Hybrid battery died--advice needed!

Well, it finally happened. At 354,000 miles, my 2004 battery is toast, but I am not going to get a new battery from the dealer because of cost. I knew my battery was on its last legs because even though I've been using the Prolong reconditioning system (thank you, Steve!!), my last attempt did not correct the fact that I'd go down to 1 or 2 bars as soon as I started out (going back up to 6 bars within a mile or two).

The codes that appeared are:
p3000 - Battery control system
p3022 - Battery block 12 becomes weak
c1259 - HV System Regenerative Malfunction
c1310 - Malfunction In HV System

I'd really like to keep the car going as my "road trip" car so I don't put as many miles on my 2020 Prime. It appears that my two options would be either to get a reconditioned battery here in San Diego or go to Matt of Texas Hybrid Batteries (at $2,250 he's the most affordable I know of for new OEM) on my upcoming road trip this summer.

So my questions are:
1. Would it be safe/feasible/not totally nuts to drive from San Diego to the DFW area without the battery (almost 1,700 miles since Las Vegas needs to be my first stop), or does anyone know of a place in the Southern California area that can come close to Matt's price?
2. If I get a reconditioned battery, should the seller know the year of manufacture and approximately how many miles were on it?
3. Does the A/C function without the battery since I believe the compressor is powered by it?
4. Since there's no alternator, how does the 12v battery get charged if the hybrid battery doesn't work?
5. Should I ask the dealer to clear the current codes or will they simply appear again once I start driving?
6. If I end up going the reconditioned route, any advice about a reputable shop would be welcome!

Any other advice or questions I should ask would be most welcome! I've been a member since 2003 (originally from the Yahoo groups), and even though I have posted very little in recent years I very much appreciate the expertise and helpfulness of those of you who are so knowledgeable about these wonderful cars!!

 

I don't know that changing out one module would be the wisest thing since I have so many miles on the car. I can get a reconditioned battery from a local place that would likely be both newer and have fewer miles on it for about $1,250 including installation.

 

I want to make a cross-country road trip this summer, so all I have to do is make sure my route takes me to the DFW area. If Matt's price is still the same, it's worth the detour to get a new battery. Not only does my battery have high mileage, it's also 21 years old. Battery life is affected by both usage and age, and I really don't want to keep shoring up a battery that will inevitably have more problems in the near future. That's why my two choices are either to get a used refurbished battery here in Southern California or get the least expensive OEM battery that I can find.

If Matt's price has increased significantly, I will have to go with a refurbished one.

 

The price has increased quite a bit, but I would not force him to honor the lower price. I would have no hesitation doing so with a huge corporation that has people constantly monitoring their website, but Matt is a small business owner and would be severely impacted by taking a big loss like that.

 

I'm leaning toward Greentec since they have nationwide locations (a bonus on a road trip if anything goes wrong!). Anyone have experience with them?

 

Thank you, bisco!

 

After much thought and research, I've decided to go with Greentec's new battery with a 4-year warranty and unlimited mileage. It's currently on sale for $2,149 with $250 installation at their local shop. The rep I spoke to said that they use Panasonic cells for their new batteries, and that they're the same ones that Toyota uses. I can also continue to use the Prolong system and it will not invalidate the warranty. Since this is the car I use for road trips (my 2020 Prime is more for local/short drives to put fewer miles on it), I like the fact that Greentec has more than 30 shops nationwide. Every city where I have relatives has a shop within an hour's drive in case I have issues, so that is definitely convenient. Hopefully I can get it installed sometime next week!