AC draining Hybrid battery

You can buy light bulb sockets yourself at home depot.

It's the difference between buying parts on a DIY project vs buying a finished product.

Yes it's just a charger

 

Sure, you could use that charger, but how would you ensure that the charge rate is low enough so as not to damage any of the unbalanced cells as they are brought back into balance? "Balance?" I hear you ask, "What's balance?" Have you done much reading/research re. Hybrid Systems and how their Prolong Charging System operates? (…I'm just curious! ) BTW - Welcome to PriusChat, a great place to learn all you're ever likely to need to know about your Prius! (hint: "Search" is your friend!) - Wil

 

If you do end up going with the recommendation of others and get a prolong system, I'd be curious to know whether or not you think it actually helps.

There are a number of people here who seem to swear by them, but there are a number of other very knowledgeable commenters here who believe the onboard system for charging is as good as it gets, and anything else added to the system will either not help or actually harm the existing system.

It's really impossible to know one way or the other, I guess. I'm always just curious to hear the anecdotal evidence.

 

Show me the knowledgeable commentators who think the onboard system is good as it gets and anything
Else will not help or may harm it.

You know nothing about the battery or the charging system but pull nonsense out of your nice person then at the end say it's impossible to know but your curious.

You should be curious because your clueless.

 

1. No need to get uppity.
2. I've read every thread on this site on the topic.
3. I'm not going to drag other members into this debate to serve some pointless argument that will end up going nowhere. Your opinion is already set in stone, as evidenced by every thread that touches on the topic.
4. The fact of the matter is that there is no way of knowing whether or not any aftermarket charging system extends the life of any specific vehicle. Certain metrics like SOC can be tracked as a before and after value, but that is indeterminate when it comes to life expectancy of the battery module. The same module cannot be tested both unmodified and modified. As far as I know, the list of empirical data showing life expectancy of unmodified Priuses and modified ones is non-existent. There is no definitive proof one way or the other that it adds a second of life to a battery. There is some decent proof that it improves performance moderately leading up to the inevitable death. Whether or not it is $400 worth of improvement is debatable.
5. Cheer up and learn to take it easy.

 

Wear do u mean?

MI 5s ?

 

I'd like to see them, too. With the emphasis on "knowledgable." I've seen lots of comments based on ignorance. They tend toward the skeptical, which is understandable with all the snake oil salesmen out there. But I can't remember anyone who really knows batteries, has used the Prolong system, and/or isn't offering a competing system being critical.

 

A quote from Jeff related to the topic.

I'm not saying anything Jeff hasn't already said. He'll make claims about "97% of our customers see an improvement" and "this is guaranteed to prolong your battery's life from anywhere between one day to multiple years," but that second claim especially is unsubstantiated by any data, and that is admitted by Jeff himself, as evidenced by the quote. And that data isn't going to be coming out, per Jeff's own admission as well (quote below in reference to someone asking for data supporting how much longer a battery will last).

Again, I am not going to drag anyone else into this. Don't even bother trying to get me to.

FYI, I won't post again on the topic (unless someone brings up actual facts and data, because I like to talk about those types of things) lest this turn into a flame war like this topic is often wont to do.

 

I believe the data you are requiring is impossible for anyone to supply. Probably the closest you can get is for someone whose car has already thrown a code to use a charge/discharge system without replacing any modules, then reporting back the car no longer threw any codes over a relatively long period of time. It's like asking for evidence that some lifestyle change, vitamin, supplement, etc. extended your personal life expectancy. No one knew how long you individually were going to live in the first place.

I see a system like the Prolong system as battery maintenance, not repairing cells but instead preventing weaker cells from degrading as quickly as they otherwise would.

Kind of like keeping the tires inflated and aligned properly. The car performs better and the odds are the tires will last longer because tire companies and auto related associations have invested the money to study it but it doesn't prove your individual tire will do so.

It can't be proved with actual data unless someone is able to accomplish a double blind study with enough hybrid batteries and cell measurements to remove the margin for error. That is most likely not ever going to happen.

 

No one is telling you to spend the $400 on a system you don't trust to improve your car. That's a choice.

What you've read regarding li-ion doesn't apply to our older Gen 2s that don't have li-ion. You admit you don't know about NiHM. I found this paper regarding Duracell NiMHs to be enlightening. The entire paper is a worthwhile read and they slip in this tidbit on page 7.

Wayback Machine

"..Because the cell appears to “remember” the lower capacity, this voltage depression phenomenon is often referred to as memory effect. However, the cell can be quickly restored to full capacity with a few full discharge/charge cycles, as indicated in Cycles #20 and #21..."

