Hi all. It got to be close to 10 years since I last posted here, but I believe I am dealing with the inevitable battery failure for my 2005 Prius. I've been searching the forum and surprising cant really find the right kind of advice I'm looking for in terms of replacing my battery. To start, I'm only speculating that it is my battery based on the red icon on the touch display and the check engine light along with a couple of others on the dashboard. The battery has been exhibiting behavior that shows it has been going for a while now - maybe at least a year- e.g. Quick loss of charge in the morning down to 2 purple bars and then going up to green after driving for sometime. Last time I drove it two days ago all power disappeared abruptly, came back to green, then gone again sporadically with the dashboard lights that I described. If anyone thinks it worth testing for other things please let me know. With the assumption its the battery I'm investigating options for replacing it. It seems the consensus is not to go with a rebuilt battery given the headaches and lack of reliability that many people have had. Nonetheless, its an option that I have on the table at the moment but I'm looking for folks to change. To start with, my Prius only has 135K miles on it - ~80K of which was put on in the last 7 years after moving to NC from NYC. Didnt need to drive it much in NYC. I've had to replace the waterpump again just recently either the 3rd or 4th time, I lost count. I'd like to keep the car a bit longer. Cosmetically its not in the greatest shape and the speakers kind of suck but are bearable. I have my eye on replacing it with a tesla, maybe a cyber truck, but because of other logistics (moving) the timing is not right and this is more aspirational rather than a hard plan. One of the options I'm looking at includes a rebuilt battery from Hybrid Geek which happen to be right in my area and are willing to drive to my house to install. Their pricing model is quite interesting and they seem to tier their warranty and if I have an issue, they're close by which is a plus. The Hybrid Geek prices I have are $749 for a 90 day warranty $895 for a 1 year warranty $1449 or a lifetime warranty Looking at newpriusbatteries.com it seems there is good sentiment with their reliability and their batteries are $1600 shipped, but I would need to find someone to put it in which might run up to about $600 conservatively, so I'm assuming $2200 here. Last option I have would be to go to a guy near me who has Toyota OEM batteries and he'll put one in for me at $2723 and back it with his own 5 year guarantee. If I was looking to keep the car another 10 years I would be seriously considering this; in fact I still am but hesitant to over invest not because of cashflow problems but is it wise to put this much towards a car at this stage in the game. If anyone has other suggestions, please share. As of now I'm thinking of going with hybrid battery with the lifetime guarantee for $1449 just not to have the headache, but the fact its 2x the price of the 90day warranty has me thinking I'm essentially paying for a 2nd replacement upfront and wondering if I'd actually be better off rolling the dice. This does start to feel like a betting game. Initially I was thinking newpriusbatteries.com for sure but if I'm investing that deeply, then for for $500 more maybe its better to just have someone near by with an actual OEM part that is likely to give me zero headaches and take ownership of the full repair including the parts. Please let me know what you guys think and if you can offer any additional advice. Thanks in advance!
Forum member TMR-JWAP is in Columbia SC and may be able to refurbish your battery. He has an excellent rep on Priuschat. Here is a hybrid battery replacement thread that he documented. Just Another HV Battery Thread and Experiments | PriusChat His phone number is on his profile page give him a call and see if he can help you. TMR-JWAP | PriusChat Of course depending if he is interested, or has time or battery modules, or even a complete battery.
135k is just broken in. i would see if i could find someone to install the newpriusbattery, and if not, check around on oem prices. $2,700. may or may not be the best price. idk anything about the hybrid geek, can you trust he'll be around for warranty? and then there's the downtime hassle if it needs constant replacing. otoh, idk if your battery is going out. the gauge usually oscillates frequently. it would be a good idea to read the trouble codes first.
Speculating on what your problem is without any codes or data is usually not going to work out well. It's not the kind of car that is simple enough to do that. The car wants to tell you exactly what's wrong, and the car knows what's wrong. So do as others suggested and pull the codes to let the car tell you what it needs. Once you pull the codes you will be in a position to ask for guidance here from some very knowledgeable Prius guys. That is the best course of action. Good luck
Hi guys. Thanks for all the replies and suggestions. For those who asked, the 12v battery died 3 months ago and was replaced with a brand new one. The diagnostics in the mfd shows it at 14.1V I googled how to get diagnostic codes and took a few pictures of what’s showing. I can’t find how to read them but I’m attaching here if anyone can shed light. Please let me know if I should be sharing anything different. Thanks again for the help.
you can't read the codes that way. those are just audio, etc. you need tech stream, or at least dr. prius, hybrid assistant, or other. and while your 12v may or may not be fine, that reading is the inverter charging it, not the battery voltage.
Dr Prius App and a Carista ODB reader is the combo that I use to pull codes. In todays world of used car hybrid prices 135K cars are selling for 6-9k. If your going to keep it I would go new. NPB for $1,600 is the cheapest. If I was closer I’d install for you. somebody nearby you should be able to help you out. After that it’s OEM or Project Lithium Batteries. How is the rest of the car? New suspension? Brakes? ABS unit? Interior. If it’s in good shape I’d keep it.
He hasn't been back since Feb 8. 2022, checked for reply, didn't get one, gave up? Same as another poster thinking he needs an HV battery. 2022 gen 2 hybrid battery replacement | PriusChat He posted Apr 21 Thursday 4:45pm, checked again at 5:19 pm, didn't get an reply and hasn't been back since.
I went with a company called GreenBean, about 1600.00 with a 5 year unlimited mile warranty and they come out and install it for you. I replaced it June of 2019. @ 120k miles. As of now the vehicle has 233k mile on it. No issues I do all highway driving cruise control set at 70-73mph and I get between 43-45 mpg still.
