Replacing the Hybrid Battery!

Sorry to hear you're getting hit with such a big bill like that. I don't have anything to add, but I do appreciate your posting it. I was wondering what the replacement cost would be myself. I didn't find anything on cost, but did see that Toyota expects them to last 150K miles based on bench testing.

I live in Raleigh, NC. I kept the all the original paperwork that came with the car and everything seems to say the warranty on the Hybrid system is 100,000 miles or 96 months - whichever comes first.

My Prius has 145,000 miles on it - so maybe that's consistent with the expected life of the battery. (I read somewhere that cabbies in Canada had gotten over 200K on their Prius' but I'm sure that was over a shorter time period if that makes a difference.)

In the past, whenever I asked how long the hybrid battery would last I never got an answer since I guess this is new territory for the mechanics at the dealership. If I had had the expectation from the beginning that 150K was about what I'd get out of it, maybe I wouldn't be feeling so shocked at this point. Though, actually, it's not the fact that the battery has to be replaced that's so shocking, but the actual price tag! I think I was bracing myself for a $1200 repair not a $5000 one.

I drive all my cars into the ground and typically when I get into the territory of expensive repairs (and I'm talking $1000 dollar repairs here) the wheels are about ready to fall off the car, so I don't feel bad about selling the car or having it scrapped altogether. My 2001 Prius, on the other hand, is still a young car by my standards - only 5 years old. I hate that my other car - a 15 year old Mazda Protege w/ over 210K miles has now become my "good" vehicle! It still runs very reliably after all these years.

I suppose most Prius owners are fairly affluent and were like me buying the car at least partly because they felt they were making a good environmental choice - not an economic one, but even so a $5K repair is so out of line w/ the amount of money one expects to pay for making for a car repair. I wonder what is going to happen as all the Prius' now on the road start to approach the useful life of their battery?

I couldn't in good conscious sell the car to another person and stick them w/ the repair (though that Master Warning Light might give it away!). I doubt a dealership would give me much on it as a trade-in if I confessed to the fact that the battery was about to die.

I won't be surprised if there is mysterious spate of Prius' being pushed into lakes at about 150K miles on the odometer. Guess I'll just tell the insurance adjuster I forgot to put the parking brake on...;)

OK, here we go. I can’t get help from customer support, so I need the support OF customers.

I bought my 2001 Classic from Carmax on March 31st, 2007 and drove it over 500 miles in 3 days. It easily averaged 50 mpg overall, up to 60 mpg at times, with no problems or warning symbols that I could detect. Then I took it to a the largest Toyota dealer in the state, at about 60K miles, for a full checkup, and now it’s been in their shop for 3 weeks.

At first they said they found a stored trouble code and it needed new spark plugs, gasket, injectors, and a new computer, all for free under Toyota warranty. They loaned me a new free Camry and did the work, and replaced the aux battery, too, and then it wouldn’t start.

I’ve talked with 4 levels of the dealer’s mechanics and managers, and they say the HV battery is basically dead, and they’ve been trying to start it every day, but the ICE won’t start. They’ve been trying to get the only HV battery charger in the region to try charging it, and if it can’t be, they’ll replace it free, but they may not get the charger until May 2nd.

I trust this dealer because a friend has been satisfied with their service on her Corolla for 15 years, but I need my Prius back and running, and the dealer isn’t making any progress. They don’t know, or won’t say, if the HV battery was drained during their work. I want to be driving my Prius when I’m making loan payments and buying an extended warranty this month. The Carmax 30-day warranty runs out soon, but Toyota seems to be struggling with its responsibility to fix the hybrid system. They just say, “We’ll make it right. Keep driving that free Camry. You’re going to have a great car.” But WHEN?

I have a document of the crankshaft position sensor recall repair, but from reading internet posts, I think it has missed out on a number of recalls, such as the steering box item.

