Going to buy a 2005 with a dead hybrid battery

Most cars wear out due to usage. The hybrid battery on a Prius can wear out due to time. So a low mileage older Prius may be a good deal if the price of a replacement battery makes sense. Replacement modules are cheap, but not reliable. The $1600 battery from 2K1Toaster is the best deal on new cells. Or if you can score a battery from a newer wrecked Prius. Just be aware that you're the amateur competing against professionals in the used battery market...

 

Tmr you know what your doing have tools have experience have a place to work. He has none of that and plans doing this in his apartment. Wife.....in an apartment....hv battery all apart .....wires chargers batteries....in an apartment....for days...lol....wife. And none of that battery work guarantees success or success that doesn’t mean your right back in it again real soon. For what? Never posted mileage probably 200,000 plus.

And yeah I’d bet money it’s going to end up as a tow home and a dead car in an apartment parking space which will soon be another problem.

So to me it’s a ridiculous plan. So many people on this site thinking they can snag a Prius that’s All jacked up for cheap to find out it’s a very complicated car.

 

Just do a module swap and drive the car. If there's nothing else wrong, then recondition it.

You would need to tear it apart, the dead module needs to be replaced

 

congrats, all the best!

 

Yes, that would be ideal. But you really don't want to spend money on this thing until you find out all (if any) of its problems.

You can wait to recondition. If you let the car sit a week before opening up the battery pack, you may be able to identify more weak modules as they self discharge. Replace all that you find

 

Thanks for the update and good luck with it. It's really nice to get an update. Sometimes people just leave you hanging and you don't know the outcome. Sorta like losing your cable when your going to find out who the killer is LOL.

 

So, I offered him $500 and he accepted.

Good work!! I've paid more and gotten less. At that price and condition, it's a no lose situation for you. Actually, you're into it so cheap, in my opinion, a good option for you is to hunt down a gen 3 battery from a wreck and just put those modules in your case. No reconditioning required and would likely last many years with no problems. If your send me your zip code, I can help you see what's available in your area.

And the great part is you can then sell your 27 good 2005 modules on ebay fast if you throw them on there for 20 bucks each. That gets you 500 back on whatever you pay for the Gen 3.

 

Unless maybe he finds out that it uses a quart of oil every 50 miles.......or something else similar.

 

If there's anything he doesn't like about the prius, it'll be easy to unload it for $500 and get his money back.

 

Sam, You are a never ending fountain of positivity.

The car was being driven. The battery started going into failure. Owner decides to sell it, rather than deal with the battery. It happens every day, somewhere. Not every car out there for sale is a scam of someone trying to get over on someone else.

This is a Prius Forum. Aren't we supposed to be supporting the Prius? Anyone looking at this thread would think we all believe a Gen 2 Prius is the biggest POS out there. Not everyone has the means or desire to just go and buy a 2017 or 2018. People buy cars of every make and model every day that need a bit of work. A Prius isn't some magical beast that is impossible to work on. It just needs different tools and equipment. And a kick-nice person support group like Prius Chat.

 

Or do like I do and add him to your Ignore list.

 

As far as I am concerned this is not only about the Prius. It doesn't sound like he has any experience and is only looking at the upside.
Yes he could buy it at junk value and when running it won't be worth as much as he has put into it. If he already owned the car knowing the condition of the car because he owned it and it didn't use oil and had never been in a wreck I would say put a battery in it and get rolling.
I think I remember him saying he lives in an apartment so he doesn't even have a place to work of his own.
We really don't know what his background is, maybe he could chime in and tell us. Another thing he wants to play with the hybrid battery rather than buy it and put a battery in it and put it on the road. There is a pretty steep learning curve dealing with the hybrid system.

 

It does show the battery needs replacement.

The 3 misfire codes can be a problem. Check the spark plugs first. Then proceed checking the coils. If both check out, then you'll have to look into the fuel injectors (this could be a problem to solve)

P1121 is a bad coolant valve.

 

Pending fault:-
P0303
P0A80
P1121
P3018

P3018 = HV Battery block 8 becomes weak. That matches your earlier voltage readings.

and then there's always that P0A80 a bit above it..