2004 with 269,000 km gets red triangle of death

It could be your 12v battery. The 12v battery runs the computers and it can cause screwy things to happen . Check the battery 1st...

 

could be inverter coolant pump died and inverter overheated. This causes all kinds of weirdness. Scan the car with a good code reader to know for sure.

 

yes. and welcome to priuschat! (even tho you've been a member since '08. )

 

Yes.

 

I would check for circulation in the inverter coolant tank. Have car on ready and remove filler cap and check for movement in the coolant.H

 

+1

NO! Unless you want the same thing to happen again, and this time maybe completely blow the inverter (4 digit repair bill) then listen to the advice given and check that your inverter coolant is circulating before doing anything else.

 

Again take heed of the advice.

John (Britprius)

 

does "pulled the battery" mean replaced old worn out 12v with new?

 

Did you also check the engine coolant level in the radiator itself, not just the translucent overflow container? If not, you will need to remove the large black plastic cover over the radiator for access to the radiator cap.

In case you are wondering how to remove the six plastic fasteners, rotate each fastener with a Phillips screwdriver while exerting upwards force on the cover. The fastener will pop out of the hole.

No, OP means that he temporarily disconnected the 12V battery to clear the DTC.

 

Let's see now, OP has very old battery. OP disconnects battery. Problem goes away.
OP still hasn't tested battery (a free, 5 minute, tool free procedure). Ya, must be something other than battery.

 

I am also having a problem similar, except when its parked it dies and won't start. Drove it 2 days ago and today nothing lights up! Just installed new 12 volt battery about 4 months ago. Jumping it will make it start. Could this also be an inverter problem? Also I just noticed that it is making a noise comming from the fuse box under the hood which appears to be the abs fuses. Yes the dash abs lights were on before the car quit starteing but the brakes were working good. I need to get this up and rtunning any help wouldd be appreciated.

 

Debby, If jumping it makes it start and it runs fine after that, there are only 2 possible causes:
1. The 12 v battery is bad
2. The wiring to/from the 12 v battery has a loose connection or is bad

 

Today it is not starting up when being jumped (actually on a charger) we can't get into the hatch because its locked so we cant get to the battery. Unless you know how to override it.

 

Lol. The only way to get the hatch open is to go thru the back from the back seats but... you should be able to jump it from the front. Under the hood in the fuse box is a "jump" point. Hook a known good battery to that point (DANGER, dont reverse polarity). Then you should be able to open the hatch.

PS: If the hatch is not opening, its def a problem with 12v pwr.

 

From what DebbyD has said I'd assume that they already have a charger on that front jump point but still can't get power. So it sounds as through the battery is either really bad (shorted cells etc) or there is a bad connection on the wiring. In this case I think it's safer to go directly to the battery than to try anything else from the front at this stage.

DebbyD, there is a small release lever somewhere there in the back, accessed under the floor panel where the spare tire is. You've got to fold the seats down and crawl through to access it. I haven't personally done it, but loads of people here have done, so assume it's not too hard to find.

 

People - the OEM 12v is easily killed. Once it's mortally wounded, it often will be easily killed again. If your OEM is over 4years old - it's on borrowed time. The 12v battery threads are many. That's because many of us try to get more out of the little 12v guy than it can handle. Change it !! Get an Optima ( Optima DS46B24R Optima battery direct fit replacement for Prius 2004 + , Prius V & Plug-in Prius with Instructions ), and never look back. No longer will you have to wonder if your 12v is "still ok" when you forget to turn of the dome light ... or run the radio too long in aux mode etc.