a few minutes ago i went outside to get the mail. and saw the parking lights just barely on. somehow i had left them on for about 4 hours. ive never killed a battery before and this is my 4th prius. sure enough i jumped in and hit the power button. only a little moan. damn. ive got to be at work by 7 in the morning. im hoping it will recover enough to start in the am. do i have 24hr jump off service?? how could i be so careless!!
fixed (i hope) already. my dealership (beaman in nashville) sent a truck through its beaman cares dept. he used a jump box and it started within 30seconds! i took a short drive and will try to start it again in the am. keep my fingers crossed. im still a little puzzled as to how it happened. i know if i leave headlights or driving lights on they turn off. i think i apparently left my parking lights on and they did not shut off.
I carry one of this in the trunk, for my own peace of mind, and the fact the prius cannot jump start another car, just in case if I need to help someone else out. Get the Stanley 500-Amp Jump Starter at Walmart.com. Save money. Live better.
The starting battery is an AGM battery and can be drained deeper than a Lead Acid battery so I wouldn't worry about it.
just an update. car acts as if it never had a problem. every thing is cool. i did order a jumpbox just so ill be less paranoid. the comment about the little 12v being an agm is interesting. has it always been this way on a prius. my understanding (what very very little i have) is that this battery may discharge quicker but will also recharge quicker that standard batteries. am i close on this
IDK if the Prius has always had an AGM battery and I don't know if it discharges and charges quicker. Google would be our friend to find out. What I do know is an AGM battery can be drained deep with no damage or future performance problems. They also generally have more power. I just bought an AGM Sears Diehard Platinum for my Suburban you can see in my avatar. It has 1500 CA and 850 CCA. It can be drained down 80% up to 400 times before needing replacement. It is quite a little powerplant. Great technology.
Wait a minute, doesn't your lights turn off automatically (after 30 seconds or something like that)? Mine does...
yah but... i think i accidentally left my parking lights on, because it looked like they were on dully whhen i saw the car hours later. only thing i can think of. mysterious. one thing is for sure though and that is that now i make suure everything is off regardless.
Something doesn't sound right. I have a 2012 II..same as you. My lights weather main lights or parking lights go out when I turn off the car. I just went out and checked. My delay is set to 0 but even the same when I use delay settings. How did you manage to have leave your parking lights on?
the mystery continues. im wondering if i just hit the main power button without putting my foot on the brake. thus putting it in accessory mode for several hours. what do you think? im sure its me not the car.
I have a 2012 PIP- so maybe it's different than the regular Prius- but If I hit the power button one time without hitting the brake- I'm in accessory mode. If I remain in accessory mode- the car automatically turns itself off after 20 min to save the 12v battery. I use this feature to time my lunch breaks every day at work- I get in the PIP- hit accessory mode- turn on the radio- when the car shuts itself off 20 min later- it's time to get out and get back to the office.
