Hybrid batteries not charging

What miles are you at? Do you have a dog and if so do you allow it to sit on the back seat? When was the 12v battery replaced? Has the car ever been in a heavy accident - esp at the rear?

 

We have been having a lot of these lately, read all posts on Inverter cooling, check your inverter reservoir, full? Is turbulence present with car in Acc or Ready? Is inverter too hot to keep your hand on, is inverter pump running, you can hear it, feel it, feel hose coming from inverter pump, pump is on left side of vehicle, under hood, below fuse box, can be seen. Cure other minor problems by rebooting! Look up rebooting. :cheer2:

 

if none of the above, read all post on 12 volt battery, there are many post on the subject. :cheer2S For the sake of the H V Battery, never run car w/o AC, Even if AC is only set on 76 degrees, it helps! Especially so in Arizona Desert HEAT.

 

Your car may have at least two problems:

1. A new shift lever may be required. I have previously posted how to replace this.

2. Your inverter coolant pump may have failed. I have previously posted how to replace this in case your car is not covered by the LSC which offers free replacement.

 

Thankyou for your feedback, the most important point is IF it is overheating check the level of the inverter coolant reservoir and top it up with water and check your radiator, it is under that plastic like piece in the front under the hood, that piece can be removed until the problem is solved. Open radiator cap only when car is totally cooled off! Top that up and overflow container, water is also fine for now.

 

1) Yep. It does sound like a bad shift lever. I don't think yours is the first I've heard of.

2) The inverter LSC Patrick's referring to is http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-...ump-dealer-letter-technical-instructions.html.

And yes, the HV battery cannot charge if in neutral. FWIW, Patrick's one of our resident repair experts.

 

stalling and more vibration than normal... plus battery not charging... was it charging when you drove it home holding the stick? did you have a loss of power/speed?

i had something similar that i think can get looked over rather easily.. ignition coils. when one fails, they don't throw any codes, the system just acts funny.

 

Bizarre questions eh?

The mileage helps give an idea of what sort of life the car has had and whether certain problems or issues are likely to have popped up. The dog question isn't as mad as it sounds. There is a vent on one side of the back seat and this allows air to flow into the large high voltage (HV) battery to keep it cool (this is the big battery that powers the car). Well it has been known in the past that dog fur can get sucked in and block up the cooling fan and then cause issues with the car. Weird but true. Though you're right, a dog should probably be sitting in the passenger seat enjoying the ride.

Finally, the 12v battery is similar to the type of battery found in all cars except in the Prius in is kept in the trunk. If these start to fail they can cause all sorts of weird things to happen with the cars electrics. It is said they fail after about 4 - 5 years or high mileage use.

Oh and Mr Wong is our expert. What he doesn't know about Prius isn't worth knowing.

Good luck and hope you get your car back to health.

 

Ty but Patrick Wong is the real champ, read his sticky.

 

If this is happening with a cold start, then it's not the inverter pump. If, however, it only occurs after some driving, then the inverter pump is suspect.

If it is the shifter lever, you should be able to hold the lever in D and force the Prius to stay in drive. When you release the lever the Prius may pop back to N. Generally the shifter lever switches fail in this way.

A failing 12V battery can also produce all sorts of weird symptoms. With any unexplained electrical problems, always consider the 12V battery a potential suspect.

Tom

 

You have a personal message on Prius Chat.

 

TLC2011: You mentioned that you took the car to OReily and they measured the battery as pulling 414 Amperes, and then had you rev the engine and turn on the lights. Somebody please correct me, but this is not the way to check the starting battery on a Prius. Cranking amps are not relevant on a Prius because it does not have a starter. The 12 volts plus is all that is required to initiate the computers. You said the car is driving fine now, did you or a mechanic comply with Post #7 on this thread????? If the inverter coolant reservoir is sort of bubbling when you take the cap off and the level is full, you are probably OK to drive the 60 miles to the dealer. Make sure overflow tank and radiator are also full, fill when cool, so you don't burn yourself. Probably, in the process of restarting several times, you rebooted the car and did not realize it. This restored the recalcitrant systems to normal again. The car acts like a computer, it is actually several computers. If you are assured that the cooling systems are functioning OK then it is safe to drive across the desert ( use the AC, just do not max it out ) The HV battery needs the AC for survival!!!! If there is any doubt about driving, have somebody follow you to the Dealer. Any comments? Pat Wong?

 

Your Prius is still under warranty , right ?

 

that is not how you test the 12v battery on the prius... as andyprius just said...

 

You can test the 12V battery yourself correctly (unlike that dealer) in five minutes with no tools and without opening the hood. It's easy, it's fun:
http://priuschat.com/forums/newbie-forum/73400-weird-stuff-happening-mpgs-dropping-test-battery.html

As others wrote (All Hail Patrick!) it seems quite likely to be a bad shift lever or perhaps the inverter coolant pump. But it's good to eliminate simple cheap possibilities such as a bad battery.

 

New I am PRAYING someone is still watching this thread. I am going to try and be as detailed as possible.

I have a 2006 Prius with over 310,000 miles on it. a few months ago I had a bad cell that I bought online and replaced it and everything was perfect. NOW however I checked all the cells and they are ALL at 8.2 Volts, but the hybrid battery will NOT hold a charge. If I am driving a flat road it seems ok-ish but going up any type of hill or pressing hard on the gas pedal the battery will go even from green to purple as quick as you can sneeze. I unplugged everything related to the hybrid battery and reset the computer. Drove to work ( from north east PA to NJ by giants stadium ) and multiple times the battery went to purple. I am SOOOOO confused and lost as what it could be. If anyone can help or offer advice that would be AMAZING. My personal email is matthewd2472 at hot mail dot com. for some reason I don't get any updates if someone replies here.

I know this is a second post but im desperate.