2014 Check Hybrid System...

Hi I am new to this forum. I have a 2014 Prius C with just over 100000 kms and had the CHECK HYBRID . SYSTEM...message come on when I started the vehicle in the morning. I am in Canada and it is below freezing HERE right now. I have the original 12v battery and thought it might be this. I had it towed to Toyota dealership and they did the $99 scan and their technical report stated: ADVISOR WENT TO CHECK AND NO LIGHTS WERE ON EXCEPT TPMS...SCAN VEHICLE FOR ACTIVE CODES. The Toyota technician wrote on the diagnosis report: AIRBAG LIGHT IS ON CODE B1637...LOST COMMUNICATION WITH REAR AIRBAG SENSOR LH INSPECTED WIRING HARNESS. GREEN WIRE FROM DRIVER FROM DRIVER KICK PANEL TO LH AIRBAG SENSOR IS OPEN. RECOMMEND REPLACING DRIVER FRONT DOOR WIRE HARNESS (AIRBAG WIRE DO NOT RECOMMEND REPAIRING) So I have been told that this harness repair is approx $800 (harness is $500 and labor is $300) plus taxes. Dealership has to order part in and will not be here for at least a couple of weeks. I was told it was okay to drive it home (1 mile away) but was reminded that it does not have driver side airbag operating so really unsafe to drive. The CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM...warning message is still on display. My question is this: does this CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM...message not have something to do with batteries rather than the airbag operation? I don't want to spend probably $1000 and then find this does not correct the CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM issue! If the dealership is being honest with me then I don't mind getting the work done as this will be the first maintenance I have had to do since buying the vehicle new in 2014. I do have a low tire pressure warning as well. It is due for an oil change so I was going to get the tire inflated when the oil change is done. Could this tire pressure warning be related to the CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM message? Is there an easy way to check the shape of the 12v battery? How long should the battery approx last in Canadian environment? I look forward to your replies and guidance!

 

Thank you both for your thoughts...I will go back to the dealership and question why they have not addressed the CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM...warning and ask them whether they even checked the condition of the 12 v battery. I sure agree that they appear to be addressing a different issue (if it even is one) than what I brought it in for! I probably should buy a new 12v because it is likely close to the end of it's life anyways. Is there a way to check the battery strength through the dash displays? Can I remove this CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM message from the display for now until I get the new 12 v battery? Thanks and I will watch for more thoughts on this!

 

I received the following response from the Toyota service manager:
"I agree that your 12v battery was most likely the cause of your CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM Light and you should start planning on replacing it. I spoke with the technician who looked at your vehicle and he informed me that your battery actually passed the load and diagnosis test. When your Prius was connected to our scanning tool there were no codes in history related to the hybrid system but there was a B1637 code which alerts us the system has “Lost Communication with Rear Airbag Sensor”. If there was an actual failure in the hybrid system, there would have been a failure code stored for us to retrieve. As there wasn’t, my technician proceeded to diagnose the error codes that were present. I am disappointed that there were no notes on your invoice that explained the results of your battery test. I’ve discussed this oversight with the technician and advisor and will be crediting your account 1 free battery test."

So my concern is still why did this CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM warning message appear? If the battery checked out okay, then why is the manager saying this was likely the reason for the message...am I missing something here?? What I am thinking of doing is getting Toyota to replace the battery and remove this message from my display. I am really not that concerned about this B1637 code which pertains to the Rear Airbag Sensor. Looking for comments from forum members whether this is the route to go??

 

I did check this out and it did not appear to be dirty. It is below freezing here and the warning came on when I first started the vehicle so I don't think there was any time for anything to heat up. I will thoroughly clean out the cooling fan as soon as it warms up a bit out here. I am wondering if this B1637 code is even a real code? Does anyone know the codes? So I have ordered the 12 volt battery and the dealership will install when it comes in. They agree to check out whether this solves the CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM warning. Should they not be checking the main battery too? I only have 100,000 kms on the car but is there a chance it is starting to go? I believe it is still covered under warranty. If I remove the lead to the 12 volt battery will the HYBRID system warning go off? Any other thoughts will be appreciated!

 

Update...So I have had the dealership replace the 12 volt battery but they could not remove the CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM warning. They say the same error code comes up “Lost Communication with Rear Airbag Sensor”.so they believe this wiring harness associated with a rear side safety bag must be replaced before the warning can be removed. This just doesn't make any sense to me. Why would a warning on a safety bag trip the CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM warning? Even the service manager was pretty sure replacement of the12 volt battery would correct the issue. I don't plan on taking the vehicle back to this dealership for this service ($800). I think they are missing something here and lack the experience to really know what needs to be done. When the weather warms up here I will try to find this green wire that perhaps has been become detached as per the technician's note in his first diagnosis...GREEN WIRE FROM DRIVER FROM DRIVER KICK PANEL TO LH AIRBAG SENSOR IS OPEN. Meanwhile the vehicle operates fine and I am not that concerned about a rear side safety bag sensor...thanks for member responses to my dilemna!