Track battery heat issue

Sounds like you're doing everything right to address the situation... And while the battery is running a bit hot, you're still able to lower the temp. Next step if problem is persistent would be to find someone who has a thermal camera and pop the cover of the pack and it will show you which of the 168 cells is running hot. Unless of course your refurb battery has a warranty, in which case you send them a Dr. Prius screenshot when battery temps are at their extreme highest and let them deal with it.

Also probably a bigger challenge than you'd like to deal with, but wife shouldn't drive it anymore on hottest days of the year if she's not going to use air conditioning because her discomfort of using it is way less of a cost than the cost of the battery overheating and failing.

 

The fan almost never runs in a healthy pack... It's also a multi speed fan so if it runs at the slowest speeds you'll be very challenged to hear it. How often you need to pull it out of 124 degree temps is going to define alot about what's going on. Hopefully that doesn't happen often?

Also this is all assuming you don't have a fan full of lint and debris...

 

My wife does too since it only come out of the top vents and dries her eyes out. She always had the vents pointed away from her for indirect cooling. Maybe that can work. Also I never heard my fan either until I got the app, so I have to remember to start the app every time now if I want to crank the fan up.

 

So what are the details of your refurbished battery? How much? Any warranty or discounts on future work?

 

The car is pretty smart. Why not just let it do it's thing? You're assuming the car has a problem. If the car is only calling for speed #1, then that's all the car thinks is needed. If the battery is too warm, the car will you know. It will also cut back on the max charge and discharge limits for the battery.

 

I've never heard the fan on our 2010, but monitored it's operation for a few years (with a ScanGauge II) and it was running, anywhere between speed 1 and 4 (out of 5??). My hearing's ok (not according to my wife though...).

I think our pack is fine, and I found the fan is pretty much always cycling on, albeit at it's lower speeds. I can recall cruising around 80 kmh, fully warmed up car, cool evening (coastal highway), no other traffic to speak of, and the pack temp settled in around 35C and the fan was speed 2. Again: never hear it, just from what SG was telling me.

 

Yeah, if you can afford a lithium pack you'll be amazed at how happy everything runs with those extra amps. Maybe you can work out a deal with your battery rebuilder to buy the rebuilt pack back because technically it's in great shape and you're noticing stuff that won't be a problem till later, so as far as he's concerned it's a good opportunity for him to have another pack at a lower price than he sells them for.

As for Project Lithium, there's only a couple-few weeks of supply left and factory is shut down for 6 months or longer due to Lithium and Nickel markets being gamed so high Jack can't build an affordable pack right now.

Also packs my friends have ordered on a Tuesday arrived on a friday and install is super easy, takes less that a few hours... If you use my affiliate link: https://projectlithium.com/?ref=9qLPw I'll offer you all the tech support you need and may be able to speed up customer service for you as I talk with Jack many times a week.

 

Gen3 Prius demand alot more from the same battery pack than Gen2 does...

 

I think you're overthinking it. 120ºF is not that hot for a battery. Now if it gets 140ºF or more, you might start to be concerned.

 

Yes, got notification of your purchase via link...

I hear ya' about spending that much money, not easy these days... But if you're using the car to generate money, in the long run it's probably going to be way less stressful. And the enjoyment of your car running more on the electric side than the gas side will be rewarding every time you drive. Hopefully you can make some money back selling your old pack back to the rebuilder. The fact that you're addressing this issue before the pack fails rather than after is smart!

As for the go/no go numbers on HV battery if you talk to the Stealerships it's soon as you get to first warning lights. If you talk to someone who has learned everything possible to rebuild packs it doesn't matter how many times you clear the error codes while you drive as long as it's not constant, it's also when the pack gets too hot to continue to safely drive without overheating the pack.

 

On the bright side, the wife can continue to drive without the air conditioner now... And you won't have to stare at your phone stressing out on battery temps.

 

You're frustrated because you're trying to see a problem where the car says there is no problem. You also won't listen. THE CAR IS SMART ENOUGH TO KNOW WHAT IT'S DOING. The go-no-go number is to leave it alone and stop worrying about it.

Is there really a 'normal' temperature for the HV battery. NOT REALLY. It operates in thousands of different conditions and temperatures.
Again, if it's calling for fan speed 1, it's because Toyota's billions of dollars of R&D says that's what is required for that condition. If your car sits in the sun all day and the car is 140F inside, guess what temp the HV battery is? More than your 120F. And the car will reduce it's charge and discharge limits if required and will adjust the cooling fan speed if needed.

You're using an app, written by a guy who came to the site years ago asking for advice on how to write an app or what info to include, etc, etc and has used that money to venture into batteries now. Granted, he's probably a fairly smart guy, but why do you assume his "red values" mean jack sh*t compared to what Toyota has programmed into the ecu?

There are many posts on this site by members who talk total sh*t about dealer and mechanics being so crazy on prices and how they're all rip-offs and stealerships, over and over and over again like it's a conspiracy. Yet you've been worked over and convinced that you need a new $2200 HV battery to replace a battery that has no codes? Remind me again about the definition of rip-off?
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