Here is data from a live laptop printout of the HV battery that the mechanic did for me April 19th. The printout says “2003 Prius 1NZ-FXE.” It may say 2003 because that’s the latest ECM-reading program for the 2001. Some values were cleared when disconnecting and connecting the 12V battery. The charge indicator on the Energy touch screen showed maybe ¼ charge. He showed me that the ICE would not start. He said the ICE will start once the HV battery is charged, because he has charged several others.

Battery SOC 0.0 %
WIN -20.0 KW
WOUT 0.0 KW
Delta SOC 20.0 %
IB Main Battery 0.00 A
Battery Blck Min Voltage 8.07 V
Min Battery Block No 8 #
Battery Block Max Voltage 14.06 V
Max Battery Block No 19 #
Battery Temperature 1 68 F
Battery Temperature 2 64.4 F
Battery Temperature 3 66.2 F
Battery Temperature 4 68 F
Battery Inside Air Temp 66.2 F
Normal Status Yes
Pre Onboard Charge No
Onboard Charge Status No
Outer Charge Status No
Cooling Fan Lo OFF
Cooling Fan Mid OFF
Cooling Fan Hi OFF
VMF Fan Voltage 0.000 V
SBL Fan Stop Request OFF
Auxiliary Battery Voltage 10.937 V
EQTR Charge Start Sig OFF
EQCO Front Relay OFF
CCTL ON
Estimat of Ex Charg Hour 0.0 Hr
Battery Blck Voltage 1 13.48 V
Battery Blck Voltage 2 12.11 V
Battery Blck Voltage 3 10.31 V
Battery Blck Voltage 4 9.70 V
Battery Blck Voltage 5 9.21 V
Battery Blck Voltage 6 8.56 V
Battery Blck Voltage 7 8.63 V
Battery Blck Voltage 8 8.09 V
Battery Blck Voltage 9 9.14 V
Battery Blck Voltage 10 8.51 V
Battery Blck Voltage 11 8.73 V
Battery Blck Voltage 12 10.12 V
Battery Blck Voltage 13 10.47 V
Battery Blck Voltage 14 10.80 V
Battery Blck Voltage 15 11.65 V
Battery Blck Voltage 16 12.72 V
Battery Blck Voltage 17 12.76 V
Battery Blck Voltage 18 13.51 V
Battery Blck Voltage 19 14.06 V
Inside Resist 1 0.024 ohm
Inside Resist 2 0.022 ohm
Inside Resist 3 0.022 ohm
Inside Resist 4 0.023 ohm
Inside Resist 5 0.023 ohm
Inside Resist 6 0.022 ohm
Inside Resist 7 0.023 ohm
Inside Resist 8 0.021 ohm
Inside Resist 9 0.022 ohm
Inside Resist 10 0.023 ohm
Inside Resist 11 0.022 ohm
Inside Resist 12 0.024 ohm
Inside Resist 13 0.022 ohm
Inside Resist 14 0.022 ohm
Inside Resist 15 0.022 ohm
Inside Resist 16 0.022 ohm
Inside Resist 17 0.022 ohm
Inside Resist 18 0.021 ohm
Inside Resist 19 0.022 ohm
Onboard Charge Time 0 times
Battery Low Time 0 times
BC Inhibit Time 0 times
Battery HI Time 0 times
IG OFF Hour 0 Hr
IG ON Hour 0.04 Hr
The Stored DTC Num 0
ECU Code 47030A

The mechanic says he’s charging the small battery, and Toyota won’t let him replace the HV battery without trying the charger. The charger may actually even out the voltage variation after a while. He says if the charger doesn’t work, they can get a new HV battery overnight. The charger should be in on May 2nd. He says he’s doing everything he can for me, but still has no theory on what happened to the HV battery.

So far Prius enthusiasts have expressed opinions on both sides - that the dealer really doesn’t know how the HV battery died and I should be glad they’re treating me so well, or that they goofed and won’t admit it and I should keep investigating. The fact that I brought in a Prius running fine and it “shortly” became a Prius that won’t start doesn’t add up. It appears that they started out trying to perform work according to EG006-02, “M.I.L. ‘ON,’ Misfire,” and somehow goofed. I’m not accusing anyone, I just want to involve and inform as many enthusiasts as possible so I won’t feel so alone without my Prius.

