Dorman Battery Experiences

The cylindrical pack worked fine in my car. But it is currently out. I keep it on hand for other uses.
Ultimately it is a hard sell for many folks because of the recent price drop by Toyota.
I at least showed people it is not as risky as it could be.

 

Was under the impression the prismatics were harder to cool, or is it only the modules sandwiched in the middle of a pack.

Aren't there air gaps around the cylindrical cells (in @2k1Toaster retrofit) that would allow for better overall air flow?

I generally run the HV fan at the '6' setting in an effort to keep the stock HV battery temps low, what might be the preferred operating temperature for the OEM HV battery?

Curious if anyone has taken an IR gun and measured battery temps for the Prius, Honda Insight or @2k1Toaster 's product

 

I believe @2k1Toaster has run temperature tests. I remember some images.



From Prius Battery Replacement Kit (GenII/GenIII) with NEW custom cells | Page 3 | PriusChat

 

When was this price drop?

 

January 1 2018 Toyota dropped MSRP by about $400, I believe

 

That really puts a dent in it

I haven't seen any sources for an OEM 2007 Camry hybrid battery around these parts. Quoted $3,900 by the dealer, installed. At that kind of money, most hybrids are scrap value.

 

That is probably the installed price. It may be cheaper if you install.

EDIT: The battery alone is that expensive.


From 2007 Toyota Camry Parts - metrotoyotapartsnow.com

 

Camry packs are a bit more complex to deal with.
I expect they will continue to be quite expensive.
Definitely seen steps that can lead to accidentally shorting out components.
Be careful and go slowly.

 

thanks for your posts and youtube channel like both very much

I agree Dorman is a USA parts distributor and remanufacture
They do have some very good replacement inventory and remanufacture parts.
Not to be negative though and from personal first hand experience would not trust and purchase again their remanufacture gen 2 hybrid traction battery some how dorman quality control was off on that .....I tried two replacements and basically fried one battery pack...local Toyota dealers provide much better solution and experience
thanks

 

FYI

Most local Toyota have core charge around $900 dollars for good reason.
also $1500 from my personal experience not a good a one....summit racing, oreilly, auto zone, rockauto and others do sell dorman reman battery .... a better use of money would be to a rc charger /tester then identify all bad cells because at $1500 you find them

 

Dealer core fee is generally about $1,350.

Also, Dorman has reduced warranty to 1 year.

 

Looking for additional experienced opinions on this matter. Things seem to be working well at the moment, but I'm worried the battery won't give much warning if it dies. Here's a Torque screenshot from yesterday after driving an hour at 70mph with A.C. on:

 

@ericbecky is one of our trusted experts who has worked on hybrid cars for many years. Would his opinion qualify as experienced?

I do not think he has ever purchased a Dorman battery but he as probably cleaned up after a few that have failed.

 

He would be a good one. Also, @ChapmanF, @Texas Hybrid Batteries, @2k1Toaster, and a few others I could mention if I thought about it long enough.

IMHO, it looks like you're doing fine right now, @Stimp. The early warning sign would be that the battery state of charge (SOC) indicator on the car's MFD will start to fluctuate rapidly between full (green) and low (empty). That indicates that it's lost most of its storage capacity and is about to code on you. It could be seconds or days before the battery quits when you see that.

 

Well, I hope I qualify.

Your Torque screen shot does not show amps going into or out of the battery. Without that piece of information it's hard to tell whats going on with your battery. The battery fan speed shows 0 and the battery temps are low. This suggests that at the moment the screen shot was taken the battery was at rest. The remaining numbers are what is to be expected from a battery at rest. The real story of battery health is shown under load or under charge.

I recommend you download the Android app Hybrid Assistant. It has a companion app Hybrid Reporter. They are both free. Run their battery check. Follow the directions! The reports that free app can produce are just amazing.

Brad

 

Yes, I value all well informed input. Pretty large community here so if two heads are better than one...

Free app sounds great! More data can be provided. Thanks!

I certainly need to ascribe to the "drive more, worry less" mantra. Thanks!

 

I think that replacing a hybrid battery is a major decision that involves many factors
1. your financial situation
2.the age and mileage of the vehicle
3 the condition of the vehicle
4 how long you plan to keep the vehicle
5 how close you live to the repair shop doing the work
6 your tolerance to risk
just to name a few factors

 

I like what you are saying. So how much are you charging to install a Toyota pack?

 

Has something changed in the way Toyota sells them now to make installation quicker? Do they come with more of the inside bits and bobs?

-Chap

 

No, but the 2K kit takes a day or two to assemble.