My prius battery just died overnight a few weeks ago because i left the door open. I got it jumpstarted by aaa. The battery level has been fluctuating when im driving. It would go up and down and not stay up while driving. Generally regenerates when i brake alot. I just got it serviced at toyota and they OK'd the battery condition. Battery fluctuating during driving. Normal or not normal? am i just paranoid?
The battery you see on the display is NOT the battery you had to have jumped. There is a separate 12 v battery that is used to run the accessories and the computers when the car is not turned on. It's normal for the battery that drives the electric motors to fluctuate up and down depending on driving conditions and the way you drive the car. It would be highly unusual for it to remain at full charge all the time.
This is your hybrid battery. It goes up and down for everyone. And even if this wasn't a hybrid, your battery level doesn't stay the same in whatever car you're driving...
Just in case you have ruined your 12 volt battery here is an alternative to the Toyota battery 12 Volt (12v) Toyota Prius Auxilary Battery for 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010 with installation kit
I left the house my traction battery indicated 2 bars left...I got to work and it was within 1 bar of the top (that's quite a range). Since I was close to top I switched to EV mode entering my parking garage...drove around parking garage in EV with lights and AC on...parked with 4 bars left...Hope that answers your concern.
Hi there, After two days of cold, my car is out of power. Lights are very weak and it is very difficult to unlock it. Do you think it may be the 12v battery ? Where can I find a new one ?
^^ Sounds likely, run the test at http://priuschat.com/forums/newbie-forum/73400-weird-stuff-happening-mpgs-dropping-test-battery.html after you've left the car overnight. Tell us the values you get after each step. You also have a 2nd gen, so you shouldn't have bumped this thread. Many would recommend http://priuschat.com/forums/prius-h...-12v-yellow-top-d51-battery-pencil-posts.html instead of buying a replacement from Toyota. It won't save you any money, but many feel it's a superior battery. I have one of these but w/different sized terminals as the pencil post version didn't exist yet.
A new Toyota battery and the Optima yellowtop D51 pencil post are the only drop-in replacements. Anything else requires modifications to the car. A Toyota dealer should not charge more than about $200 for a new one installed. More than that and they're trying to gouge you; go to another dealer.
