Traction Battery Replacement (Whats all the fuss?)

The fuss is that some dealers refuse to sell hybrid batteries to the public.

Some people aren't comfortable taking apart the back of their car or moving a very heavy Hybrid Battery.

Some folks don't have the right tools to do the job properly. For example many people don't own a torque wrench so they over or under tighten bolts/nuts causing damage to their car.

Plus for many, their time is more valuable than money.

 

That oil pan took a big hit. Oil over filled but looks clean. Did the bent pan cause the overfill on the dipstick do ya think ?

 

Good luck on your project, you sound confident.

 

There is also the liability of selling somebody a high voltage battery who does not know how to properly handle it. That voltage can be fatal.

 

I echo the wishes of good luck and suggest @Elektroingenieur may be the guy to ask about stripping down the battery.

 

Good point. And welcome to PC.

You're right that changing out the traction battery is not hard at all, but that assumes you have the tools and information and you know a volt meter from a pry bar.

 

More dangerous than driving with explosive chemicals (gasoline) in the back and active explosions (ICE) in front?

 

I have seen clueless people use screwdrivers to check voltage by shorting. I guess pry bars would work too.

 

welcome!
i suppose some of the fuss is how much money is it worth investing in a 16 year old car.

 

You don’t have a significant other to remind you of your short comings .

 

I once converted a pair of side cuts into wire strippers by cutting the wires feeding a 277V light fixture that I was "sure" was shut off since it wasn't lit and I was "sure" it was on the same circuit as the others I'd already removed. Two nice notches in the side cuts. And, of course, once I did that, the power really was off on those wires.

 

True, but Toyota does not have that liability if the car is considered as past its expected useful life.

 

You are close. But there is still more work to be done and pieces you need to retain. (and you actually disassembled some stuff that you could have left assembled as a unit. No big deal. )

You can leave the buss bars and voltage sensing wires. But be sure to put the plastic back covers on. The new pack comes with new black covers.

Also, when you arrive you will need to put the two Toyota-supplied brown non-conductive brown mats inside the cover.

Also you need to take that metal end that held the computers off and transfer it to the new pack. You actually didn't need to remove the computer from that metal assembly.

You will need the vertical metal end plate from the metal battery cover. Also the yellowish/whiteish rectangular clip that holds that cover in place and the 10mm bolt.

You will also need to mark the pack with the year, mileage, and VIN of your Prius.

Wrap the ends of the voltage sense harness and the other harnesses in a plastic bag and tape them up. I use the bags and tape from the Toyota-supplied parts.

When reassembling don't forget to use a torque wrench to properly tighten the nuts/bolts for the battery cables, etc. Very important! Do not use the air gun in your pictures!

Fully inspect the new pack and make sure you have what you need before you leave your core.
Be sure to get all the parts out of the shipping box before you leave. (nuts, foam baffles, leads, etc)

This is from memory, so hopefully I didn't miss anything.

Feel free to call me if you want to chat or clarify things.