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I love my Prius. It gets great mileage, etc.
However: About three weeks after I bought it, I went out to start it and it would not start. That is, there was no power and the car would not start.
I had it towed to the local Toyota dealer. They told me the battery needed a recharge and they would have it for me Monday (It was Friday when it went in). I had left nothing on. It just went dead.
Monday I came in. They said that the battery was defective and they had ordered a new one. I figured it must be the big battery. They also told me that they battery was not in stock in the USA and it would take about three weeks to get a new one. This seemed unreasonable to me, but I had no alternative but to live with the situation.
As predicted, it was nearly three weeks, and I was told that it was the 12V battery that was defective. They told me that an ordinary 12V battery would not work in the Prius. It had to have a special 12V battery, only available in Japan.
My chagrin is now nearly over. The local dealer and maintenance staff were very polite and they were and they were as chagrinned as I was. My chagrin is not directed at them. They did their best.
My questions:
1. Why does Toyota sell the car in the USA and not stock the 12V battery?
2: What is so special about the Toyota 12V battery that an ordinary 12V battery would not suffice, at least for the duration of the wait for the one coming from Japan. This is not a rhetorical question. I'd really like to know.
As I said, I love this car. This is my only complaint.
Bill Putaansuu
However: About three weeks after I bought it, I went out to start it and it would not start. That is, there was no power and the car would not start.
I had it towed to the local Toyota dealer. They told me the battery needed a recharge and they would have it for me Monday (It was Friday when it went in). I had left nothing on. It just went dead.
Monday I came in. They said that the battery was defective and they had ordered a new one. I figured it must be the big battery. They also told me that they battery was not in stock in the USA and it would take about three weeks to get a new one. This seemed unreasonable to me, but I had no alternative but to live with the situation.
As predicted, it was nearly three weeks, and I was told that it was the 12V battery that was defective. They told me that an ordinary 12V battery would not work in the Prius. It had to have a special 12V battery, only available in Japan.
My chagrin is now nearly over. The local dealer and maintenance staff were very polite and they were and they were as chagrinned as I was. My chagrin is not directed at them. They did their best.
My questions:
1. Why does Toyota sell the car in the USA and not stock the 12V battery?
2: What is so special about the Toyota 12V battery that an ordinary 12V battery would not suffice, at least for the duration of the wait for the one coming from Japan. This is not a rhetorical question. I'd really like to know.
As I said, I love this car. This is my only complaint.
Bill Putaansuu