1. Attachments are working again! Check out this thread for more details and to report any other bugs.

***FIXED*** Just bought my 2004 Prius, some lights on... (Red Triangle, VSC, (!) and Red car with !

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Vasilis, Aug 31, 2015.

Page 2 of 4
  1. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    110,132
    50,049
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    all the best!(y)
     
    #21 bisco, Sep 1, 2015
    Vasilis likes this.
  2. Vasilis

    Vasilis Junior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 31, 2015
    33
    6
    0
    Location:
    Birchington Kent UK
    Vehicle:
    2004 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    and yes I can confirm after checking this morning.
    That the problem occurs only when the car is used after a specific time and is getting hot. This morning the lights are gone.
    So it might well have to do with the HV fan not working or performing properly.
    I checked the fuse in the engine compartment and seems OK.
    So now I need to strip down the rear seats and see what is happening there.
     
    #22 Vasilis, Sep 2, 2015
  3. Vasilis

    Vasilis Junior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 31, 2015
    33
    6
    0
    Location:
    Birchington Kent UK
    Vehicle:
    2004 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    I took the car today for a drive. I had the rear window open on the motorway the same side where the intake of the cooling fan is.
    The car worked perfect for 30miles. The lights came on after that.

    Once I got back home (about 15minutes after the car stopped I took apart all the rear. So I could see the fan.
    I switched on the car, On Ready state. The HV fan is not spinning at all...
    I then put into gear and accelerated etc. The ICE came on. The HV fan still not on.
    I then put loads , all the headlights on, fog lights, AC on, left it until the ICE kicks in to charge the HV Battery.
    Still the HV fan is not coming on :( ....
    It I turn it with my hand it will not free spin at all. It feels a bit stiff. Although it turns it feels sticky. After I rotate it with my hand it does not go further than a 1/100 of a turn and then stops.
    Is this how it should be?
    I am fearing if the motor is blown...
    The fan does not look dirty.
    I noticed that there is only a + and - cable to the car has no HV fan speed sensor or something to know if it is working or not... Is that right? So if the fan fails there is not warning at all. Apart from when the battery over heats?
     
    #23 Vasilis, Sep 2, 2015
    Last edited: Sep 2, 2015
  4. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    110,132
    50,049
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    possibly. can you find a fan on line or used for cheap? maybe see if there is voltage to it?
     
    #24 bisco, Sep 2, 2015
    Vasilis likes this.
  5. Vasilis

    Vasilis Junior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 31, 2015
    33
    6
    0
    Location:
    Birchington Kent UK
    Vehicle:
    2004 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    I will go to a friend of mine who is good with the testing etc. And put in a multimeter etc and test the whole thing.

    I forgot to mention that the HV battery is warm to the touch in the middle and left (looking from behind).

    So what happened today (first time I managed to test properly the car under my ownership)
    The first 30 miles (without any warning lights) The battery charges and discharges perfectly and Hybrid system works.
    The next 30 miles (with the warning lights) The battery charges and discharges but a bit slower. The Hybrid system works but the ICE engine keeps coming on far more often.
    The next 30 miles (with the warning lights) The battery does not charge or discharge staying on the same level (4 or 5 bars) The Hybrid system works only with power from the ICE engine, it seems to send and receive electricity from the HV battery but this is only for 1-2 seconds.

    Tomorrow morning, the whole thing will repeat like today never happened. I would assume something is getting overheated my suspision is the HV battery.
     
    #25 Vasilis, Sep 2, 2015
  6. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    110,132
    50,049
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    after the first 30 miles, does the engine stay on when you come to a stop light, etc.?
     
    #26 bisco, Sep 2, 2015
  7. Vasilis

    Vasilis Junior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 31, 2015
    33
    6
    0
    Location:
    Birchington Kent UK
    Vehicle:
    2004 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    in the middle 30miles (2nd scenario) it switches off to the majority of the occasions, but the engine will come on far to easy when pressing on the accelarator.
    In the last 30 miles (3rd scenario) when the engine is on all the time. It also roars while reducing speed on the motorway ie. from 70mph to 50mph, by letting off the accelerator without breaking. Or even with breaking. The gearbox is in D in all occasions.
     
    #27 Vasilis, Sep 2, 2015
  8. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    110,132
    50,049
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    it's probably burning off charge because the battery is too hot to receive it. hopefully, you have a successful diagnosis and a simple repair.
     
    #28 bisco, Sep 2, 2015
    Vasilis likes this.
  9. greasemonkey007

    greasemonkey007 Active Member

    Joined:
    Sep 20, 2013
    287
    106
    0
    Location:
    South Central Arkansas
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    Another option would be to get it to the dealership to have the codes read, but that would cost about $100 or so. At least you could find out the codes and what they're pointing to. I still suspect the traction battery may have issues. Personally, I would wait a few days to get the vci since you've already bought it anyway.
     
    #29 greasemonkey007, Sep 2, 2015
    Vasilis likes this.
  10. Vasilis

    Vasilis Junior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 31, 2015
    33
    6
    0
    Location:
    Birchington Kent UK
    Vehicle:
    2004 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    Yes the VCI should be here tomorrow. Latest Friday. :)
    I have a local garage I could take the car to be scanned. They have a snap on tool that they could plug in I guess. It would cost a fraction of the Toyota dealer at least.

