[cwynn]

I just discovered this forum. I wanted to see what the word is on the Prious 2004

Put it on the road Jan 24, 2004 and it has a grand total of 1,7xx miles on it.

All the warning lights possible came on and the LCD told my wife to stop the car immediately.

She had just started it up and driven about 50 yrds. She was about to come home from work.

It's been trouble free up until now. The little I've investigated so far I'm beginning to think I'm the first owner with this problem.

The Toyota dealer is waiting to hear back from Toyota.

We almost would like it if they'd replace the car, but of course they won't.

The service people haven't told me much other than they hooked it up to the compter and the battery was dead. They do not know why it went dead.

This happened yesterday.

Today we got a letter from Toyota. It was a congratuations on owing the "Car of the Year" and we were selected to recieve a sticker we can proadly stick on our bumper.
Gee I'll have to see if I can get back into the service area to stick my sticker on it.

I sure hope Toyota gets involved. They should be boarding the planes now for the US If I had something to say in the matter.

I need positive feed back... something to liift my wife and my spirits.

cheers
cw

 

[stagemonkey]

I, myself, have been following this website since I was looking for my Prius starting in November, but this is also my first post. I was lucky enough to get my Prius because my dealer happened to have the color and options package I wanted on their fleet unit, which was right around 1000 miles. I've been driving it since mid-January, and recently took it on a several-thousand-mile long road trip, at the end of which, my car broke down in a manner that might have been the same problem your car is having.

I went to the store one evening to pick up a movie. Upon leaving the store, I got about a quarter mile down the road when the red triangle comes up on the dash, and the screen reads "Problem." I switched to the screen that shows power flow in the car to find I was driving on electric only, and that my battery was draining fast, without the gas engine kicking in. Needless to say, I made it a total of a mile or so before having to call toyota to come tow the car (mind you, this was around midnight.) Anyway, after having the car towed twice, getting a loaner, and waiting four days (including the weekend, so they could call Houston on Monday to find out what the error code meant because the Houston office was closed on Friday) I was told by the dealership technicians that they were told there is a slight design flaw in the car that is being worked out. Apparently, there is a part on the car (described to me as a converter that goes from the gas engine to the electric engine) that gathers water on its housing as one drives in the rain, Apparently this water then drips off of this part and down into an electrical connector, shorting it out.

The technicians working on my car were told to dry the connector, to seal it with silicone when they reconnected it (so water doesn't get in) and that they were working on a fix for the car, and that they would be sending a service bulletin to other owners when they got the redesigned part ready to install in all of our cars. As far as I can tell, for everyone else, they're just handling it on a "If it shorts out and goes to the service bay, we'll silicone it up then" kind of system. (By the way, for those do-it-yourselfers, I don't know which connector it is, but I do know that they were adamant about the technicians using *RED* silicone on it.)

Has anyone else run into this yet? I love my car, and was quite upset when she died on me, especially after all that high-MPG lovin' I got while cruising around the country.

Also, as a side note, I've noticed that taking my prius for a long interstate drive (I went about 4000 miles in 3 weeks) seems to have done good for its mileage. Even in the snow, I was averaging around 45MPG at about 70-80MPH, and I seem to be getting better city mileage than before now that I'm back home. Am I just imagining things? Would there be any logical reason for this, other than just spending so much time in the car?

 

[cwynn]

My wife and I thank you for your reply. I expect we will be talking with the Toyota Service men tomorrow and will relay this information to them. I will be forwarding your message to them to.

We ordered our Prius in Sept of 03. I wallked into the local dealer and pointed out what features I wanted payed them $500 and asked them to place an order. I don't think they were offically on the market until around Oct 20, 2003.

On and off I'd ask what the status of the order as it got into mid Nov. and early Dec. I wanted it on the road for 2003 to get the full tax benefit. It was maybe the 1st week in Dec that I learned that the Prius comming in for me did not come "curtain airbags". The dealer explained to me that even though they had ordered it with this feature Toyota was sending only what they had that came closes to my order.

It's Dec 18/19th the car arrives and sure enough it's everything we wanted except it doesn't have the curtain airbags. As much as I wanted to take it I just couldn't . This car was for my wife to drive and I wanted this feature. It was the dealer's fault although they tried to convince me it was Toyotas fault.

