Long term 4 months parking and battery

The traction battery should not be left fully charged for long periods of time! Much better to leave the battery charged to around 40%ish for long spans of time (BU-702: How to Store Batteries – Battery University).

Generally, if and when you want to charge up to full, you should do so right before you hop in and drive.

What “cooling function” are you referring to?

 

can you clarify?

do not leave the car plugged in, that will kill the 12 volt battery.

drive the car in ev until the engine comes on. after the engine shuts off, park the car and put a maintainer on the 12 volt battery so it will start when you return. remote a/c will not help in any way, shape or form.

 

Oh my. Let us know what happens when you get back. Looks like you will have a totally dead 12V and the traction battery will have lost some measurable but unpredictable months of it's useful life. Can you call someone who can get in to drive off that full charge on the traction battery and then put the 12V on a battery maintainer?

 

Other than, possibly, providing a way to remotely reduce the way-too-high charge in the traction battery. That might kill the 12V battery first though…

 

Other than, possibly, providing a way to remotely reduce the way-too-high charge in the traction battery. That might kill the 12V battery first though…

 

Hope this isn't that far off topic. Any recommendations for a 12V charger to use when leaving our PP and V for 4-5 months at a time? As I was going through several different threads I only found one that was mentioned - Noco Genius Gen 5xl. Any other ones? Thanks

 

Any smart charger/maintainer would be fine. PP's 12v battery is a regular lead-acid battery. It has a very small CCA, so you don't need a very big charger. 5Amp is all your need for charging, but for a maintainer, you probably don't even need that much. Noco you mentioned will work. Many people like CTEK - 40-206 MXS 5.0 or some variation of the model. Battery Tender is another brand that is highly rated. I have Victron IP65 12V Blue Smart Battery Chargers with Bluetooth. It works great during very cold months and the nice thing is I can monitor the charge session via BlueTooth App on the phone, so I don't have to walk out to the car in cold.

 

Any automatic battery maintainer from about 0.8 amps and up will work fine. They're all more alike than different. "Battery Tender" has become the generic term for all of them, and also one of the good brands, but not the only one. Any will work very well. I have a Noco and a Battery Minder. There's no advantage in paying for more than you need.

And...call your insurance agent to suspend all coverage except comprehensive. Tell them that the car is in storage. Comprehensive will cover theft, fire, whatever can happen during the storage period. Shortly in advance of putting the car back on the road call again and reactivate the liability, collision, and the rest of your coverages.

 

Like my CTEK 4.3. They've got oddly expensive of late though, maybe COVID price-gouging? Or just what the market is doing in general, who knows. It comes with a quick connect, which makes it more convenient, and more secure than the alligator clip option (has those too).

We're lucky to do 4K kms per year, and the 12 volts on the charger pretty much continuously. 5.5 years old, and according to electronic load test, like new.

 

A jumper cable is not going to charge the car. I’d research automatic chargers, which can be left on indefinitely (if practical in your parking situation). 3~4 amp range is suitable.

 

What @mendel said. And if that does not work, you will need a new 12v battery.

 

Could also buy one of those battery powered jump starters. I got one and was skeptical at first...but they work great!

 

I think that is what his friend used to try starting the car. He is calling it a "Li-Ion recharger", but it is probably a Li-ion jump starter pack.

If the 12v is completely drained, then jump-starting may not work? Even if it can get started, I doubt the car can recharge a completely drained 12v battery. A smart charger sometimes can not charge a completely drained battery for there is no initial current reading when the cycle starts. Some smart charger does have the option to bypass this checking and "force" charge a dead battery, but he may have to use a "dumb" charger to force the initial charging. Either way, there is a good chance the 12v battery is dead beyond the rechargeable level. If that is the case, the only solution would be to replace it with a new 12v battery.

 

For most people, it is best to simply replace a battery that has reached the point of needing to be forced charged. If they do get the old one charged again, its life will be greatly shortened.

 

Just a caution. Although PP and all Gen4 Prius use a regular flooded lead-acid 12v battery, it is a very tiny special size battery. AAA may not carry a group size (LN1, H4) that can be replaced without some mod on the tray. Also, even if they can find a compatible replacement battery, they may charge you way more than you would pay for it if you pick it up at a local Toyota dealer (or at a local auto parts shop for aftermarket battery). It cost $120-$180 depends on where you source it.

Here are links to more discussions on the Gen4 (including PP) 12v battery size.

12V battery group size | Page 2 | PriusChat
12 Volt for 16 Prius 2 | Page 2 | PriusChat

 

I would:

1. phone dealerships, verify they have appropriate battery, see who’s got best price.

2. Jump start your car again and drive to that dealership.

3. either DIY the swap yourself on their lot, or have their service dept do it.

 

Lifting the battery is the most difficult part of swapping one. Disconnecting and reconnecting is just simple wrench work on the cables and clamp that holds the battery in place. The drive in to return the old battery should let you see if there is any other issues.