I know this has been beat to death, but what's current status of HV batteries?

I can't get Dr. Prius to connect through my BAFX bluetooth connector, so I don't know the details of the battery throwing the 3006 code. I went ahead and swapped in one of my other batteries to get that car working, and now I have this one sitting on the bench. It had only thrown the code recently, drove with no issue for years, and only driven <5m with the triangle lit. I could clear the code and drive again when I removed it from the car.

So re-reading a lot of old threads here, wondering what to do - rebuild or buy, what to buy, what I'd really be getting. I have three cars that need batteries now. Has anything changed recently? No new solutions, no place to buy new Gen1 cells? Does one member here still rent the charger?

 

Oh my, prices like that are why the first Prius I bought sat in my garage from 2003-2006. No, I'm not spending that much on cars I bought fr a few hundred dollars and have no real need for - I got 10 other vehicles to drive, lol. I have three Prii that need batteries and one nearly dead battery. If I can salvage this battery by replacing a few cells, that would be good. I'd still have to buy two others. But I'll worry about those later.

If not, I'll probably use this nearly dead battery to test this car I'm working on - it hasn't started in years. If it's all good, I'll just have to buy a rebuilt battery, last one was <$1500 after shipping/taxes.

 

I was kinda wondering if anyone has wasted their time retrofitting a new battery product for Gen 1s. I've read about cylindrical batteries and now see lithium packs for later model Prii. I got several real nice Prii that would be cool with lithium - like they're retrofitting old muscle cars with lithium.

Or maybe a good source for Gen1 cells? Did anyone ever start making new ones? probably not. How can any still be good this many years after the last production? When was the last production?

The rebuilders still using Gen2 cells? It's been 3 years since I bought my last one. I usually grab them out of wrecked Prii.

 

Good question, and thanks for the tip. They list modules as an offering, but I can't tell that they currently have any Gen1s available. I'll contact them when I'm ready for the battery. Gotta fix the bodywork on this car first.

 

These cars have always been hard to value. First, it was the cost of a new battery when Toyota was the only source, and even later, as the cars got older (now), the potential cost of a battery holds down values. It holds them down more than it should though because so many of these cars are sold as non-runners. Always been true that people would have the battery go out and trade them in. That lowered the trade-in value. Now, they're having their cats stolen, and Toyota doesn't have any, so they're throwing them away, and that's reflected in the book values.

But, I don't go with that any more. I think these cars have a base value that any good clean used car has after all the purchase price is depreciated away. What matters is whether it runs well and can get someone to work everyday for a year. Any car that can do that is worth $3000 minimum. If it can do that at 40mpg, it's worth more. When they're also in excellent condition, they're worth more. And a lot of Gen1s are still in great shape.

It's crazy seeing the range in value quoted by the auction sites in different parts of the country. I've seen some list the car value at $6000. Others as low as $2500.

 

I think he's saying you can take Gen4 cells and pack them in the Gen1 box, like they've done with Gen2 cells for years.

 

Yes, I bought one from Best Hybrid a couple of years ago that has worked fine. Just seeing what has changed. I nice lithium upgrade would be great.