I went the extra 100 miles to the next closest dealer and placed a new order. We lost $500 in tax benefits but we got the car we ordered this time.

To conclude the car is in the service dept. of the 1st dealer we delt with. They didn't offer a loaner until I had done some checking with Toyota who told me I was intitled to one.

I've have never once exhibited any emotions over any of what has passed under the bridge. In fact the manager approched me in the end and wanted to know if I'd take the 1st car if they lowered the price. I had to explain that money wasn't the issue.

So I hope I get treated like all the rest of the customers now that I'm back with a car needing service.

Break in:
Although these and most cars come with the engines not needing a engine break in I suspect their still is a peroid of time over which the engine is still in the process of breading in. Does something definiitive happend to the engine that makes is run more efficiently. I don't know if I can answer that. I suspect though that as the pistion seals wear they seall better giving you better compression and thus more power for less gas. I suspect to that other rolling parts such as wheel bearings get worn to where they revollve with less drag so that the car rolls with just a touch less drag; all adding up to more optimum performance.

thank you
cw

 

[fran54]

Hi, everyone. I have just joined this board (thanks to Pete the admin who fixed my registration typos) so this is my first post. I ordered my 2004 Prius in September and accepted the first one available in October instead of waiting for one with my specs. I have almost 6,000 miles on it, haven't had the trouble you describe, but there has been a recall. I didn't get the specifics, but something electronic needed to be reprogrammed. I asked the service techs about mileage early on, and one told me not to even try to check the mileage until after 6,000 miles. Of course, I have been anyway, am averaging 45 mpg, but I didn't find out what the deal is about the 6,000 miles. I should know soon -- it gets its 6,000 mile oil change in a couple of weeks, and then I'm taking it on its second road trip into the mountains. Thanks for letting us know about that moisture thing. I drive in rain, snow, mud, heat, cold, etc. and I would just as soon not have to worry about moisture shorting something out.

Ellen

 

[leebek]

03 battery problem

I had a dead battery in my 03 classic the morning after I drove it off the lot. After three weeks hearing the service department say they could not get another battery, I suggested they take one from another car they had for sale on the lot. I got my Prius and they got their loaner back. I never did hear a satisfactory explanation of why the battery had to be replaced. Service department blamed the salespersons for not knowing how to treat a Prius demo on the lot. Yeah, right! Anyway, they got another battery installed and I have been trouble-free since, and getting 58 MPG, at that!
good luck...

 

[Daniel]

We lost $500 in tax benefits

All you lost was $500 of deduction, probably worth between $100 and $175, depending on your tax bracket.

 

[licythomas]

Does it mean the Prius will not run even if the ICE is functioning properly but the battery is dead or does not take any charge?

 

[mrv]

which battery?

Does it mean the Prius will not run even if the ICE is functioning properly but the battery is dead or does not take any charge?

Which battery are you talking about? The 12v lead-acid accessory battery, or the 200+v NiMH hybrid traction battery?

Like with any car, if your 12v accessory battery is dead (leave a door ajar or lights on overnight, or leave the car undriven for many weeks), then you'll need a jumpstart/boost to get your car going again. And you'll probably also need a new 12v battery, as you probably won't have the same longevity in it...

The 12v accessory battery powers up the computers in the car. The computers effectively "turn on"/connect the hybrid traction battery. The hybrid traction battery provides power to one of the electric motors, which starts the gasoline engine. There is no traditional starter motor in the Prius, nor an auxiliary starter motor to start the gas engine should the electrics fail (like is on the Honda IMA systems). There is no traditional alternator, either - the 12v battery is charged by the hybrid traction battery whenever the car is in the READY state (doesn't have to be driving to get charged).

In the really rare/freak accident that your electrics (say, the hybrid traction battery) aren't working, you're not going anywhere, as you cannot start the gas engine.
In the case where the gas engine isn't working (say, you foolishly run out of gasoline), depending on the state of charge of the hybrid traction battery, you may only be able to drive to the side of the road (safe place) or a few miles to a service station. Note that this is not advised for hybrid battery longevity, among other things...