As for a study on Prii we agree. I said it is most likely NOT going to happen. I don't think anyone is going to invest the money to study it unless Procter and Gamble starts making battery packs for hybrids. Deep pockets.

 

Hi I Have a 2009 Toyota Camry hybrid. I just replaced my bad hybrid battery with a used one from an autoshop, they had taken it from another car (same make model and year) it was one of their better grade batteries, has a warranty and stuff. I’ve been driving on it a few days now (I did the install myself, I know what you’re thinking but it was surprisingly easy and I quadruple checked everything before I closed up the wire covers) the car is running a lot better, the death lights on my dash have stayed off, and acceleration/overall running is way better. But I did notice when my A/C is on it will drain the battery pretty quick (it’s been about 90degrees) and I fricken have to park it for 8 hours in direct sunlight at work, no option there’s literally no cover anywhere near my work. Anyways I was wondering basically the process of draining the cells yourself and refilling them, is this a difficult thing to do? Like does it require completely taking apart the battery? Because honestly nobody where I live at will do anything but replace the battery with a new one and like many people I don’t just have an extra $4000+ Laying around. So any info you can give would be great or any cheaper fixes I could do to at least make the battery last me. I’m still paying this damn car off and it’s not at 100,000miles yet, but it’s 11 years old so the warranty is void. But anyways thank you

 

Welcome, Josh. I have a grid charger from Hybrid Automotive for our 2006 Prius. Lots of us have had good results. @jeff652 is a respected member here. Prolong Battery Systems | Hybrid Automotive California, USA

Here's one of SEVERAL threads on the topic. Reconditioning Experience with Hybrid Automotive's Prolong System | PriusChat

 

+1 on looking into grid charging (balancing) a known battery that's still good but weaker than a new pack. Initially you'll need to open the case and install the harness but otherwise it's a plug-n-play process.

 

Thank both of you, I truly appreciate it and I’ll look further into the equipment.

it’s weird I just got the damn death lights again today after the car had been running okay, just doing the draining thing, which actually it had been better the last couple days with the drainage seemed like it was getting better evening itself out. But not it’s back to square one and I’m starting to wonder if it’s something stupid like a fuse, sensor, 12V battery(mines testing at 12.72V), or just that I didn’t connect the orange cables all the way down right enough. I truly hate these cars so far I have to admit, I just spend 1,100$ to replace my radiator a few months ago and now this. Ya know? Places all want upwards of 3,000$-4,000$ to replace the battery too and it’s outrageous.

 

Not sure what to say about that. You did replace a used battery with another used battery. It's not reasonable to expect it to last like a new one. You can hope, but not expect. Almost anyone can replace the battery and there are places that sell new ones. Or you can get a it from @2k1Toaster for about $1,600 or thereabouts.

As for the radiator, they don't wear out, but salt eats them and other stuff can damage them from the inside or outside. I haven't heard anything about Camry radiators failing any more than any other brand. Camry is a GREAT car. It's one of the very most reliable you can buy. We had two of them and loved them. We only sold them because we were moving out of the country. But if it's been abused or neglected, it'll have problems like any car.

 

Right now newtoyotabatteries has a backlog measured in months so ATM it's not really a viable choice for someone needing an immediate solution.

 

Rats! I knew he was backordered. Didn't know it was that long.

 

Well the place I got the battery from had tested the battery when they removed it and shipped it, the result said it’s you know working good and holding a charge. I do get how since it was used there’s a chance of it not working I guess but I’ve only driven on it 2 weeks barely and already am having the same problem, I’m wondering if it’s not charging the battery correctly I just seem to lose power so fast when the hybrid systems encode kicks on. Or if I’m using the a/c. It’s basically the same exact problem my original battery was having. I live in Ohio and I’ve noticed basically nowhere does anything with the battery other than replace the whole thing, it is starting to look like I may need to get my refund for this battery and just buy a new one. I know how to do the install it’s honestly more basic than I thought it’d be haha. As for the radiator Conrad’s showed me a video of where the seal was entirely corroded and was just leaking coolant. Cost so much because they had to take off the whole front. I looked through the repairs the vehicle had before I bought it and it wasn’t anything crazy, the most expensive repair it had was break and rotor replacements. Other than that it was the basics, oil, filters, lights, small accessory fuse here and there. The cars a 2009 I bought it with 79,000 miles, I still owe like 5,500$ on it and have had it 2 years. That’s why I’m so angry about this situation you feel me?