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Toyota Prius Electrical and Lighting Questions

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#26 of 85 Re: New Prius; Dead Battery [pathstar1] by stevegold Apr 21, 2007 (9:37 am)
Replying to: pathstar1 (Apr 21, 2007 9:13 am) It happened to me once when my 2004 was new. I jumped the small battery from the special under hood connections and it has worked fine ever since. I did buy a small battery, enough to start the computer, made the cigarette lighter outlet "always on" so it would power the computer, but have never had to use it for that purpose.
#27 of 85 Re: AIR CONDITIONING ISSUES - 05 PRIUS [kadensgram] by anna_g87 Apr 25, 2007 (5:55 pm)
Replying to: kadensgram (Apr 12, 2007 11:28 am) i am having a/c issues as well. mine is a 2/05 prius bought brand new. i love the car for the mileage i get but recently it will cost me $$ for repairs. i turn on the a/c, blower works but no cold air. i brought it in at a toyota dealership to get diagnosed and according to the tech they found a small hole in the condensor and the whole a/c unit, condensor and receiver dryer needs to be replaced at a cost of $1300 ... i bought additional warranty but they don't consider that to be covered. now it's an out of pocket expense ... but how did that HOLE get there? it took a while for them to diagnose the problem, they had to place a DYE in the system to see where fluid was leaking ... it's a really small hole according to the tech. i'd have to trust them on this since i have no clue about cars. but how can i get the warranty to cover this? ... it's only 2 years old. i've had 3 cars before the prius and i've never had to replace the a/c condensor unit in any of my previous cars. Replies to this message: kadensgram (Apr 26, 2007 7:39 pm)
#28 of 85 Re: AIR CONDITIONING ISSUES - 05 PRIUS [anna_g87] by kadensgram Apr 26, 2007 (7:39 pm)
Replying to: anna_g87 (Apr 25, 2007 5:55 pm) Perhaps this is being seen to warrenty as "Road damage" in otherwords the problem is not due to the failure of a part. Perhaps a rock or other item flew up from the road and made this minute hole. Look at your warrenty, especially the small print and see if indeed it is excluded. If you don't trust them you could take it to a private air conditioning business that someone you know highly reccomends and get a diagnosses and see if thats what they find, true it will cost to diagnose but it is a thought. Quite honestly I don't believe they will find my problem because they take it apart put it back together and then it works...they can't fix it because they can't find a broken part to replace they have had it 3 times so far. They don't charge me however my car was purchased to go between California and Arizona and its not going to do me anygood when i'm in Arizona and its 112 outside. perhaps you can go to the official"Toyota Web site and inquire there from the corporation. If I get mine fixed I will post it. I will check to see if you post additionally also, good luck.
#29 of 85 2004 Prius 12-V Auxilliary Battery Dies Unexpectedly by steve1c Apr 27, 2007 (1:21 pm)
It recently cost me over $300 to take care of the 12V battery dying suddenly with no dashboard indications of impending doom. The cost was about $100 for the tow to the dealer, and $215 for the battery and labor. Not a warranty item (a 2004 Prius w/60K miles, although I do have an extended warranty to 100K miles and 5 years).   We had just pulled into the parking lot of a local (Vegas) nursery, and the dash displays went stupid when I attempted to shut off the car. Nothing worked, and there was a bad/ strong (hydrogen sulphide like) smell in the car. Can't open the back hatch when the 12V system is dead, so it was difficult to get to the battery, buried in the back end. It was also hard to move the car onto the tow truck since the system has to be powered up to shift into neutral. We finally used the under-hood jump point to bring up the computers and switch into neutral. It took about 3-4 tries. The dealer confirmed the 12V battery had gone bad, and they replaced it. Everything works fine now. Just not happy about the cost, and I wonder what would have happened on the open (out in the desert) road or in traffic.   