"Check Hybrid System" running without key fob @ car wash

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by haaaley, Oct 27, 2018.

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  1. haaaley

    haaaley New Member

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    You and I were having the same thoughts, Dave. The problem I'm having is that I no longer have access to the car, and even if I did, I don't know that much about cars, even though I'm not an idiot and can read a manual. So the next mechanic could tell me that my Prius has spleen cancer, and as unlikely as that sounds, I wouldn't have any way to know on my own whether that's true.

    So even though Toyota service center's hybrid-certified mechanic and his manager both insist that the computer was fried by searching for the key fob while it was outside the vehicle for 40 minutes, and even though everyone else I've talked so says that's ludicrous, I'll never know who's correct on my own. That made me think... I have car insurance for a reason. Someone else drove my car into the wash without my permission and without the key fob that I wanted to give them. They did something to the car while it was out of my possession to break it. It's going to cost, minimum, $1500. Nobody has been able to tell me if that would fix the car or when it'll be ready. My insurance company covers my rental car. So I made a claim.

    The insurance adjuster is going to look at it tomorrow at Toyota service and decide whether that's something that they cover. If so, I already have the car wash corporate office info at the insurance company, who could sue them in 3 seconds flat. I'm frankly tired of dealing with this, although the numerous conversations I've had about this have been extremely interesting.

    I'll come back and update everyone on what happened once I know more.
     
    #21 haaaley, Oct 29, 2018
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  2. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    Prius is like gremlin: don't do a cold start and immediately shut down, don't hand the fob to the uninitiated, don't feed it after midnight...
     
    #22 Mendel Leisk, Oct 29, 2018
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  3. Johnny Cakes

    Johnny Cakes Senior Member

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    The 12v battery is not used for starting (cranking) the car. The HV traction battery starts/cranks the car. The 12v battery powers the computer that is used to tell the HV traction battery to start the car.

    Think of the 12v Prius battery like a TV remote. The battery in the remote permits it to send a signal to the television to turn on. But it is the AC relay in the TV itself that actually powers the television on.
     
    #23 Johnny Cakes, Oct 29, 2018
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  4. haaaley

    haaaley New Member

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    My insurance company adjuster came out, and Toyota service said that the computer had been fried by searching for the key fob for 40 minutes. Insurance will cover it. I'm driving a fancy rental, and the car will be done by Thursday. The adjuster negotiated a better rate on the labor, which put the total at a bit under $2000. The insurance company will sue the car wash to get their $ and my $500 deductible back. All done. Everyone involved said that it was a rare thing for this to happen, but it did. They showed me the diagnostic code U029A-123 (Lost Communication with Hybrid Battery Pack Sensor Module).

    That's all I could do. I'm just relieved that I cannot pay more than $500 (which might even be refunded to me) for this disaster. I also met a guy who does detailing and knows how to wash cars carefully, and he charges a few bucks less than the car wash that destroyed my car! All worked out in the end. Thank you so much for your help on this!
     
    #24 haaaley, Oct 30, 2018
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  5. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    congrats!(y)
     
    #25 bisco, Oct 30, 2018
  6. Sporin

    Sporin Prius Noob

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    I'm glad you have some closure but a couple of points for future readers of this thread...

    100% this, a weak 12v can cause all sorts fo wonky issues in a Prius, that is well documented in the community. Right around the 6 year mark I got a few random lights and beeps that made no sense. I could still start the car. So I replaced the 12v and voila, no more issues. That 12v is small, and it doesn't actually crank the engine, but it does control a HEAP of electronics and a bad or weak signal from it can cause a myriad of question marks.

    It IS ludicrous, and I'll tell you why.... the car is ALWAYS looking for the key, that's how it knows you are approaching the locked car door and pressures the brakes and turns on the dome light as you are reaching for the handle. It doesn't look any "harder" when it's running but the key is not present.

    All this BS from the dealership just makes me think they are incompetent, or shady. Either way, I seriously doubt that what they say is wrong is actually wrong. I'd ask for all your old parts so they don't just put a new 12v battery in it and pocket all of your insurance money's cash as pure profit. More likely they really don't know what they are doing (and that's inexcusable at a Toyota Dealership selling Prii since 2000) and they are replacing perfectly good parts for no reason.
     
    #26 Sporin, Oct 30, 2018
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  7. xerox6135

    xerox6135 Member

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    I have driven my Prius Persona in car washes that its in neutral for 2 to 5 mins never ever had a problem. I do this twice a week. I agree this dealership is ripping you off the cpu is always looking for the key then does a hand Shake about ever 10 seconds to look for the fob. Not sure what they did but I would lean toward thex12 volt battery



    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
    #27 xerox6135, Oct 31, 2018
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  8. Sporin

    Sporin Prius Noob

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    Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that... I've used N in these kind of car washes before as well. It's certainly not killing your computers or battery to do this for 15 minutes or so unless your battery was already dead when you go to the entrance of the pull-thu wash.
     
    #28 Sporin, Nov 1, 2018
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  9. Starship16

    Starship16 Senior Member

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    After going through all that..... I'd just wash the car myself! Get some exercise. :) I'm 65 and do it, you younger guys should have no problem.

    But I agree, this Prius is the strangest car I've ever had. I try not to "think" about it so much, and just drive the damn thing. And when browsing thru Priuschat and seeing all the problems & issues, it gets depressing. These cars can be a complicated (expensive) mess!!
     
    #29 Starship16, Nov 1, 2018
  10. Bay Stater

    Bay Stater Senior Member

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    +1
    I only go through the push through type car wash during the Winters. The nearest one is 10 miles away so the batteries are charged. Never had a problem going through in neutral for 2 minutes.;)​
     
    #30 Bay Stater, Nov 1, 2018
  11. Sporin

    Sporin Prius Noob

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    We don't have those kind of car washes where you hand the car to someone else to do the wash in my area. The only place that's ever happened for me is at the Toyota Dealership and they just pull it into their own spray bay, and they certainly know how Hyrbid systems work. I wouldn't go to a Toyota dealer that didn't.

    It's drive-in "touchless" most places here, or the pay-n-spray DIY bays. We have 1 or 2 old ones where you have to put the car in neutral and let yourself be dragged through, but those are pretty rare now.

    Nothing wrong with paying to have your car washed if you have the means and not the time. It's a shame that this particular place wasn't smart enough not to endanger the car by leaving it in N. I actually stopped using this sort of wash with the Prius not because of the Neutral issue, but because the car is so low that the tire "guides" cause scraping if you aren't lined up just right. Or at least my local places are too tall. Either way, great for my 4Runner, sketchy for my Prius.

    @Startship16: I think "forum culture" makes way too big a deal out of some of this stuff. The Prius does just fine if you treat it like a normal car. Most folks don't think twice about some of the stuff that PChat Forum users absolutely obsess about. :D :D :D
     
    #31 Sporin, Nov 1, 2018
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