Hybrid battery replaced at 67,031 miles

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by kingsra, Apr 29, 2010.

  1. kingsra

    kingsra New Member

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    First things first! I've lurked for about a year ever since I bought my 17 year old son an used 2006 Prius. At first, I wasn't too keen on buying a hybrid, but the father of my son's best friend is the used car manager at the local Chevy dealership and he gave us a great deal. Besides, I thought it would be nice to have a vehicle that got better gas mileage than our other three vehicles combined! I've mined a wealth of info that has helped me do the following:

    *Installed a frame stiffener
    *Installed mud flaps
    *Upgraded the tires from the stock size and went with the smoother riding size of 195/R60/15
    *Installed an IPOD interface - until I removed and installed an IPOD ready stereo in the cubby hole below the stock unit. I followed the "stealth install" directions found here
    *Troubleshot a failing A/C blower fan motor and replaced it ($41.00 at Rockauto)

    Now to the hybrid battery. Son was driving when the dash board lit up with several warning lights and the "triangle of death". I had bought an extended warranty when purchasing the car from the Chevy dealer. He also sold Hondas, so the warranty was actually through Honda Care. The Chevy dealer said take it to the local Toyota dealer and any repairs covered would be billed to Honda Care. As it turns out, since the hybrid battery was the problem, the original Toyota 8 year/100,00 mile warranty covered the $2588.67 replacement cost. The car runs good as new now. Not sure what caused the battery to fail, as there was no warning signs before the actual failure. Before our purchase of the car, I was concerned enough about the hybrid battery and it's replacement cost that I researched the failure rate. Everything I could find pointed to a very, very low failure rate. Hopefully with a new one, I won't have to worry about it for many, many years.
     
    #1 kingsra, Apr 29, 2010
  2. JimboPalmer

    JimboPalmer Tsar of all the Rushers

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    #2 JimboPalmer, Apr 29, 2010
    1 person likes this.
  3. john1701a

    john1701a Prius Guru

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    Unfortunately, we don't know its history with the original owner. Continuing to drive after running out of gas was an accelerated aging problem which happened a lot many years ago. Owners back then tended to push more back then. The bladder in the tank contributed much to that.

    The question now is how long the Prius will last now. Rolloing back the clock like that is a rare opportunity.
    .
     
    #3 john1701a, Apr 29, 2010
  4. usbseawolf2000

    usbseawolf2000 HSD PhD

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    Yea, we don't know how the previous owner abused the HV battery. He could've installed EV button and run down the pack very often. As John mentioned, continual driving after running out of gas will drain the HV pack to the point the car won't run anymore. Deep discharges like that could cut the life of HV pack by a factor of 5 or even more.
     
    #4 usbseawolf2000, Apr 29, 2010
  5. 2009Prius

    2009Prius A Wimpy DIYer

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    This seem very good price if including everything. I also think you are lucky to get a brand new battery for free at 67K miles. :)
     
    #5 2009Prius, Apr 29, 2010
  6. Codyroo

    Codyroo Senior Member

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    Kingsra,

    I'm curious if you (or your son) have noticed any difference in the MPG's after the hybrid battery was replaced. Maybe a few cells were down before the whole battery went kaplooie. I'm curious if having a new one will give you even better MPG's than before.
     
    #6 Codyroo, Apr 29, 2010
  7. kingsra

    kingsra New Member

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    We just got the car back yesterday, so it's probably too soon to tell. But I'm also interested in knowing if the MPG'S increase.
     
    #7 kingsra, Apr 29, 2010
  8. defrankond

    defrankond Member

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    my prius has 186k miles and my traction battery is still going strong. ive seen the car fully charge it (all bars) a couple times now since ive owned it (1.5 months) i will say however the stereo really drains it when u wanna listen to tunes while cleaning it. LOL
     
    #8 defrankond, Apr 30, 2010
  9. richard schumacher

    richard schumacher shortbus driver

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    Yes it does. Don't leave the car in ACC or IG-ON for more than a few minutes at a time. If you want to use accessories and are in a well ventilated area it's much safer for the battery system to leave the car ON ("Ready") in Park with the parking brake set, so that it can start the engine and charge the batteries as needed.
     
    #9 richard schumacher, Apr 30, 2010
  10. usbseawolf2000

    usbseawolf2000 HSD PhD

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    Stereo will drain fast especially if you have a subwoofer :)
     
    #10 usbseawolf2000, Apr 30, 2010
  11. SageBrush

    SageBrush Senior Member

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    Really -- the radio ?
    SeaWolf's disco Prius ;) aside, does a stock radio draw much more than 20 watts ?
     
    #11 SageBrush, Apr 30, 2010
  12. usbseawolf2000

    usbseawolf2000 HSD PhD

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    I doubt it. Stock radio and speakers are pretty underpowered. I think hybrid system being on consume more than the radio.
     
    #12 usbseawolf2000, Apr 30, 2010
  13. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    The 12V auxiliary battery is rated in the low 30's AH range. Assuming:

    1) the battery is fully charged and has like-new capacity
    2) you make the car ACC-ON (not IG-ON where all the warning lights appear)
    3) you've set the stereo at a volume level that does not bother your neighbors, thus the stereo is consuming <=20 watts average power

    then you should be able to play the stereo at least 10 hours before the battery will be 50% discharged.

    (Note that the car will automatically move from ACC-ON to IG-OFF after one hour, so you'll have to turn it back on.)

    If you leave the car IG-ON (not ACC-ON), then the 12V battery may be 50% discharged after one hour.
     
    #13 Patrick Wong, Apr 30, 2010
  14. BAllanJ

    BAllanJ Active Member

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    If he's cleaning it out he also has the doors open, so lots of lights are on... Don't know how much this will add, but I bet it's at least as much as the radio... and maybe he's plugged a little vaccuum cleaner into the power point?
     
    #14 BAllanJ, Apr 30, 2010
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