Battery Life?

It lasts until it fails.

How long do people normally last ?

 

generally 15-20 years, but a few fail sooner. you can measure the life left in it with the dr. prius app

 

12V auxiliary battery or HV traction battery?

 

or fob?

 

15 to 20 years for a gen 3 battery is VERY optimistic..... don't plan on that at all.... consider 10 years and your lucky....
Miles and temperature do matter...........

 

The area I live in there are quite a few Gen 2s and 3s running around (especially considering the population of the area) and to the best of my knowledge no one has had any traction battery issues. So at least a 15 to 20 year span seems very reasonable.

 

Find that hard to believe........ mine lasted 8 years................. and I know several that had the same problems....
So you have asked all the prius drivers u see in your area if they have ever replaced their traction batteries?
If no failures why so many places selling batteries...... rebuilt and new........?

 

it also depends on how much they are used, according to some. with 68k, i'd be more concerned than with 168k

 

Of course I haven’t asked everyone one of them . However, I have talked to many of them and, NONE have mentioned any problems. However, I should note that none have experienced the “Prius Chat Failures”, and all of them practice preventive maintenance. In fact, talking with Prius owners around here is more like talking to Prius owners on the European sites in that they are extremely impressed by how reliable they are. I don’t know how to explain it other than the conservative preventative maintenance (early oil changes, cleaning the battery fan, testing fluids and basing the change intervals on those results, etc). Sorry your’s failed so early, don’t know what to tell you, but around here you are the anomaly.

 

Many folks around here drive less than 5k a year. Again, I don’t know how to explain the apparent contradiction except to, once again, point to the conservative preventative maintenance practices. For example, nearly every one is doing the 5k/6 month OCI and uses the recommended Toyota oils and filters.

 

i don't understand, how do those items affect battery life?

 

You kind of missed my point (my apologies for not making it explicitly obvious). People who meticulously care for their Priuses don’t seem to be having the “Prius Chat Syndrome”, and (to make sure you know) I’m not saying everyone on PC is not taking care of theirs. It does appear, however that most of those who suffer from the syndrome, also have an aversion to caring for their Priuses in a meticulous manner. Again, just so we are clear, not every one on PC is that way. And, so we are clear, by meticulous I mean going above and beyond the scope of the maintenance schedule and continuing to do so.

 

You just don't have enough miles on for a real judgment.
Wait till it has 150,000 or before and the you will know what we are talking about. A Kia Is great till 100,000 plus miles.
The 3rd Gen is not legendary toy reliability.
There have been thousands of traction battery packs sold. And that's a easy fix.
Wait till your stranded by the blown inverter. Shot brake accumulator and of course the dreaded head gasket.

 

Most Prius hv batteries easily make 10 years or 150,000 miles which also happens to be the current Toyota warranty on new cars with essentially the same NiMH chemistry. There is absolutely a direct correlation with the number of charge cycles. No engine, fluid or other "superior" maintenance helps.

Toyota does a good job avoiding complete charge and discharge cycles but there is a limit. The limit seems to come sooner in hot environments particularly since Toyota hybrids depend on air cooling of the battery. Most evs use liquid cooling.

However the hv battery is not the biggest expense a gen3 owner will see at higher (>150k) mileages. Now it is engine failures often dismissed as head gaskets. Not only hve hg fails become accepted as a design flaw on Priuschat over the last five years but now complete engine replacements are becoming common practice for longterm reliability.