Under what conditions does the chime (beeping) sounds when opening the driver door? I'm trying to determine if this is normal behavior: The door chime sounds when the driver door is opened but no lights are on and key is not in ignition. Is this normal? My battery is dying and I'm trying to determine if it's the cold weather or if there is some load drawing from the battery when the car is not being used. From what I recall I did not expect a door chime to sound without key or lights on. I hope someone can quickly check this out in their car, or if they know more details! Boosting the battery from another vehicle happens almost instantly even though the electrical seems completely dead, which is another puzzling thing. Usually a totally dead battery would take at least 5 minutes of boosting before the car starts, but maybe the Prius is different in this respect. Thank you
The Prius, unlike most cars, does not use the 12 volt battery to start the engine. It just powers up the computer systems and closes a switch to permit the high voltage system to operate. MG1 uses the high voltage pack to start the engine. If you still have the original 12 volt battery, I would consider replacing it. The computers can get confused and complain of very strange issues when the battery is failing. Be sure you get a proper AGM type battery that has an external vent port. The Prius battery is located in the right side of the cargo area and you do not want battery gases escaping into the passenger area. @Mendel Leisk has a Canadian Tire battery he thinks would work well, IIRC. I am assuming you are located in Kitchener Ontario Canada. I am originally from the Toronto area.
Regardless of how old the battery IS.......if the voltage indicates that it is being charged when the car is ON (13.8 volts or above), then the battery needs to be replaced.......NOW. Possible that the problem is a really bad/loose connection but probably the battery itself.
Yeah just go to the Canadian Tire site, set preferred store in your area, spec in "what are you looking for today" field "battery", then "car battery", then fill in your car's data. Should get you this: Automotive | Canadian Tire Bit of a gulp for the $'s, see it's been going up, but check with a dealership parts department, I think you'll find them significantly higher. Post what they say, I'm curious. About three years back it was $271 when I checked, for the OEM Yusa battery. And at that time the CT battery was around $190.
Of course the 12V battery needs charging after every startup. 12V battery is slowly drained every time the Prius is off. And DC-DC converter also has to keep the voltage up even if the 12V won’t need charging as otherwise you would have dimmer headlights etc. If you replaced your battery every time voltage was more than 13.8V when Prius is ready you would almost always replace it.
You can't just jump into the middle of a continuing story. He first said that the battery voltage was LOW. I was trying to say that if it is being charged properly but won't HOLD that charge very long......then the battery is bad, no matter how old it is.
I read through this topic. I can’t find OP talking anything about voltage. And even if the 12V battery would be charged with correct voltage and have low voltage it could still just be just almost empty and just not charged for long enough.
A dead battery implies low voltage. The third possibility that he didn't mention is: His battery is old and weak and won't hold a charge. Now do you understand ??
No. He probably didn’t even measure the voltage. And even if he did then probably not at the battery terminals. There are other possibilities besides the battery being bad or charging system not charging. And charging system problems are very rare anyways. Those two are the only ones that your: takes into account. Like there could be something that’s draining the battery. Or maybe the car was just sitting too long and driven very little. If you had said just replace the 12V battery it’s the most likely subject that would have made much more sense.
Did you find a solution? I've had the same problem off and on for years. The voltage or age of the 12v battery didn't seem to make any difference. The chime (and corresponding battery drain) has been an intermittent thing in my 2007 Prius.
Do you guys ever tire of giving bad advice. The problem is most likely in your ignition switch. It is not releasing all of the way. You can stick your finger in there to try and get it to release. This chime / key fob problem does drain the battery.
