HV battery exploded.. And I have to make a decision

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by zelium, Mar 9, 2016.

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  1. zelium

    zelium Junior Member

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    OK, here is what happened.

    One of the battery module got exploded in my 2007 Prius with 160k miles on it while I was driving the road. I had a red triangle appeared few weeks ago, so I knew that I need to change the HV battery. However, I did not expect that it got exploded like this. I heard a loud 'BANG' noise from back and had a burnt smell. I immediately pull over my car (I could drive 0.1 miles more to find a proper space) and had my car towed to nearby Toyota dealership. I did not actually see the module exploded, however, from the threads here and there, I could guess what was happening.

    I got a call from the Toyota today that they had smoke filled in a car when they started a car so they did not go any further from there. They called me because they need to pull out the battery to inspect if there are other problems underneath the battery. It will cost extra on top of $99 they charge me for the initial inspection. They were saying $300 to $400 more for further investigation. I asked them how much it would cost just to replace the HV battery and it was around $3,400. But this is for the best case scenario replacing the battery only and assuming other parts are all fine. If they find the problems other than the HV battery, the cost will go up for sure.

    So, here is my dilemma. My car only has a trade-in value of around $2,300 according to KBB if I do not have a problem (Fair condition). Now I might need to spend $3,500 including initial inspection fee or even more if I am not lucky (It can easily go up to $4,500 or more). Is it wise to repair my Prius? Or should I rather buy a new car and consider my Prius as a total loss? I paid $23.5k OTD for this car as a brand new car in 2007 and am feeling sad if I let go this car after 9 years with 160k miles on it. I talked with a sales person in the dealership for an as-is trade-in and they could give me $300 if I buy a car from there.

    Don't know what to do now just waiting for your advice.
    Thanks in advance.
     
    #1 zelium, Mar 9, 2016
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  2. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    What state are you in? If you're in a CARB state where the battery warranty is 10yrs/150k miles, you can easily ask Toyota for assistance in replacing the battery.
     
    #2 JC91006, Mar 9, 2016
  3. jeff652

    jeff652 Senior Member

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    You could sell it on CL with the bad battery for a lot more than $300. I would not give it to the dealer that cheap, but that is what I would do, you have to decide :-(
     
    #3 jeff652, Mar 9, 2016
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  4. zelium

    zelium Junior Member

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    My warranty is 8 year/100,000 mile and it was over already. Sadly..
     
    #4 zelium, Mar 9, 2016
  5. zelium

    zelium Junior Member

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    May I ask what "CL" is? Sorry, English is not my native tongue.
     
    #5 zelium, Mar 9, 2016
  6. jeff652

    jeff652 Senior Member

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    Yeah, sure: craigslist.com
    :)
     
    #6 jeff652, Mar 9, 2016
  7. zelium

    zelium Junior Member

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    Thanks, I know Craigslist. :)
     
    #7 zelium, Mar 9, 2016
  8. exstudent

    exstudent Senior Member

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    Since you are the original owner, you know the car well. All maintenance and lack of maintenance. any quirks, etc.

    Assuming car was always well behaved and maintained, I vote new HV Pack.
    1) 160K miles, you have many more miles left to go.
    2) You can always transfer the new HV pack into another Gen2 Prius, if something bad happens to current Pri.
    3) Consider dropping comprehensive insurance coverage; this should save you at least $600+/year.
    4) The original HV Battery gave you 160K miles. The genuine new OEM HV Battery replacement will hopefully give you at least 160K miles too.
    5) Amoritized costs per mile: $3400/160K miles = $.02125/mile.
    6) If you are able to DIY, or get the current dealership to pricematch San Bernardino Toyota's online HV battery only price of $2071. $2071/160K miles = $.0129/mile
    2007 Toyota Prius Parts - Toyota of San Bernardino Online Parts Store
     
    #8 exstudent, Mar 9, 2016
    Last edited: Mar 9, 2016
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  9. zelium

    zelium Junior Member

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    exstudent,

    Thanks for your detailed analysis. I really appreciate that and hope I understood those correctly. Here are my questions if you don't mind.

    - You said 'I vote new'. Can I interpret as I'd rather buy a new car?
    - I did not understand 'dropping comprehensive insurance'. What did it mean? Will the issue like this ever been covered by comprehensive insurance?

    I can DIY (I replaced 2 modules after 120k miles) but the dealer refused to pricematch the offer I had. I have a dealer 150 miles away suggesting $2,100 for a new OEM battery pack, however, the local dealer told me that they would not match the price.

