Watch my commute.. is this normal?

Good job Jeff,

Keep it up. It takes time to learn how to drive the Prius "economically". It took me over a year to master it and I still don't get the best MPG, but I am happy with my overall average that is being reported by fuelly.

Ron

 

Good question jefe, I understand your point and I agree. My advice about warming the engine is what I tell people who have aging battery packs that are showing signs of lost capacity (like mine). In terms of battery longevity it's probably good advice for everyone, but I agree that you really shouldn't *have* to do it with a new/recond battery.

To be honest, I think this behaviour indicates that your battery pack is not a very good one. I'm not really sure what you can do about it. You could probably play it either of two ways:

1. Forget about "babying" the battery like I was suggesting previous. Thrash it mercilessly and hope that it dies in warranty. I'm not joking here, this is something I'd be considering if I just paid $2000 for a battery in that condition. The thing I'd be worried about though, if I did this you could bet it would last out the warranty period and then die the next week or something.

2. Try to make the best of the less than ideal situation by using the techniques to reduce the stress on the battery.

Yeah it's a bit of a dilemma. You could also try ringing reinvolt and tell them you're not completely happy with the battery, see what they suggest. We've had other cases where people were dissatisfied with their recondition battery (other companies besides reinvolt) and they've taken the hard line of "if there's no error code then no action will be taken". I'm not sure if reinvolt would be any different, but you could always give it a try.

 

Jeff,

I have been following this string closely. If you do call Reinvolt, please post what they said about it and what they offered or did not offer to do. I do agree with uart that it sounds like your pack is not the best one out there. Who knows, the pack may last a long time or as uart stated, it might fail one week out of warranty. All of us know that the packs don't last forever. To make a long story short, I would definitely like to hear their response if you have the time to share it here.

Best of luck to you.

Ron

 

You should check the 12V system for a parasitic load. A parasitic load can pull the 12V
battery down and the HV system will try to charge it. You need to have the basics checked before replacing parts.

 

Two things I noticed that aren't normal.
1 - Driving with a dirty MFD
2 - Driving while recording video

.

 

I don't think the 12 volt is going to make that much of a difference, but I would definitely like to hear what you observe after you make the change. I can understand ReInvolt's attitude, as they are handling it like any other mechanic would. (No Code, No Problem) Maybe it will all sort itself in time.

FWIW, my MFD stays pretty dirty too.

Ron

 

congrats, all the best!

 

Glad to see you finally got it fixed. Congrats jefe!

 

what is so sad about this is,,, there are sooo many crooks out there that just want to get in our billfolds, and think if they just put the customer off and stall and stall they will g0 away! they dont have an answer so just try to BS or stonewall. they knew what they were doing or did not care. BUYER BE WARE!!

 

My experience with ReInvolt (now Dorman Hybrid) has unfortunately not been so smooth. The ReInvolt battery we purchased in 2013 died just short of its first birthday. After several phone calls and finding out Dorman purchased ReInvolt we finally had the warranty replacement battery arrive at the installer. It is now TWO MONTHS later and Dorman has yet to reimburse the installer for the installation charges under the warranty as they have in the past. Both the installer and I are quite upset at this unnecessary delay. I have tried on a couple of occasions to speak directly with David Taylor at Dorman Hybrid but was referred instead to sending him an email. Some issues, when they reach this point, really do benefit from a good "old-fashioned" person-to-person voice phone call.

Did I read your post correctly that Dorman is NOT honoring the labor under warranty?!

 

Pay the installer. Now only one of you are upset.

 

The more I read about remanufactured batteries, the more I think a brand new one is the choice long term.

Anyway, waiting for a minute before leaving and letting the car advance in hybrid states is doing good to your battery. That's when the engine is completely cold (as in first morning start). The computer tries to protect the engine and uses the battery almost exclusively.

 

Steve at autobeyours is an honest good guy,, give him a chance..he does great battery work!. he is there EVERY day working,, and his wife is there,, so you know she will kick some butt if there are ANY issues!
just an honest guy! I drive almost 4 hours to have him do my work!! the best advice he EVER gave me was JUST DRIVE IT!!