I have a 2006 with roughly 160,000 miles on it. The hybrid battery was replaced with a refurbished one from a local shop on December 26th 2013. Today after getting gas the Red exclamation point inside the triangle, along with yellow exclamation point inside the circle, vsc and check engine lights all came on. I'm almost positive those are the exact same things that came on ladt time battery died, however the car isn't acting the same as it did last time. The car seems to run fine. The hybrid battery seems to charge fine according to the display. However the vent in the backseat is running non-stop like it did last time. So I'm pretty sure hybrid battery is going out again. But didn't know if any chance of it being something cheaper. Thanks, Jeffrey
Someone, much better than I, will probably answer soon, but in the meantime, before the Kentucky Derby starts, is there any chance of you grabbing a mint julep and wandering out and checking the status of the 12v....just for fun? The fan running thing is what worries me, and makes me think doom. But, if you are capable of checking the 12v, why not?
i suppose you can check the fan for cleanliness. but you're probably right, refurbs don't seem to last too long.
Big difference is a NEW HV Battery would likely give you the same amount of miles the original HV battery gave you (say 150,000miles). You learned the reality of rebuilt batteries: cheaper price, shorter life span, less reliability; warranty meaningless given the three just mentioned aspects. Many of these warranties have a fee and you will have an install fee again (if you don't DIY). What was the cost of this rebuilt HV battery including installation? A New HV Battery from Toyota Dealerships would have been $2100-$2400, depending on the dealership, and if they would sell this item to you. Unfortunately some dealerships won't sell this item to the lay person. You can find a dealership to sell you one, you'll just have to drive a distance. Good luck w/ your repair options.
True, new probably would last longer but outside of 12 minths, theres zero guarantee that buy a new battery from Toyota would last another $160,000 miles. I believe Toyota wanted $2800 (may have been $2500 not positive but around there) for battery and installation. Local shop that rebuilds then charged $1200.
A common mistake people make when shopping is using the warranty as indicator of product quality. A new car offering a 10 year warranty like Hyundai does not mean it'll be more reliable than a car offering a 3 year warranty like a Toyota.
Agreed. There's no guarantees that the NEW HV Battery would last as long as the original one that gave you about 7years/150,000miles. However, something tells me, that an HV Battery composed of all NEW modules will outlast a rebuilt HV Battery composed of used modules of unknown quality. Unfortunately you have a tough decision to make. Buy NEW, go rebuilt, or go whack-a-mole via module pair replacement. If you happen to be in the market for another Prius, you could negotiate price on a new one, then bring out your NEW HV Battery contingency (Toyota Customer Care and the Dealership are to absorb the cost of a new HV Battery installed in your 2006 Prius). They will hate you for it, but that would force the dealership and Cust Care into a hard position; loose the sale and customer loyalty over a part that maybe costs them maybe $1200, or $600 each (Dealership and Cust Care to absorb). Something tells me they will eat the $600 and write nearly all of it off on their respective corporate loop holed taxes. If they say no, go get your Honda, Acura, Nissan, Ford, different Toyota from a different dealership. You would truly be in a great position, as Prius sales have tanked since gas is cheap.
