on/off), then it will start normally the second attempt.

Not all dealers will sell a HV battery OTC, so best to confirm that you can walk with the part and then have 30 days to return the core.

 

the sitting is what probably sent an already weak battery over the edge. if gecko caused the sitting, they should accept responsibility. if the repair shop caused the sitting, you're probably out of luck.

$2100 for an oem is a pretty good price, if they have one in stock. $800. is about double what they should charge