When we hadn't driven our 2003 Prius for about two weeks, the battery apparently went dead. We jump started it, and since then everything has been fine. The Toyota dealership said this is "normal" and that if you're not going to drive the car for a few weeks, you should "unplug the computer." There is nothing in the manual about this, and it sounds like nonsense on it's face. Anyone else with experience like this?
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(JonWS @ May 7 2006, 09:40 AM) [snapback]251048[/snapback]</div> Last year, I went on a two-week vacation. As some Prius owners mentioned in their posts, I disabled smart entry. I didn't have any problem starting the car two weeks after.
the prius battery is much wimpier than in a regular car- what we've got is more along the lines of a motorcycle battery because all it does is boot up the computers. just disconnect the battery if you're going to be gone more than a week or so to prevent it from draining.
Most people seem to be able to leave the car for 2 weeks, and I've left mine for more than a month with no problems. I turned off smart entry, and suggest it. You can unplug the connectors to the battery to disconnect it, but it's not easy getting the cover off and not something I'd recommend to the non-handy crowd. Plus you have to redo your radio presets and nav settings afterward.
As mentioned, the Prius 12 vdc battery is a major weak link. It's foolish Toyota didn't use a regular size automotive 12 vdc battery, instead of this thing you would normally find in a lawn tractor. At the very least, it doesn't appear to tolerate abuse very well, and is really $$$ to replace. With new job responsibilities, including a lot of overseas travel, I'm now frequently gone for 2-3 weeks at a time. I live in a condo with heated underground parking and used to just remove the tiny 12 vdc battery, take it up to my unit, and hook it up to a VDC battery maintainer/conditioner. However, I always had to crawl through the rear of the car to release the hatch, had to "normalize" the windows, do the radio presets, etc. I recently noticed the elderly owner of a nice BMW 740 has an extension cord plugged into a maintenance plug near the ceiling, and what appears to be a battery tender inside the car. I asked the condo association if it would be ok for me to do the same, and received positive remarks. Where I park, there is a maintenance plug almost directly over the rear of the car, if I back into the stall. The cord is long enough to reach down to the hatch area, and I hooked up the ring terminals directly to the battery. There is a 3 amp fuse in the connector. The VDC battery maintainer plugs directly in, so I don't need an extension cord. I got back last week after a long trip and the car powered up like I had been gone overnight. No problems at all. The battery also appears to be stronger too, previously I noticed once the Auto headlights came on, they would really dim as the coolant pump ran. Now they barely flicker. So this might be one option if you anticipate being gone for long periods.
I disabled SKS on our 2005 CE Prius while we were gone for three weeks. My wife drove the car to pick us up after three weeks. My friend just purchased a 2006 CE Prius (now at 3k mi). He drove down and parked his Prius next to ours in the garage. Upon returning to the house, his 2006 CE Prius was dead. Three dealer-authorized tow trucks did not have clue what to do and finally towed the 2006 CE vehicle to the dealer. Diagnosis? Liftback was left open slightly and drained 12V battery. Covered under warranty. Vehicle back on the road the next day.
Since this is a 2003 MY Prius it is now about 4 years old. If you're still on the original battery this may be the first clue that the battery is approaching the end of it's useful life. You don't mention how many miles you have on the car, but I see you're in MN and certainly the cold winters can be hard on a battery. You also said you talked to your dealer, but did they actually test your battery? If not, I strongly urge you to have them do so before you find yourself stranded with a dead battery that won't hold a charge. You may be due for a replacement, esp. after it's been dead once and is now 4 years old. BTW, there are some alternatives to paying for a TMS OEM battery. A link to get you started... http://www.artsautomotive.com/2001-2003_PriusBattery.htm There's another article out there with very nice photos, step by step instructions, etc., that also employs the use of the Miata battery instead of the OEM. If anyone knows where that is please post it here. This link sells the battery as well as a conversion kit (total cost $110 w/free shipping): http://www.elearnaid.com/12vobaforpr2.html In any case, have someone test the battery to see what kind of shape it is in.