Just to note, the little battery icon on the Energy Monitor in the Prius displays the SOC of the hybrid traction battery. But, even "full" and "empty" on the icon doesn't actually match full or empty on the battery, just the upper and lower limits on the charge/discharge that Toyota has set up. I think the classic Prius was around 40-80%, but I'd have to check Graham's site again...

 

[licythomas]

Thanks,

I'm referring to the 200+V battery.

 

[cwynn]

Stagemonkey to you read me over?

They returned the car and said that it had been run out of gas which caused this failure which is preposterous. We have been very concsience of this and have faithfully filled the tank. Only once in has it beeped in the 17xx miiles we've onwed it to tell us to get the tank filled. The car was pulled in with half a tank of gas. They suggested that it happened on a previous tank fiill which again is preposterous. The service man is going by the codes reported by the computer diagnostics. Then he assumes that it must have be driven on an empty tank (at some time) not the case we told the service manager. So where does that leave us, but to think this is going to happen again. They just recharged the battery and sent us on our way.

They had a copy of "Stagemonkey's experience. The service man said that in the case of a short he would get a different computer code. I thought I see if I could verify that.

So if Stagemoney is still following this thread I beseach you to look at the invoice you might still be holding that delt with your battery failure. It should have the codes listed that were reported when they worked on your car.

My report reads as such:
Cause: Found codes C2318 (low voltage error-power supply malfunction)
B1421 (Solar Sensor Circuit-passenger side)
P3000 (Battery control system malfun)
8900997 others test: 30 WT
800 Electrical: 30 INTP
POA80 (replac hybrid battery pack) #30 checked out. HEV fuse and system circuit ok No opens or shorts in the system. HV control system normal but hybrid battery pack is discharged to about 10% indicates a possible no charge condition from the gas engine running empy on fule, which does not allow the hybrid battery pack to charge. This make the system go into fail safe mode. Cleared the codes and road tested the vehicle. The battery pack for the hybrid system , now charges back up to 60-70% Note: always need to make sure the gasoline engine does not run out of fuel Toyota case #200403190618

I would be interested if your (Stagemonkey's) invoice showed the same codes or not.

thank you
Craig

 

[smoothchat]

Hmm,

this car is watching your every move.

 

[licythomas]

Does this mean I can jump start the ICE with a 200 V supply to the electric motor if the battery power is low? I should be able to jump start the ICE and let it charge the battery, has anyone try this or will this void the warranty?

 

[RSnyder]

Does this mean I can jump start the ICE with a 200 V supply to the electric motor if the battery power is low? I should be able to jump start the ICE and let it charge the battery, has anyone try this or will this void the warranty?

Not a good idea! We're talking potentially lethal voltages here. The slightest mistake and ... ZZZAAAPPPP! Do not attempt to service the high voltage system unless you have passed Toyota's training course.

If you have a Toyota Prius tester you can do it without jumping, there's almost always enough juice left in the HV battery to start the engine when it's put in a special start mode. That's what the Toyota service techs do. High voltage jump circuits are not readily available at most dealerships.

 

[jflowerus]

I just discovered this forum. I wanted to see what the word is on the Prious 2004

Put it on the road Jan 24, 2004 and it has a grand total of 1,7xx miles on it.

All the warning lights possible came on and the LCD told my wife to stop the car immediately.

She had just started it up and driven about 50 yrds. She was about to come home from work.

It's been trouble free up until now. The little I've investigated so far I'm beginning to think I'm the first owner with this problem.

The Toyota dealer is waiting to hear back from Toyota.

We almost would like it if they'd replace the car, but of course they won't.

The service people haven't told me much other than they hooked it up to the compter and the battery was dead. They do not know why it went dead.

This happened yesterday.

Today we got a letter from Toyota. It was a congratuations on owing the "Car of the Year" and we were selected to recieve a sticker we can proadly stick on our bumper.
Gee I'll have to see if I can get back into the service area to stick my sticker on it.

I sure hope Toyota gets involved. They should be boarding the planes now for the US If I had something to say in the matter.

I need positive feed back... something to liift my wife and my spirits.

cheers
cw

This is a stretch, but could this problem be related to the computer re-call problem?