Here are what I see as design deficiencies: 1) 12V battery location in the passenger compartment, with potential for noxious fume generation and lack of ventilation; 2) lack of a remote, mechanical release for the hatch; 3) difficulty in placing the car in neutral should the 12V battery be disabled, or at least, lack of driver manual guidance for this situation; and 4) little or no warning that the 12V battery was going south. (In most conventional cars, we all know the symptoms: slow cranking, especially when cold; lights dimming). Had Nothing on the dash by way of warning.   Toyota Customer Service was pleasant, but basically read me the standard responses, and would not allow me to talk with technical/engineering personnel. Said they would pass my concerns along. Offered reimbursement (which I passed on) to "re-establish my lost confidence in the car." (I had expressed the concern about this happening on the open road or in Las Vegas traffic. Paying for the repair had nothing to do with them addressing the technical issues and my shaken sense of confidence.) I am really curious whether other owners have had the same thing happen... Replies to this message: pathstar1 (Apr 28, 2007 6:48 am) steve1c (May 02, 2007 9:04 pm) pathstar1 (May 03, 2007 5:53 am) evgnat (Apr 30, 2007 2:56 pm)
#30 of 85 Re: 2004 Prius 12-V Auxilliary Battery Dies Unexpectedly [steve1c] by pathstar1 Apr 28, 2007 (6:48 am)
Replying to: steve1c (Apr 27, 2007 1:21 pm) Your points are well taken, but I hope my clarifications are applicable. 1. The 12V auxiliary battery is ventilated to the outside (hose connected to it). It is true if it bursts this would be bypassed, but that is not very likely. The battery is similar to a motorcycle battery in that it has a vent tube. 2. Absolutely, a mechanical hatch release, even on the inside, would be nice (I thought I read it could be opened from the inside but perhaps not). 3. The inability to put the car in neutral has been "complained of" before. One fellow had the car in a small garage when the battery died. Tow truck operator put the front wheels on dollies to get it out. He could have just connected a small battery to the under hood "boost" point. 4. Maybe time to purchase a "Scangauge". It is an OBDII reader that will display up to four readouts in real time (all the time) out of about 18 choices. One is battery voltage. It sticks on the dash or wherever using velcro. Very handy. It can also read codes, reset codes, and act as a "trip meter". It can also be used in any vehicle 1996 or later (standard OBDII port).   Looks like you got a good price on the battery anyway. Some owners were charged over $300 to have it replaced. As for the towing cost, a AAA membership saved me those costs for towing. Paid for a couple years membership.   I'm surprised it failed so soon. Does the sun shine on the passenger side of your car when it's parked at home or work? Heat is very hard on lead-acid batteries.   A few owners have purchased one of those portable "boost" devices. They are portable 12V batteries, and they double as 115VAC power providers, some even have tire pumps built in. Not too expensive (under $100), at Autozone or Pepboys, I think I read. Replies to this message: steve1c (May 02, 2007 9:04 pm) pathstar1 (May 03, 2007 5:53 am)
#31 of 85 Re: 2004 Prius 12-V Auxilliary Battery Dies Unexpectedly [steve1c] by evgnat Apr 30, 2007 (2:56 pm)
Replying to: steve1c (Apr 27, 2007 1:21 pm) My 12V battery on 2004 Prius turned out to have a bad cell (as tested by the dealer service) and I had to replace it today. It is not readily available at the dealers and there was a few weeks wait at a few dealers to get it. It looks like Toyota has changed the battery model number at least twice in last few years.   Looking back, I have had the battery die on me twice in last two years but I had blamed it on something not turned off. Now I think it was an early warning for a bad battery. Recently it died two times in two weeks and also gave a weak display some times while turning on, after which I took it to a dealer. Alas, I found out out that I had exceeded 3yr/30K warranty on the battery by two weeks.   Word to the wise: get your battery checked out if it has died early in its life and unexpectedly on you.
