(1)Err displays: red triangle,BRAKE,screen icon in Uppr L (2)Only P & N (3)engine won't run (?!)

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Gray Badger, Oct 20, 2019.

  1. Gray Badger

    Gray Badger Junior Member

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    Driving into driveway to park, these errors occurred 'out of nowhere'. Error displays listed occurred & car would/will only shift between P & N. Brake fluid is between min & max levels. No audible or historical reason to believe a brake failure. Car last driven a week or two ago without a problem. Although shiftable into N (as well as P), the car seemed 'locked up' and not pushable in N (emergency brake deactivated) to let other cars exit the driveway, until turning on the heat/air cond to try to get enough "loading" to activate the engine. Engine never audibly activated- but 'transmission unlocked'(?) somehow, to permit pushing the car 10'.

    Approx 110K miles. We had squirrely error displays on 2008 Ford Escape Hybrid with Toyota system when we had damaged suspension sensor(s) from lousy roads. This can be non-BRAKE failure? Any ideas welcome. Please. Thanks.
     
    #1 Gray Badger, Oct 20, 2019
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    you will need to have the trouble codes read at a dealer, or hybrid shop with tech stream software. start by making sure the 12v is healthy and has good connections.
     
    #2 bisco, Oct 21, 2019
  3. jerrymildred

    jerrymildred Senior Member

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    Not only "can," it's likely. @bisco is right. You need to read the codes. You'll either go broke or die of old age trying to guess. Make sure it's a code reader fluent in Prius. Most can't read the proprietary hybrid codes involved. There are lots of options that you can explore here on PC.
     
    #3 jerrymildred, Oct 21, 2019
  4. Gray Badger

    Gray Badger Junior Member

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    Will check batt & if good get the codes read. Thanks for the reply.
     
    #4 Gray Badger, Oct 21, 2019
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  5. Gray Badger

    Gray Badger Junior Member

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    Will check 12V batt & get codes read. Thanks for the reply.
     
    #5 Gray Badger, Oct 21, 2019
  6. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    On the pro side, the guessing will stave off boredom through those golden years.
     
    #6 ChapmanF, Oct 21, 2019
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  7. jerrymildred

    jerrymildred Senior Member

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    I need to make a note of that. I'm getting close to that age. :LOL: But will I remember to check the note? Hmmm. :ROFLMAO:
     
    #7 jerrymildred, Oct 22, 2019
  8. FollowJN316

    FollowJN316 New Member

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    Did you find the reason behind this? I am having the same issue :/
     
    #8 FollowJN316, Dec 29, 2019
  9. jerrymildred

    jerrymildred Senior Member

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    If you don't know what trouble codes you have and what codes, @Gray Badger had/has, then you might have the same symptoms, but might have a totally different malfunction. You need to read the codes with a reader that's made to read the special codes a hybrid car can generate.

    But it certainly would be nice to know if and how Gray Badger's issues turned out. People here really do care.
     
    #9 jerrymildred, Dec 30, 2019
    Last edited: Dec 30, 2019
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  10. Gray Badger

    Gray Badger Junior Member

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    Sorry for belated reply. When towed to dealer, it sat 1- 2 hrs before they looked at it. When they got to it, it fired right up & acted perfectly normal (!?!). NOW, past 2- 3 days, it's completely dead: zero light displays, lack of 12V at leads under the hood, & had to use manual key to even get into it (!?!). It was fine when last driven 7- 10 days prior. Dead 12V battery in 7- 10 days (?), plausible. I'm on my third 12V. Car so dead there are zero/none/zilch dash or interior displays/lighting- I think some of this potentially indicates state of main battery, but have difficulty believing complete discharge in 7- 10 days. Breaker/reset/fusable link kind of failure? I can play with it a bit, but headed out-of-town for approx 5 days & don't want potentially revivable main battery sitting that long. 107K on original battery.
     
    #10 Gray Badger, Feb 10, 2020
  11. Gray Badger

    Gray Badger Junior Member

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    Sorry of belated replay. When towed to dealer, it sat 1- 2 hrs before they looked at it. When they got to it, it fired right up & acted perfectly normal (!?!). They do not know why. NOW, past 2- 3 days, it's completely dead: zero light displays, lack of 12V at leads under the hood, & had to use manual key to even get into it (!?!). It was fine when last driven 7- 10 days prior. Dead 12V battery in 7- 10 days (?), plausible. I'm on my third 12V. Car so dead there are zero/none/zilch dash or interior displays/lighting- I think some of this potentially indicates state of main battery, but have difficulty believing complete discharge in 7- 10 days. Breaker/reset/fusable link kind of failure? I can play with it a bit, but headed out-of-town for approx 5 days & don't want potentially revivable main battery sitting that long. 107K on original battery.
     
    #11 Gray Badger, Feb 10, 2020
  12. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    sounds like you have a drain while the car is off. do you have a meter to do some testing?
     
    #12 bisco, Feb 10, 2020
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  13. davecook89t

    davecook89t Senior Member

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    If this is a regular occurrence (7 - 10 days of idleness), it's not surprising that your 12V is always run down and you've had to replace it twice already. Does your car have a Smart Key? If so, disabling it with the button under the dash when leaving the car idle for several days in a row will help to preserve the 12V. You could also try something like this:



    which I've been using successfully for a couple of years now on our Prii, both of which are left idle at times. Speaking of that, particularly as they get older, HV batteries do not do well if left idle for long periods of time. Your cooler climate helps to preserve battery life in general, but you should start making plans for the day your HV battery dies, and it will eventually. Our Gen 2 is the same year as yours and it too is still on the original HV, even with periods of idleness, but it is showing signs of weakening. I had considered getting the Prolong system sold by Hybrid Automotive, @jeff652, but our car now has 283K miles, so it is probably not worth it for us, since we will retire the car and just run the Gen 4 when the Gen 2 quits. With only 107K on your car, though, you seem like an ideal candidate.

    No, all of your symptoms are related to the 12V, but it is still worthwhile to develop a plan to preserve or replace your HV battery.
     
    #13 davecook89t, Feb 10, 2020
  14. jerrymildred

    jerrymildred Senior Member

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    ^^^ What @bisco said. ^^^

    Not related to the traction battery.
     
    #14 jerrymildred, Feb 10, 2020
  15. Gray Badger

    Gray Badger Junior Member

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    k- thx All! Based on 2-3 of you advising fault symptoms independent of main ('traction') batt, leaning toward letting it sit til return in a week as sounds like good gamble (not guarantee) main will still be revivable. I THINK 12V leads under hood are passive wiring feed from physical battery in rear and therefore independent of main batt. Never had Prius 12V be defective with zero voltage display under hood, but possible. VOM works. Measured there several times in the past. Thx.
     
    #15 Gray Badger, Feb 10, 2020
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  16. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    A bad ground can affect jump point voltage
     
    #16 bisco, Feb 10, 2020
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  17. jerrymildred

    jerrymildred Senior Member

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    Of course they are. Otherwise, you could not power up the car.

    If it's zero at the battery, it'll be zero under the hood. But with a loose terminal connection, it can be zero under the hood and not be zero at the battery.
     
    #17 jerrymildred, Feb 10, 2020
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