Combination meter: reputable place to purchase one new or used

Contact Matt @Texas Hybrid Batteries:

Texas Hybrid Batteries - new Combination Meters

You can order a refurbished (with life time warranty) pre-programed to your current odo reading. You return your broken one on exchange.

 

I also recommend Matt @Texas Hybrid Batteries.

It's not hard to replace if you do the many steps in the right order. Here's the video I used.

 

Glad you got it done. You can probably find the vent cover for cheap at a salvage yard.

 

There is a Pull-A-Part in Knoxville, you can set up a notification for when they get a Prius, there are likely other Self-Service Junkyards, or you could check car-part.com (for regular junkyards) or eBay for them.

 

I love how on the YouTube videos they just grab the vents and yank them off, must have done the video the first year they had the car or are in a very mild climate--all the vents I have ever seen (La. & Tx.) are very brittle!

 

Yep, plastics degrade over the years from UV. Hard to find replacement at junkyards in LA CA.

 

Just completed my CM (Combination Meter) installation a couple weeks ago on my 2008 Prius. I used the posted video here on Prius Chat and on youtube. I ordered my lifetime warranty, refurbished CM from Matt at Texas Hybrid Batteries. Friendly on the phone, answers all your questions and ships your order out immediately. The cost is $225 dollars, but if you send in your faulty CM using the same box and included postage paid mailing label you will get a $75 dollar refund! Upon completion of your installation, Be sure to follow the instructions provided on re-calibrating your fuel quantity indication. I did a video on how to do the simple procedure and posted it to you tube.
Neal

 

Yay! And, IIRC, after five posts, you can include links. If so, how about putting it in another post here? We'd love to see it. I see that your last post was #5.

 

i discovered today the vent covers have variation in their shape between Prius models, although most ebay advertisements say "2004-2009". i pulled a left-hand central ac cover off a 2004 junkyard prius and it doesnt sit flush inside my 2007 prius.

On the left-hand central vent, the one with the hole for the shift, there is a spot for a plastic tab to come out of the vent cover and interlock with the dashboard pad, but the tab is in a different spot on the 2004 i pulled vs 2007 i drive. it actually prevents the dashboard pad from closing down flush with the vent cover. I'm going to try shave down the plastic on the underneath right-hand side of the dashboard pad.

p.s. local junkyard prices on these are about 5-10 dollars, ebay is 50-100 dollars, dealership is way above that.

 

You may have noticed that 2004-2005 have flat plastic parts while 2006-2009 have texture in the plastic surface. Based upon your observation it sounds like the physical dimensions also have some variation.
I paid ~$150 for a new left center vent when I replaced the combination meter; here is one example @ $145 (plus shipping)
2006-2009 Toyota Prius Air Vent Grille 55670-47060 | Toyota OEM Direct

 

Thanks Patrick, I must have overlooked the texture. I dug around the link you provided, and it gives a different part number for 2004-2005, of 55670-47040. That would explain the difference I guess. The part snaps into the underlying dash just fine, it is only the interface with the black dash part that is different. Mine now has a giant 'panel gap' between dash and vent cover after some careful shaving with a pocket knife.

The level of brittleness here is beyond my typical DIYer experience. The vents are more brittle than a sun burnt plastic fork, and it's nearly impossible to remove without breaking as they are held in with clips which require force being transmitted through the plastic itself in order to release the friction grip. It doesnt seem there is an easy way to only push on the clips themselves from behind, and even so youd have to push all at once simultaneously with even force to pop the thing without snapping. I tried to re-glue my central vents post-shatter but the glue was stronger than the remaining plastic, which broke in new several places after reinstallation. I got another vent from a junkyard, and it also looked fine, but it too cracked after a few weeks.

Trying to match paint color is not easy for an amateur. If you photo the color and zoom in, it is metallic but with bits of purple and brown, but also a relatively matte finish. A junkyard part costs less than the paint, if you are lucky enough to be near a junkyard that has Prius.

 

I just broke the vent cover that goes over the shifter stick and a/c vent, part# 55670-47040. Going to try and find a replacement at the local junkyard. The local dealership wants $200 for this brittle piece of plastic. Ugh!

 

I understand this thread is originally a year old but can Texas fix the 299,999 issue also?

 

I'm pretty sure Matt has some postings on here about converting a 2006-9 Combo meter for use in a 2004/2005 model. The 06 and up models don't have the 299,999 limit. You can always call him and discuss. Maybe he offers it as an option when requested.

 

I think so. One way to find out for sure is to ask him. Hey @Texas Hybrid Batteries (Matt), are you free fill us in?

 

TMR is correct. The 300K odometer limit only affects the 04 and 05 models cars. We retrofit the new style clusters (06-09) into the older cars all the time which solves the problem. It does require replacing the warning light cluster as well and we include that with the upgrade kit. The kit includes the newer style combo meter (programmed to match your cars mileage) and the light cluster for $200.

The additional part only add a few minutes to the install because it sits right next to the CM.

Combination Meters that stop at 299,999

Matt

 

Sweet that's what I was hoping for a plug and play retrofit solution. When it comes to digital parts repairs that isn't a bad price. I had a 89 reatta and every single part was digital and that's 20 years older than the prius. Pricey and rare electronics. I'm probably going to go look at a 05 soon. I've been trying to avoid those years but its salsa red and that is a hot color. I was curious about this