I have a 2005 Prius, had a Dorman refurb main battery installed a couple years ago, am getting P0A80 and P3011 codes in the high Sacramento heat. 12V voltages seem fine. Topped off inverter and engine coolant with SLLC. I have a bluetooth scanner on order and will check out the subcodes but I'm pretty sure the main battery is dying, unless someone thinks blockage of the main battery fan could duplicate these symptoms and codes. If I keep this car, I think I would like to replace the main battery with a Toyota OEM part this go-around. Circa July 2022, anyone know of a reasonably-priced Toyota dealer to do this in the Sacramento/Davis/Bay Area region? Any idea on cost? If they'll sell the part over the counter, I could probably figure out the installation. I wouldn't mind paying the dealer a reasonable amount to do the entire job .
These days it probably requires cold calling dealers and seeing what they say on price and availability.
OEM battery packs from Toyota are no longer available for Gen2, there may be 1 or 2 in a dealer stock somewhere but the lithium replacements have been tested by a few Priuschat members. Order the Gen2 lithium replacement pack before they are sold out. PriusChat member @PriusCamper is available for tech support https://projectlithium.com/?ref=9qLPw Priuschat member review. Project Lithium customer review | PriusChat
If you’re convinced you need a new battery immediately and can’t get OEM, you can try GreenTec in Hayward Prius 2004-2009 | Greentec Auto Hybrid Battery Repair Shop in Hayward, CA | Greentec Auto
Thank you. I had hoped to get the Gen2 pack because of its potential longevity. Are there reasons to believe this particular pack will last longer than most? Is this pack basically a matter of dropping it in, or are there parts of the old pack that need to be grafted into this? One thing that none of the YouTube videos I've watched on the Prius have really touched on is safety. I don't have tons of experience working with high DC voltages. Is there a secret to not getting killed working with the battery pack? Do I not really need to worry about this?
Answering one of my own questions: this solution involves a fair amount of work replacing cells, just like the product sold at NewPriusBatteries. I'd be interested in people's assessment of the lithium upgrade vs. the product sold by newpriusbatteries.com
The Toyota replacement pack requires you grafting some parts from old pack onto the new battery pack. If you had a new OEM pack to swap, you still have to deal with high voltage, the cautions are noted for both OEM and Lithium. ProjectLithium may have a rep in the Bay area.
one word on safety: high voltage gloves yes, you should constantly be on alert when working in the battery. one slip and...pfffft! that being said, it is done everyday by diy'ers. just be careful and follow good safety practices
If I'm understanding things correctly (and I may not be), the dangerous charges dissipate ten minutes after taking off that orange tab, a fact that you should validate to 100% certainty. Am I correct that after that 10 minute period, you are free to monkey all you want inside and outside of the battery. Is that correct or not correct? There's a pretty good safety video on YoutTube that describes safety steps: 1) wear high voltage gloves 2) wear rubber soles 3) validate correct function of multimeter on 12V battery 4) remove orange tab thing on big battery 5) wait 10 minutes 6) verify 0.0 reading on the multimeter 7) validate multimeter function once again on 12V battery I'm pretty good at being careful and disciplined when my life depends on it. Are there other things to be mindful of? I'm a little unclear how all dangerous charge could simply vanish with a 10 minute wait: surely the batteries still have a lot of power left in them.
that sounds wrong. i know there are some areas where it becomes safe, having read from experts in the past. i believe the inside is still dangerous after the cover is removed. i'm no expert, but if i were going to have at it, i'd try to find threads here from the experts, or posts at a minimum, to have a complete understanding. maybe post a new thread asking?
No sure if that applies to the US domestic market, as last I checked they are delivering within a few days on the west coast. If you use the part# on the toyota.com site, it may return discontinued, but if you call surrounding dealers they will look up availability and OTC pricing.
Exactly this. With the safety interlock removed, there is still 110 VDC that can be lethal until the bus bars are removed from at least one side of the battery. The safety interlock in effect only internally splits the battery into two smaller (but still high DC voltage) batteries. It does, however, remove power to the (battery side of the) relays, so at least that area is safe. Right up to and until the bus bars are removed, you should be wearing your HV linesman gloves and using insulated tools.
Tried working with Jack as a NorCal mobile installer, and though he sounded positive, the idea never moved forward for some reason.
Probably because he seems to have more customers than inventory, presently. It's been that way for a while so seems unlikely to improve.
if you don't understand how electricity works then probably you should stay away from DIY or dealing with it but if you do there's really nothing to be afraid of. The electrical design is very safe and most of the safety warnings you see are for legal purposes (sue happy US people) 5 years ago when my camry hybrid was replaced by a tech, I never saw him wear gloves for safety during the swap. He opened the pack and swapped the relay modules too in my case. As soon as the orange plug is removed and those 2 orange terminals are checked for voltage then it's safe to work with. There's still 110 volts DC on the ends of the bus bars but that requires you to get in contact with both ends (correct terminal) to get that full voltage. People who are trying to scare you that they are dangerous don't know anything or haven't work with it. I'm not saying not to practice safety but this myth about being them dangerous is just total BS.
