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Traction Battery Mystery

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by James Nakamura, Nov 18, 2017.

  1. James Nakamura

    James Nakamura Junior Member

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    2007 Prius 211K miles with oil level full. New battery from Greentec in April of 2016 (19 months ago). Getting the Red Triangle/Check Engine/Parens Exclamation Point on the dash. This happens when I have to accelerate heavily, stop at a light or when it's been sitting for more than a day and I first start it up.
    Battery level on the display goes low and then recovers quickly, engine kicks on to charge more frequently but the MPG is still steady.
    OBDII codes are the mysterious 7E8, 7EB with 7EB has the P0A80. So bad traction battery right? Why so soon after getting a replacement battery?
    Got out Mini-VCI and got consistent 16.3-16.5V. So the question is - what the issue? I can temporarily clear the code but still get it once in a while. I don't want to fork out another ~1500 dollars if I don't have to.
    Please help!
     

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    #1 James Nakamura, Nov 18, 2017
  2. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    Time to contact Greentec for warranty
     
    #2 JC91006, Nov 18, 2017
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  3. dolj

    dolj Senior Member

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    Yes, your "new" (to you) battery is failing, and here's the reason why. Your ...
    ... is not a new battery at all, but a reworked old battery. If you open up the battery case and decode the module serial numbers, you will find various dates from 2004-2007. In addition, Greentec do not have a very good reputation (on PC) for making a good product. They seem to have a lot of premature failures. Depending on your warranty status, you may be able to get a replacement. Be prepared to do the same again in 6-18 months.
     
    #3 dolj, Nov 18, 2017
  4. Dxta

    Dxta Senior Member

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    ..what do you mean by oil full? You mean its gauge to the full level, or what?

    Well, from the symptoyyouve just described here, you've got a weak pack.

    Just like @dolj said, that isn't a new pack. Its a rebuilt one. Get it back to em, and they might fix it. But if they try to shy away, you gotta start preparing for a new OEM Toyota pack, or an alternative new cylindrical modules in a pack that's being sold here on PC for less, by a fellow member. Can't remeythe link right now though.

    Alternatively, if you a diyer, you could rip open the pack, and check for the weak/dead ones and replace them from eBay.


    Dxta
     
    #4 Dxta, Nov 19, 2017
  5. fotomoto

    fotomoto Senior Member

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    Ouch! Is the greentec (used/rebuilt) battery already out of the warranty period?
     
    #5 fotomoto, Nov 19, 2017
  6. TMR-JWAP

    TMR-JWAP Senior Member

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    If you bought their lowest version (~1000 bucks) the warranty is only for 6 months. I contacted them about 2 weeks ago to explain the differences between their three versions of batteries. They were happy to regurgitate the website info, but have not responded to any of my follow-up questions. So I just assume they don't have answers.
     
    #6 TMR-JWAP, Nov 19, 2017
  7. ericbecky

    ericbecky Hybrid Battery Hero

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    First you will need to check the warranty from Greentec.
    Did you install this battery? If so check the receipt.

    If it is in warranty, then do not mess with and and work with Greentec on the replacement.

    If it is out of warranty, then you will have some tough decisions on how you want to proceed.

    If you do the work yourself it will be less than paying someone else to do it, but that depends on your time and comfort of working on the battery pack.

    I'm always up for a chat to walk people through the options. Feel. Free to call.
     
    #7 ericbecky, Nov 19, 2017
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  8. Prodigyplace

    Prodigyplace Senior Member

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    If you DIY you could a new battery kit from @2k1Toaster may also be an option. @ericbecky has been testing one. I do not know the warranty on those new cells.
     
    #8 Prodigyplace, Nov 19, 2017
  9. James Nakamura

    James Nakamura Junior Member

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    Oil level - Full on the dip stick FWIW. I was mostly clarifying that it wasn't the oil level low issue.
    I know that is was a refurb battery (I meant new as in purchased and installed as a new addition) and sadly this is out of warranty.
    So, a few questions: is anybody in the Knoxville, TN area interested in helping me replace whatever "bad" cells I have in the traction battery or finding a better long term solution?
    How can one acquire a new OEM battery and what is the cost?
    I am fairly handy but would still like to work with someone experienced on this type of work.
     
    #9 James Nakamura, Nov 20, 2017
  10. fotomoto

    fotomoto Senior Member

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    James, see the link in my signature for more info and choices on what you face (there is a now a new choice from member 2k1toaster). Posts #1 and 31 are the begin/end of my saga.

    GOOD LUCK!
     
    #10 fotomoto, Nov 20, 2017
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  11. Prodigyplace

    Prodigyplace Senior Member

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    @2k1Toaster normally charges $1600 including shipping in the continental US. I believe he has a special for $1500 right now. You keep the old modules. You may be able to resell the good ones.
    If a dealer sells you a battery (some will not sell just the part) there will be a $1350 core charge, IIRC and only a 1 year warranty. If the dealer installs a battery, there is a 3 year warranty. Pricing varies by dealer.
     
    #11 Prodigyplace, Nov 20, 2017
    Last edited: Nov 20, 2017
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  12. James Nakamura

    James Nakamura Junior Member

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    OK, well it was the traction battery and to say that I would not recommend Greentec would be an understatement. The 18 month warranty battery had a hodge podge of cells clearly pieced together without regard to age (and possibly voltage level). If you look at the attached picture, you'll see varying letters in the 4th position and from what I've been told is indicative of the year the cell was manufactured.

    On top of that, at least one cell had developed a crack/leak that was probably the culprit of all of my headaches.

    So based on this experience, I would say that I won't be doing any more business with Greentec nor will I ever recommend them.

    I did end up getting a battery from @TMR-JWAP who kindly delivered and installed a new battery with all brand new cells. So far it has been running like a champ! 2017-11-24 08.49.56.jpg
     

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    #12 James Nakamura, Nov 27, 2017
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  13. 2k1Toaster

    2k1Toaster Brand New Prius Batteries

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    Glad you got it working. You put in a new battery right? Unfortuantely that is common in the rebuilding business. It is not neccessarily bad to have such a mismatch of date cells as long as all the cells in there have degraded gracefully at somewhat equal amounts. For example a 2013 taxi battery module with 200k miles on it, may match a 2007 with 80k miles on it quite well. This is where testing the capacity of each battery module before pairing and making a pack comes into play. The problem is that most people do not do this and you get this hodgepodge that works for just past the warranty period.
     
    #13 2k1Toaster, Nov 27, 2017
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