Gen 1 Prius as a hobby

Your modules are old and tired and are simply just running out of juice. Time to look at replacing if you want to keep this car going. You can use any NiMH modules from any Toyota hybrid that uses them, so look for a recently wrecked Toyota hybrid and buy the battery for as cheap as possible. Some models use fewer modules (e. g. Prius c) and some use more (e. g. Camry HyHi) than a Prius, so be aware of that. Double check that younger donor car uses NiMH as some use Lithium modules.

 

Gen 2 modules are getting pretty old. Gen 4 Prius (NiMH ones) or late Gen 3 is what you should be looking for. Anything 5 years or newer would be best.

 

More often than not with gen1 packs, underperforming modules need to be swapped out before getting a battery that last over the long run. This is why remanufactured batteries are usually only as good as their warranty. It's difficult to get 38 perfectly matching gen2 modules, since they come from cars with smaller battery packs.

On a positive note, took the family out in the '01 Prius on a hundred mile Sunday drive last weekend, avoiding the highways and enjoying the countryside. Car ran like new getting 53mpg, not bad for a 20+ yo car.

 

The clutch was separately available, at least in the US, last time I looked.

It consists of the pressure plate, pulley, pulley bearing, and magnet coil, which I think were also available a la carte as well.

There's a thread here somewhere about changing it.

That said, I'm quite surprised to hear of a case where a proper clearance adjustment wasn't enough.