I’d appreciate any advice you guys can provide, and I’ll keep you posted.

Thanks.

I have 140K miles on my 2001 Prius. Check engine light came on and I thought the worse, the Hyrid battery pack. Turns out dealer says the Catalytic Converter will cost $2,500.

I did replace the main computer a few years back (under warranty). Between this, and other warranty replacements along with 4 windsheilds replaced and 5set of tires (I followed all the rules with the tires), I will not buy another Hybrid unless I can be guarenteed the replacement cost for major items is much more reasonable.

I am all for the electric car, however hybrids are not the answer to our future cars, nor is Hydrogen. An Engineer in San Diego.

All you tree-huggers can enjoy replacing those $5,000 HV batteries on your Prius'. My straegey is to buy a 1 -year old full size gas guzzler, after someone else ate the depreciation. In the long run, I ride cheaper & with more stytle & comfort.

Hog!!!!!

wow-I didnt know Dwight from The Office read this!!

A few weeks ago I attended a function at my daughter's house when her husband came in and told me that I had left the Prius running. I had never done that before (5 years ownership) and am not equipped mentally for a "technical" world. Could this have occurred at the mechanic's by a worker who is not familiar w/the quietness of the vehicle or who, like myself, was careless?

If I am off-base, just ignore the comments. Again, don't even know if this is relevant; in my mind it may be but as I stated above......

Good luck and I am so glad I found this site because now I have an idea what I need to do before my time runs out with the battery situation.

I am one of those who purchased the Prius for economical reasons and not because I earn over $100,000. per year. While I have always been environmentally responsible, I am not now nor ever have been a "nut" regarding the environment. I am just not arrogant enough to think that I am that important in the scheme of things. Frankly, I do not think any human is that powerful to effect all that some kooks think they can. I degress.... Again, thanx for the info.

Yea, It only cost me $400 to rebuild my battery myself. I just used a guide I found online, it was home made, but of course what isn't that works well these days?

Anyway, I woke up one day in MN... Went out to my Toyota Prius 02' and sure enough the battery "death light" was on my dash.

Soooooo, knowing nothing about this junk, I jumped online and within an hour or so I found a How To Fix Prius Battery Guide for like $40 bucks or something, the site said I could do it for $500 using there suppliers, and guide... So I parted with the 40 bucks and a week later and only a few hours worth of following the guide I saved myself the $5000! hahaha, so sorry if I didn't buy into your "it WILL kill you" horse crap attitude Toyota dealerships across the world... But I think I like my money in my pocket!

If anyone wants the link to that site just let me know.. Im not all that bright when it comes to mechanical crap.. But it wasn't to tuff.. Lots of pics! haha

slugger_mn@yahoo.com shoot me an email if you want to, I will send you the website address... My name is Pete, if you look like junk mail I wont know what you want, so say something about prius battery rebuild.. or something..

Hope I helped!

thought about pushing mine into a lake today

the REAL question is: what error code is being generated when the warning light goes on?

resetting the warning light is like pulling the battery out of the smoke detector, and going back to sleep.

the light just tells you a malfunction has occured. You have to check the codes on the OBDII port to find out if this is just a harmless false alarm that can be ignored... Or if the car is trying to warn you that you are about to DIE (no brakes, no steering, fuel explosion, ect)

It seems to me that Toyota is making too much money on that battery replacement. If someone can do the replacement themselves for $400 and you consider that the dead battery has a value for the recovered metal, why are they putting such a high replacement cost on the battery? Here are the only things that I can think of:

