Prius Gen1 - to buy or not to buy (2 dead modules)

It appears that two blocks are completely dead at ~4 volts. Each block contains 2 modules. Each module contains 6 cells but as the modules are sealed, you cannot do anything with the cells. So you are looking at 4 dead modules, at least.

To be honest, unless you will enjoy pulling this battery on a regular basis to replace the next module that falls off the cliff, you would be better off buying a new HV (hybrid vehicle) battery from Toyota (the only place you can buy all new modules for a Gen 1) and replacing the whole lot in one fell swoop. That is assuming the rest of the car is in a pristine condition, both aesthetically and mechanically. You would want to get another 10-15 years out of the car to make the battery replacement worthwhile.

Another option would be purchasing a couple of Gen 3 (or Gen 4, as long as they are NiMH) HV batteries (the newer the better) and harvesting 38 modules from them to rebuild the Gen 1 pack. You will have 18 modules left over plus the two cases that you can sell off on eBay/CL.

 

don't buy a gen 1 unless you are looking for a new hobby. if you need a daily driver on a limited budget, get something like a corolla.

 

I have a different opinion. If you review my posts, I am an original owner with about 98,000 miles last I looked but don’t drive it very much. You didn’t say how you intend to use this vehicle or what is the current mileage.

You could simply replace the modules, possibly replace the entire battery and keep the existing modules as spares and or part out without warranty. I see a lot of people rebuild these on their own. For $1500 total getting this vehicle running, I think that’s a pretty sweet deal. Of course much depends upon your use and other considerations.

Some people have patience and tolerance for DIY and time on their hands while others appreciate a newer vehicle for their own reasons. Do what is in your heart and will give you the most pleasure from this purchase.

I love my Prius and would likely purchase another Toyota SUV hybrid when the time comes as I could use the sporty utility aspect at this point.

Best of luck to you.

 

Some Toyota dealerships will sell the battery pack for a reasonable price. The catch is you will have to swap over a bunch of parts from the old pack, like the ECU, before returning it to redeem the core charge. It also must be an original Toyota battery pack, they don't take after market batteries.

 

My advice, having had an 03 prius, having had a prius sit for a long time, ...
dont even bother mucking around with cell replacement ... THE ONLY sure way to fix the hybrid battery is to find one intact that has been UNMOLESTED ... once u start playing with cells out of another pack and the differences try to integrate its only assking for trouble and your time and frustration !!

the 1st gen (01-03) prius IS A DOG on accel .. it pisses everybody off behind you and thenthey flip u the finger when they pass, dudes in turbo diesels love to floor it and leave u in black smoke because they can ..
if u live out in the boonies where it doesnt matter go for it , if your near a city forget about it !

someone mentioned 'unless u enjoy pulling that battery on a reg basis '(if want to play whack a mole with the modules) .. that reminded me that the damn thing is nearly 100 pounds.. unless u are a big big dude, this is no dainty movement ... the 69 pound pack in the gen 2 is bad enough ,
its bad enuf playing wack a mole with 28 modules, but the gen 1 has 38 ...

if u got a lot of time and space to play and learn , ok , but if u are depending on something to be reliable u better have a solid, non-opened pull from a yard , if not it wont last long ..

 

I've owned an '01 for sixteen years, and acceleration has never been a problem, either off the line from a stop, at highway speeds, or going over a steep pass. Only time I recall getting flipped off was when I first bought it, I was feeling smug and was tempted to flip off an oncoming Hummer, but as we passed it looked like he was flipping me off.

It's a great car, and has now gotten both my kids through college. I agree that once cells start failing it's the beginning of the end for the battery pack, Replacing with a new Toyota battery is the best way to keep the car going over the long run, but it's hard to justify the cost.