#32 of 85 Re: 2004 Prius 12-V Auxilliary Battery Dies Unexpectedly [pathstar1] by steve1c May 02, 2007 (9:04 pm)
Replying to: pathstar1 (Apr 28, 2007 6:48 am) Well, you won't convince the tow truck operator that the battery was vented outside, because he complained about the fumes inside being bad, as he struggled to find that latch release.   We finally did find the mechanical release for the hatch. It is not obvious...even after looking at the manual. You have to put the rear seats down, remove the carpet and pan, pull open a small access on the hatch, and then feel around with your fingers for a small lever that will release the hatch.   Thanks for the lead on the scanguage. I'll check it out.   The car is normally garaged, except when I'm at work. Then it does sit in the desert sun. Still, I've had other cars out here that had batteries last 4-5 years no problem. And it never cost more than $60-70 to put in a new one myself.   I would still like to hear if anyone has experienced or heard of a Prius going dead while it's in motion. Replies to this message: pathstar1 (May 03, 2007 5:53 am)
#33 of 85 Re: 2004 Prius 12-V Auxilliary Battery Dies Unexpectedly [steve1c] by pathstar1 May 03, 2007 (5:53 am)
Replying to: steve1c (May 02, 2007 9:04 pm) You must have had a cell short on you. Sometimes a piece of lead comes loose and shorts out a cell. If the cell was fully charged, it will heat up and vent out the "emergency pressure release vent", bypassing the normal vent tube. Also possible the vent tube was not connected.   I've seen at least one other posting of a Prius going dead while driving due to the 12V battery failing. Well, all lights going on etc. and the car not going again once stopped.   For the price Toyota charges, a yellow top Optima size 51 battery would be a good replacement. You'd have to rework the mounting hardware and terminals, though.
#34 of 85 Battery Problems by lnm Jan 10, 2008 (3:06 pm)
I hope I can describe our situation accurately as I was not the driver when the problem occured. My husband drives our 2005 Prius approx. 50 miles daily. One snowy morning, he left the house and proceeded normally to the freeway on-ramp, about 3 miles from our house. As he got on the freeway, the Prius dropped to about 20 mph. The car wouldn't go any faster no matter how much gas was applied. The speedometer reading, however, displayed inaccurate speeds - 80 mph. Unaware of what to do, he completed his commute and drove it home that evening. I checked the car in the evening and witnessed the same problem - car wouldn't accelerate no matter how much pressure was applied to the gas pedal, and the speedometer displayed obviously incorrect speeds. The technology display didn't indicate any problem and no warning lights were present. In fact, the display indicated that the battery was at 3/4 charge. He had just filled the gas tank the night before (he never lets it go below 1/2 full).   Feeling it was unsafe to drive, I had it towed to Toyota. They took a look at it and told me that nothing was wrong with it - the battery had just gotten too low. First question, if the battery was low, why would it start and drive normally for 3 miles at all? Second question, would a low battery cause all the problems described (no acceleration, incorrect speedometer readings), or is it possible that the dealer just charged the battery, the computer reset, and the problem temporarily disappeared?   I'm pissed about having to pay for the tow and the labor to recharge the battery, but I'm more concerned that the real problem hasn't been solved. The dealer explained that the battery that became rundown was the second, technology battery, so I assume he's talking about the 12V battery described in other posts above. Also, my husband does not recall leaving any powered accessories on or doors ajar, so it's inconceivable to us how this battery would have gotten rundown overnight.   Any feedback at all is appreciated. Replies to this message: lnm (Jan 10, 2008 3:43 pm) pathstar1 (Jan 11, 2008 7:47 am)
#35 of 85 Re: Battery Problems [lnm] by lnm Jan 10, 2008 (3:43 pm)
Replying to: lnm (Jan 10, 2008 3:06 pm) I just wanted to add to the above post. I called the service guy back to clarify the problem further. He said the 12V battery was completely dead and the main battery was almost dead. I asked what could have cause this to happen overnight (was driving fine at 5 p.m. the day before, problems began at 8 a.m. the next mornign), and he basically boiled it down to something (door light) being left on. I asked him about the car possibly needing a software update, a cell being blown or faulty, cold weather and he said no chance to all of those things.   It seems to me that the service guy relies on a diagnostic computer to tell him what's going on with the car. I asked if he visually inspected the battery to see if it was faulty or a cell had blown and he said no, the computer would tell him if anything was wrong. I think I need to get another opinion on the status of these batteries. I've read in other posts that AutoZone will check a battery for free. I will be taking it there and reposting if I find out anything new. There is just no way that we left something on in the car, and frankly I resent being blamed for it. Even if a light was left on, would this cause a battery to go completely dead after just 15 hours? Replies to this message: pathstar1 (Jan 11, 2008 7:47 am)

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