    I forgot to mention that the car had a funny smell when I bought it in the cabin.
    Now that I took the HV fan apart, I can see where the smell is coming from. I think the motor has had it ... therefore it is stiff to turn I think.
     
    #30 Vasilis, Sep 2, 2015
    Last edited: Sep 2, 2015
  11. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    110,132
    50,049
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    many u/k prius have a funny smell from the battery for some reason. the vent tubes break down and need to be replaced. they are not cheap. silicone, i think.
     
    #31 bisco, Sep 2, 2015
  12. Vasilis

    Vasilis Junior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 31, 2015
    33
    6
    0
    Location:
    Birchington Kent UK
    Vehicle:
    2004 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    I took the car to the garage to scan the codes. Since it was morning today the car was working perfectly again, therefore all the codes were historic.
    P3000 (Battery Control System) and P0A85 (Hybrid Pack Cooling Fan1)

    We took the fan out and connected it to a 12V battery and it spins great with loads of air flow coming out of it.
    When we tried to make it to work via the Snap On diagnostic tools the fan will not come on.
    So I assume it might be the Fan relay or the HV ECU?
     
    #32 Vasilis, Sep 3, 2015
  13. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 30, 2008
    24,904
    16,213
    0
    Location:
    Indiana, USA
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    IV


    Does techinfo.toyota.com work in UK, or is there an equivalent .uk version? (I think some countries may even mandate that it has to provide free access to the manuals; here in US there's a $15 charge. I don't know how it works for you.)

    You (or your mechanic) really should be consulting the service manual and wiring diagram at this point. The fan is not run by applying 12 volts directly; it's run through an electronic modulating speed controller under the direction of the battery ECU. Not something you want to try to diagnose by poking blindly at wires, but it's all explained in sparkling detail in the service lit, including the wire colors, connector, relay, and other component locations, everything you would need to know.

    -Chap
     
    #33 ChapmanF, Sep 3, 2015
    Vasilis likes this.
  14. Vasilis

    Vasilis Junior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 31, 2015
    33
    6
    0
    Location:
    Birchington Kent UK
    Vehicle:
    2004 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    I just received the MiniVCI cable and I just tried to do a fan test, however it will not do it again. :(
    I ran the Techstream software that came with the cable.
    I will need to locate the service manual. No Toyota is not free here either.. you have to pay I think for a 30minute slot or something like that.
    I will check in the CD it mentions about TIS something.

    Here are some screenshots

    ABS/VSC/TRAC ECU Scan
    prius abs-vsc-trac ecu screen1-0.jpg prius abs-vsc-trac ecu screen1-1.jpg prius abs-vsc-trac ecu screen1-2.jpg

    Battery ECU Scan
    prius battery screen-0.jpg prius battery screen-1.jpg prius battery screen2-0.jpg prius battery screen2-1.jpg prius battery screen2-2.jpg

    HV ECU Scan
    prius hv ecu-0.jpg prius hv ecu-1.jpg prius hv ecu-2.jpg
     
    #34 Vasilis, Sep 3, 2015
  15. Vasilis

    Vasilis Junior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 31, 2015
    33
    6
    0
    Location:
    Birchington Kent UK
    Vehicle:
    2004 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    I found the diagram online and took off the relay. Now I need to find my multimeter... somewhere it is :( ... so I can test it.

    hv system and battery diagram.JPG
     
    #35 Vasilis, Sep 3, 2015
  16. geekwithoutacause

    geekwithoutacause Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jun 1, 2015
    63
    12
    0
    Location:
    Phoenix az
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    If you use torque pro with the prius pid's loaded it will show a LOT including if the fan is running and what the temperatures of the battery are.
    The fan gets dirty over time and clogged up. Pretty easy to clean, just need to unbolt some things to get to it. I got a red triangle for no airflow. But this was in hot weather. Since you mentioned you used the heater I doubt that is the issue. The fan comes on at certain temps. If it is cooler it won't even kick in.
    Doubt that is your issue. Mini-vci will tell you exactly what code(s) .
     
    #36 geekwithoutacause, Sep 3, 2015
  17. geekwithoutacause

    geekwithoutacause Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jun 1, 2015
    63
    12
    0
    Location:
    Phoenix az
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    I think you are going down the wrong rabbit hole.
     
    #37 geekwithoutacause, Sep 3, 2015
  18. Vasilis

    Vasilis Junior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 31, 2015
    33
    6
    0
    Location:
    Birchington Kent UK
    Vehicle:
    2004 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    Hi 3 posts above I posted my MiniVCI screenshots and codes.
    There is definetally a problem with the fan as it is not coming on.
    Even in the test with the miniVCI it will not switch is on, it comes back with an error in communication etc. It will not spin what so ever.
    I think the problem must be with the fan control unit or in the worst case scenario with the HV ecu
     
    #38 Vasilis, Sep 3, 2015
  19. geekwithoutacause

    geekwithoutacause Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jun 1, 2015
    63
    12
    0
    Location:
    Phoenix az
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    I saw that. Start w the relay to make sure it is good.
     
    #39 geekwithoutacause, Sep 3, 2015
  20. Vasilis

    Vasilis Junior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 31, 2015
    33
    6
    0
    Location:
    Birchington Kent UK
    Vehicle:
    2004 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    I am meeting a friend with a multimeter (cannot find mine) in a about an hour so will check this and see if it works as it should be :(
     
    #40 Vasilis, Sep 3, 2015
(You must log in or sign up to post here.)
Page 2 of 4