2008 Prius w/151k miles,Needs new transmission & has 2 dead cells of hybrid battery. What to do?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by KlaustheOriginalHybrid, May 28, 2020.

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  1. KlaustheOriginalHybrid

    KlaustheOriginalHybrid New Member

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    Hi there, I have posted a while back about my unknown issues with my 2008 Toyota Prius second generation with about 151,600 miles and is still in LIMP MODE with transmission codes. I was able to get a second opinion on it for the first shop I took it to could not find proper diagnostics. I took it to another shop that came to the bottom of my situation. They decided to give it a shot at a transmission service and said basically my transmission has failed. I have had the car for less than a year unfortunately. They also detected two bad cells from the hybrid battery. I have put so much money into this car and got a quote for around $3,000 dollars to fix, replace transmission and replacement of hybrid cells. I do not know what to do at this point. Should I try selling it as is for a low price? I am stuck and unsure how I should move forward.
     
    #1 KlaustheOriginalHybrid, May 28, 2020
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    it depends on your financial situation. if you can afford it, get what you can for it and move on.

    if not, repair it, understanding that the battery, tranny (and other expensive things) will fail again.
     
    #2 bisco, May 28, 2020
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  3. Skibob

    Skibob Senior Member

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    What are the actual codes that came up? Your Prius does not have a transmission as you know it, don't trust those guys. Why don't you get the codes read at the Toyota dealer in Eureka?
     
    #3 Skibob, May 28, 2020
  4. Leadfoot J. McCoalroller

    Leadfoot J. McCoalroller Senior Member

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    I'd say $3k is suspiciously low for a proper repair of the issues you're describing, assuming they have been accurately diagnosed. (This is a big assumption.)

    I'd be looking to get out & start over.
     
    #4 Leadfoot J. McCoalroller, May 28, 2020
  5. cthindi

    cthindi Member

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    I agree that codes would be of lot more help. Transmission (transaxle) in this car is extremely reliable. But that is the reason transmissions from junk yard are quite cheap. I had an accident which cracked transmission housing and thus needed to be changed. Transaxle and cross member from junk yard cost me $2500 installed. So 3000$ may be a reasonable amount if it is junk yard parts. But codes may point to whether it is really needed.

    It worked out to be a good decision for me since I have since added 210K Miles in 8 years.
     
    #5 cthindi, May 28, 2020
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  6. Bob-W8RH

    Bob-W8RH Junior Member

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    I just replaced the traction battery in my wife's 2008 with 160000 miles. Cost for new cells was $800.00. I did the swap out myself. On my 297000 mile 06 Prius I did an engine/transmission swap for $650. Unfortunately the car was totaled 400 miles later. Btw, I'm now driving a 2007 Prius Touring model, courtesy of the driver's insurance company, and kept my wrecked Prius for parts. You can keep them running.
     
    #6 Bob-W8RH, May 28, 2020
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  7. SFO

    SFO Senior Member

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    #7 SFO, May 28, 2020
  8. KlaustheOriginalHybrid

    KlaustheOriginalHybrid New Member

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    I hope this helps explain a lot better than I can :sick:
    At this point I cannot afford to keep putting money into it if it may fail and have problems down the road, especially I am a little worried with the high mileage it has. If I were to put the money into it, I wonder how much more miles could this Prius attain? Yet, I do wonder what other problems may arise, as I noticed last year it was burning an excessive amount of oil.
     

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    #8 KlaustheOriginalHybrid, Jun 1, 2020
  9. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    if you can't afford to keep putting money into it, can you afford something newer?
     
    #9 bisco, Jun 1, 2020
  10. Isaac Sonntag

    Isaac Sonntag Junior Member

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    Where did you get the cells for that cheap? Were they OEM or refurbished cells? I feel like I could figure out how to replace cells in the battery I have if I could find a place to get them...
     
    #10 Isaac Sonntag, Sep 18, 2022
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