 

*** 0-60mph in '01 prius , 1/4 mile
Sedan FWD CVT 13.0 sec ,19.2 sec @ 73 mph Car and Driver
Sedan FWD CVT 13.7 sec, 19.4 sec @ 69.9 mph Motor Trend
Sedan FWD CVT 12.2 sec ,18.9 sec @ 75 mph Motor Week

'04 did 0-60 in about 10 -12 sec.
Doesnt seem like much , but when most things around you were v6,v8 .. they don't have patience taking off from a 30-60 second intersection stop.
People in a city over 100k usually don't have the patience for it ... (gen 1 prius) seems the gen 2 is just enough with the more power engine, larger electric motor and less weight from fewer modules to meet acceptability in city conditions ....
Even 11 years ago, getting a battery out of a pull on an 01-03 prius was extremely limited, I can just imagine how much more rare they are today - You could try the whole set of new cells of a newer generation but they are pricey at 10-30 each * 38 .
In 2009, the way I finally sold my 01 or 03 prius(buy getting it running reliably) was to have a battery shipped from PA to FL , shipping was ````~$85 and the battery was about 500 .. was not found on regular means of ebay and local craigslist, .... It was this guy that found it up north for me that was on this board ..
" Tue, Sep 8, 2009 at 7:03 PM
GW Krauss : " I'll
> consider you part of my extended DIY Prius family and not worry about
> the timing of things."
> --------------
> >
> >I was just looking on craigslist and saw this
> >(http://philadelphia.craigslist.org/rid/1220180366.html). You might
> >want to contact this guy... Or maybe look on craigslist in general

 

congrats!
enjoy your new (expensive) hobby!

all the best

 

turbo ? well that's a game changer ...

 

>> "another $300 for the fuel injectors/spark plugs and throttle body cleaning to get the engine to run better. I am not sure why I didn't get engine codes though; this was exactly one of the things that I wanted to avoid. "

It sounds like those issues weren't serious enough to throw a code. E.g. in my old Ford Escort, fuel injector problems won't set a code. I had them cleaned anyway and it didn't make any difference.
Either the mechanic is offering to do things that might help the engine perform better, or is drumming up work.
It sounds a bit like the latter, unless there are clear signs the work needs doing.

Anyway, have fun with your project. Sometimes learning and doing new things is half the fun.

 

I took my gen1 to a hybrid service center. They load tested and balance the cells, which cost $1,000 and ended up being a waist of money, because I replaced the entire HV battery a few months latter. They did however also clean the throttle body at no extra charge, which fixed an issue where the IC engine would sometimes stall at idle, and wasn't staring properly.

 

Given that it's 2020...and the accident was in 2012, that's a LOT of "subsequently" between the accident and today.

Accident, Totaled, Salvage, Rebuilt Title....
To be honest I wouldn't of bought it. BUT...

I think you know what you are potentially getting into, so shouldn't be blind sided by any challenges that arise.
So I have to also say, enjoy, hopefully it will be a useful automobile, a enjoyable repair project, and not turn into a rebuilt title, salvaged vehicle nightmare.

 

Swap out the two bad modules and throw the pack back in the car. Let the car charge the pack up, no need to for special conditioners or chargers.

Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.

 

I notice a lot of similar posts you have made in various threads, and feel a bit of push back is required.

While you might have been lucky in that this may have worked for you on your Gen 3, be aware that what works in one generation is not universally applicable to all generations. Unless people have specific knowledge about a particular generation, it might be safer to stick to your area of experience and post only in those forums.

Your idea that all is required is to find the module or modules with low voltage (i. e. a module with a dead cell) and replace it is but one problem that a failed pack can have. Just replacing one (or two modules) and then doing nothing else very seldom works long term and if it works initially, very seldom works for an acceptable time frame (for most people) and they will be back in there to whack another mole. If you find the whack-a-mole hobby fun, keep doing it for long as it is fun for you.

There are no special conditioners or chargers, apart from using a charger that is made specifically for NiMH. Conditioning is about a process using the said charger.

With the exception of the Gen 1, and it might not be more than a theory based on observation as to whether it actually does do any balancing, charging and discharging in the car will not do anything useful as far as balancing goes, due to the tight control within 40% - 80% SoC band enforced by the battery management's charging/discharging algorithms.

Specifically, for Gen 1, it is very difficult to get a good reconditioning/rebuilding job purely because Gen 1 modules are very well-aged (both existing and replacement) these days. A good job most often requires replacing all 38 modules with newer ones. Because of the age of the car, it seldom makes sense for a new OEM pack, but if it suits an owner's plan that can be done too and would be the gold standard option.

YMMV.

 

No worries it was for the OP to decide not you, same applies to different gens. Low voltage is low voltage.

Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.