Hello, Any thoughts or reference to a person that can help me would be greatly appreciated. I was driving in a parking lot (low speed) when I smelled electrical burning at the time the Prius (2007 ~180k miles) died (simultaneous). Upon inspection under the hood, I was able to distinctly isolate the smell to the fuse box at the far left (perspective of sitting in driver's seat). Please see attached image. All fuses check out including the clear box of fuses in the center of the circle. The battery level at the red terminal in picture tests at 12.5 v. The battery level at the back of the car checks out at 12.5 v also. (maybe the same, idk). Symptoms: 1) headlights and interior cabin lights and tail lights work. 2) the hazard (turn signals) lights and missing key icon (car with the key on it) and door ajar are the only instrumentation lights that work. 3) all other instrumentation including the power button, touch screen, backlit buttons (radio) and all other instrumentation is dead (does not light). 4) when the brake is pressed the standard sound of pumping and the click IS heard from under the hood. 5) when the key is inserted (two keyfobs were tested) and the brake is pressed and the start button pressed nothing happens. Any help you could provide would be greatly appreciated and I would be happy to compensate for the advice. Thanks, -bill
This is what dealer service departments are FOR. They fix your car and you pay them for their service. Sorry for being snarky but sometimes I can't help but wonder what people hope to accomplish by coming to a place like THIS first........where the best they will get is a wild guess most of the time. And often much less than that.
Under the hood is a fuse box near the driver side, under the lid should be a 'map' of where each fuse is located. The AM2 fuse (15A “IGN” fuse, ignition system) is #31 or the 2nd fuse down from the upper right corner of the C column. If the AM2 fuse is bad, it could be related to a shorted/failed inverter pump. Before replacing the fuse disconnect the inverter pump first, otherwise the fuse will blow again. If the fuse doesn't blow you know where to look next. @Bill Galley have you checked the vehicle history by running the VIN at Toyota Owners Official Web Site ?
In the old days of the internet, it was called WOTL: Wisdom Of The (email) List. Knowledge, experience, feedback, advice, sympathy, etc. There are many reasons to ask first before proceeding. Finally, it's sad to say, many dealers know less and have become parts replacers or with old vehicles want to steer the customer to a view that it's just better to buy a new car than fix that old one.
You can only test it (or drive short distances) with the inverter pump disconnected. So if that test reveals that the pump is bad replace the pump. Driving long distance with bad inverter pump or pump disconnected will cause the inverter (and transaxle) to overheat and maybe even completely fail.
Bill, you have an excellent resource just down the road from you. I highly advise you check with Matt next. Texas Prius Battery Replacement
Thank you very much SFO! You nailed it! I thought I had checked each fuse but that was it. I am a single car family so I was focused on buying another Toyota Hybrid for the past few days and I was never notified that I had a response and just checked by chance. Sam Spade, I respect the professionalism that dealer techs provide but I simply cannot afford them. SFO and valde3, could you point me to a resource that will show me where to disconnect the inverter pump for the test? If you haven't figured it out yet, I am not very mechanically inclined. fotomoto, I am in Bedford Texas. Who and where is Matt? This is a great group of people in this forum and I sincerely appreciate the thought and help you have provided. I will do better to learn more and contribute to the forum. Thanks all! -bill
Matt is from Texas Hybrid Batteries. Click on the link at the end of fotomoto's post (#8) to take you to his website.