1. The guy who claims he repaired/replaced the battery himself for $400 is not being honest (this seems probable since he did not include the link to the information in his posting and requests that you email him for the link to the information).
2. Toyota wants us to scrap the car when the battery dies. Keep in mind, it is quite possible that the auto makers have been avoiding electric based vehicle due to the reliability of electric system compared to internal combustion; they cannot sell as many parts to the owner of an electric based auto vs. a gas auto. The higher reliability means the cars would be on the road much longer and therefore prevents the sale of new cars to that owner. Additionally, let us keep in mind, the reduced number of overall moving parts means less replacement parts sold compared to their gas counterparts during the operating years. Having one component that will certainly fail and making it very expensive is one way to kill off older vehicles and pave the way to new sales.
3. Toyota is building in a safety margin into the cost, i.e. even proven technologies have their issues and batteries do heat up when charging and discharging presenting the possibility of catastrophic failure that could result in an explosion (not the kind you see in the movies, but enough to set the car on fire). We have seen this with laptop batteries exploding and causing fires. Perhaps the automaker is pricing the battery based on actuarial sciences (factoring in the cost of replacing the car amortized over the number of events that could happen per so many batteries on the road) and let’s not forget a little profit on top of all that.
4. The battery is still including amortized engineering costs that are still being paid and therefore reflect Toyota’s investment in this technology; in essence Toyota may be selling the battery at near cost with dealer’s putting their profit margins on the event.
5. GREED!

Above are just some things to consider. Me, I think it is probably a mix of all of the above.
I look forward to your comments.

Hi Mr. T...
Today is July 16, 2010.
A few days ago the master light came on in my 2001 Prius (the triangle with the exclamation point and the red flashing car with the exclamation point). Toyota mechanics say I need a new electric battery. It has 109,000 miles on it, and the battery is warranted for only 100,000 miles I am told. I purchased the car used from a private party 2 years ago. It does have the yellow "clean air emission" stickers on it and because of that I can drive in the diamond lane anytime.
So....are you saying that it may have an extended warranty ...because of those stickers?
Sure would like to know...
A new battery is going to cost $3000. !!
Thanks so much for any info you can provide.
Charlene M.i

Saw an article on CNN article titled "200,000-mile Prius keeps on going". They performance test a 200,000 mike prius with it's original battery vs. a new Prius and there was little difference. It also mentions that used batteries can be pcked up from wrecking yards for about $500.

I've read that Toyota made a settlement regarding past headlight repairs. So there may be a service bulletin on it now.

no they are not right.

My Prius uses about $1300 year in fuel. I drive about 20,000 miles a year. If I did that in a "normal" car with 20 mpg I would use 1000 gallons of gas and spend (in Chicago area ) around $4200 year.
In five years I have saved ....almost .... the cost of the car.

You wanna drive a POS and stop at the gas station twice a week - go ahead.
My family loves the Prius and we LOVE stopping at the gas station 3 times a month.

I can swap out a battery pack every 5 years and STILL save more money than with any other car.

I drive an '04 with 167k and the battery is still doing almost as well as new. It is a little slower to recharge on a familiar hill and my MPG is close to the as-new readout. I finally had my first tune up yesterday and I just got a P0505 code Check Engine light last week. (Non dealer mechanic says I have irregular idle from a worn throttle motor and i should do the black tape on the check engine warning. still thinking about that.)
I have had very little to do to this car in all these miles, brake lights went out ($600), inverter cooling pump ( Recall ), and just did water pump/thermostat preventative. So I still feel very much ahead of the norm in repairs per miles. I would buy another one, and recommend one, based on maintenance alone!

I have a friend who has the same problem and MAYBE it is the battery, I am going to ask this on another website

My husband and I just got a whopp'n $3,200 bill to replace the battery in our 2006 Civic Hybrid. We weren't tree-huggers, we just wanted to reduce my husband's commute by accessing the carpool lanes and reduce our monthly $360 budget for gasoline getting to and from work. There's been nothing wrong with the car and we've completed all the regularly scheduled maintenance. It's gone 160,000 miles, a convenient 10,000 miles over the extended warranty, but the battery simply gave up. !!! $3,200 !!!

Was it worth it? What did we really save? I guess in some conciliatory way the money didn't get into the hands of the oil tycoons.

Here's one for you... the car's NOT DRIVABLE without the repair. At this point $3,200 is nearly half the value of the car. That's the kind of expense you carry insurance for.