    Thanks for your help.
     
    #9 zelium, Mar 9, 2016
  10. exstudent

    exstudent Senior Member

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    Just made the Edit. Yes, I vote for a new HV Pack.

    You Did not mention you did the module replacement. So the question becomes when the did the original pack fail? You should get close to that amount of miles, more or less, with the new replacement HV Pack. Also, you would not have been given warranty (despite being over), and definitely no goodwill warranty, due to the module replacement.

    Collision covers your car if you are at fault in an accident, after you paid the deductible.
    Comprehensive insurance coverage covers your car if it is stolen, vandalized, after you paid the deductible; highly unlikely insurance would cover the battery. Only looking at the policy exceptions would tell you if it is covered.

    Drive the 150miles to the dealership for the $2100 HV Battery. Bring your old HV Batt for the core and to swap the ECUs into the new pack.

    Here's a good link for an explanation of collision & comprehensive, and when to consider dropping these two or one. Do I need comprehensive and collision insurance? | CarInsurance.com
     
    #10 exstudent, Mar 9, 2016
    Last edited: Mar 10, 2016
  11. SteveLee

    SteveLee Active Member

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    I would consider getting a used battery pack from a wrecked car. The newest Gen2 with the lowest miles is the target. Of course that depends on the availability in your country/area.
     
    #11 SteveLee, Mar 9, 2016
  12. ericbecky

    ericbecky Hybrid Battery Hero

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    exstudent,
    Just so you know, the batteries from Toyota do not come fully assembled. This makes a difference in this case since there is a possibility that there was fire.
    OEM packs are a bit trickier and involve more assembly than the fully assembled aftermarket battery packs. For OEM packs you have to swap over components from the old pack to the new one.
    zelium probably has the skills to do it, but not everyone may feel comfortable opening up the pack itself to do the additional work.

    More importantly...
    If any of the components that have to be transferred over to the new pack were damaged, he'll have to buy new/replacement parts:
    - the computer inside the pack
    - the vent tubes
    - the protective covers for the cables
    - the end plastic tube
    - etc.
    Until the pack is opened up, you don't really know what you are in for.

    With an aftermarket rebuilt pack, you do not have to worry about transferring over any parts.
     
    #12 ericbecky, Mar 9, 2016
    Last edited: Mar 9, 2016
  13. Chuck.

    Chuck. Former Honda Enzyte Driver

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    I just paid $4900 for a 2007 Prius with 190K miles on it - good condition. You should be able to get more on yours than $2300.
     
    #13 Chuck., Mar 9, 2016
  14. ericbecky

    ericbecky Hybrid Battery Hero

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    Chuck,
    It would be extremely unlikely to be able to get $2,300 for this car in it's current condition.

    This is a car with a DIY rebuilt battery pack in it that has now failed.
    The Prius has possible smoke/fire in it.
    The battery pack will have to be replaced.
    And on top of that, no one knows yet know what other components may have been damaged when the battery pack when kablooey.
    All this will be documented in the car's record at the dealer, so this will be public knowledge for anyone who tries to research it before buying.
    (Well may not the fact that the owner rebuilt the battery pack.)

    Once people see these issues, they may be more likely to find a different car.
    It may be worth little more than scrap until all the issues are resolved.
     
    #14 ericbecky, Mar 9, 2016
  15. Chuck.

    Chuck. Former Honda Enzyte Driver

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    I posted too fast....it would have been worth more up to the battery failure.
     
    #15 Chuck., Mar 9, 2016
  16. ericbecky

    ericbecky Hybrid Battery Hero

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    Agreed, Chuck.
     
    #16 ericbecky, Mar 9, 2016
  17. zelium

    zelium Junior Member

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    Thanks exstudent.

    You meant 'new pack' not 'new car'. And thanks for the info for comprehensive insurance. I know what it is (after I hit a deer few years back) but I was not sure how 'dropping comprehensive' related to the case we were talking about.

    You analysis did help me a lot.
     
    #17 zelium, Mar 9, 2016
  18. zelium

    zelium Junior Member

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    I would be really lucky to find a wrecked Prius here.
     
    #18 zelium, Mar 9, 2016
  19. zelium

    zelium Junior Member

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    I did not know that the Toyota OEM Batteries do not come fully assembled. I thought that it would be a simple process to replace it, however, it seems like that I should transfer some parts. That's good to know.

    Thanks a lot.
     
    #19 zelium, Mar 9, 2016
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