Hey folks. First time poster here. My 2008 prius had, what I thought was a bad battery and only started on the second or third attempt (the message appeared something with p-break problem, please park on a flat surface and press and release break) . After getting a new battery, the issue came back 3 days later. My mechanic says that he thinks it's the "starter one relay" and wants to charge me $700 for replacing the relay (and also the missing fuse box cover). That seems a little expensive for one relay. What are your folks thoughts? Note, after the car finally starts, it drives fine, Albeit with a big red triangle and service engine light. Thanks for the advice!
To clarify, official Toyota dealership and my mechanic are on very different pages. Toyota wanted everything replaced and wanted to charge me over 4K mechanic wants just one relay replaced but wants to charge me 700 for one relay
It’s telling you to press and release the parking brake? Are you sure it’s not the main brake petal? This is going to sound stupid but when it is doing this can you see the brake lights on? Plus any codes in Techstream? If you don’t have it, you need it.
welcome! call the dealer and ask for the trouble codes, and post them here. or if your mechanic has tech stream, ask him for them
Its not good that you allow the car to be operated without a fuse box cover. That will allow moisture and corrosion to develop. Possibly that is why your dealer recommended replacing the entire box. If you can figure out which relay has the problem you should be able to buy a replacement for $100 or less. However the key is to be able to identify the failed component.
Relay part # is 90987-02025. It's pretty much standard on nearly all Toyotas made in the last 20 years. $85 list at the dealer and about $20 used delivered on eBay. My older friend and I pick them up regularly at wrecking yards for $10. We have about 10 0f them and keep them as spares in our Toyotas. Toyota Parts - Camelback Toyota Parts - Genuine OEM Parts - Free Shipping
Is the relay a plug and play type or do you have to get into the fuse box to replace it? Yes that’s the good thing about Toyota’s. They like to use the same parts as much as they can, and they don’t change the part numbers between models.
It's in the fuse box under the hood. Just remove the cover, pull out the fuse and mush in the new one.
Since others have provided the p/n for the relay, you can match it to a wrecked car.... To DIY fix, assuming the information you have received is mostly accurate: 1) Go to a recycling/junk yard, get a relay and COVER, cost you maybe $10. 2) Stop by the auto parts store and buy a can of "electrical contact cleaner and protector" of your choosing. 3) Take a good photo of the fuse box with the cover off, so you can see where the fuses all go (they are color coded) and mark the relays with tape or something. 4) Remove EVERYTHING in the underhood fuse/relay panel that you can (fuses and relays), DO NOT unbolt anything. 5) Disconnect the 12V in the "trunk" 6) Carefully perform a VISUAL inspection of the electrical contacts, post a photo of ANY that show signs of corrosion or discoloration (they should all be the same "color") 7) Spray the fuse box terminals with the contact cleaner/protector, allow to dry for like 30 minutes 8) Replace the fuses and relays according to your photo, using the "new" relay you purchased 9) Reconnect the 12V 10) Make sure the car starts and there are no warning lamps on 11) Install "new" fuse panel cover Good luck, it's an easy job, but time consuming.
I got the fuse box cover in my hand and there's no relay labeled Starter 1. There's two 02025 relays one is called P CON MTR the other is for the headlights. The P CON MTR relay is for power to the shift control actuator. if that relay failed you would have no shifter. He's able to drive the car.
Relay box cover is Part # 82662-47041 of your car does not have "auto level." It lists for $52.09 at the dealer and about $38 on line. It is #3 in the diagram.
Didn't need to. My husband's friend had a wrecking yard. It didn't cost us anything. We had the run of his yard and were allowed to pick up any small parts we wanted. There were, at that time, 5 Prius cars on the lot.
