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2010 prius won't start after running out of gas

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by David Lang, Aug 26, 2024.

  1. David Lang

    David Lang New Member

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    The orange connector hasn't been touched, so it should be (doesn't look like there is anything wrong)

    So my options seem to be, spend $300-500 for a special charger, disassemble the pack to charge each cell individually, build my own charger, or take it to a shop?

    the vehicle doesn't have any way to provide power to the HV pack itself without the engine running?
     
  2. MAX2

    MAX2 Member

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    The problem code P0A0D for blocking has subcodes.
    The high-voltage system includes a high-voltage battery, high-voltage wiring, inverter, compressor for the air conditioner. Therefore, the subcode for the error will tell you the location of the problem more accurately.

    What high voltage skills do you have? Auto electrician skills?
    A lot depends on this.

    Until you find the location and point where the lock is broken, even with a charged battery, the hybrid system will not turn on. The Prius is designed to prevent accidental high voltage shock.
     
  3. David Lang

    David Lang New Member

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    no particular HV skills, I've done a lot of automotive and ham radio electrical, home outlet replacement, etc

    since the car was working before it ran out of gas and was driven until it stopped, there's a pretty good chance that it's only a low charge problem (there would have to be multiple failures in a very short time for anything else to go wrong)
     
  4. MAX2

    MAX2 Member

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    The fastest way is with the Prolong device or its homemade analogue.
    A high constant voltage of 240 volts and higher is supplied to the high-voltage battery.
    The charging current is 0.2-0.3 A. All modules are charged at once.
     
  5. ASRDogman

    ASRDogman Senior Member

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    Are you going to check the fuel pump????
    Running out of fuel for any electric fuel pump is bad because the fuel
    cols the pump, no fuel, no cooling, pump can burn up quickly.
    Since enough fuel was not installed, and you kept trying to start the car, it's likely
    the fuel pump is burned out.

    Manual applying voltage to the pump could tell you if the pump is at least running.

    You can "rig" different chargers to the hybrid batter to charge it, but it is highly risky.
    It's a DV battery, so if you have any experience with electricily, it's the same.
    You could do a search in your area for a hybrid shop that could possibly charge it
    for you, and test the fuel pump.

    Plus, with the Prolong charging/discharching system, you can run through the charge/discharge
    cycles and possibly bring new life to the hybrid battery which can help it last longer.
     
  6. David Lang

    David Lang New Member

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    I think I heard the fuel pump whir when I worked on it today. short of pulling out the back seat, is there a way to test the fuel pump?

    The hybrid battery was replaced in 2021, and the car isn't driven much (probably somewhere around 30 miles a week)
     
  7. sylvaing

    sylvaing Senior Member

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    Don't the dealerships have a special charger to charge a depleted HV battery? Why not bring the car to your dealership?
     
  8. MAX2

    MAX2 Member

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    Moving a car that won't start requires at least one horsepower))
     
  9. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk EGR Fanatic

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    Or a tow.
     
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  10. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    I'm not sure every dealership has one. Maybe by now they do. At one point, it was definitely equipment provided by Toyota per sales region, and if your dealership needed it, they'd go on the list for one from regional to be brought to them, along with the specially-trained technician to run it.
     
  11. sylvaing

    sylvaing Senior Member

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    Hmm, if they sell it, they should have the means to service it.
     
  12. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    They do. They just keep some of those means at the region HQ.
     
  13. David Lang

    David Lang New Member

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    a local hybrid repair shop said "yep, we see that a lot with those prius, we'll be happy to sell you a new HV battery pack"

    I'm waiting for a call back from the local toyota dealer. the person I spoke to said they do have a charging station, but I don't know if that's something that can charge this pack, or if they are talking about a CSS charging station that can charge a plugin hybrid/ev.
     
  14. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    Just noticed this post. The P0A0D code pertains to the safety interlock circuit that makes sure you have the right connections made and covers in place at the inverter and the battery service plug fully installed. It does have a couple of subcodes, but those only tell you when the condition was detected. Subcode 350 means it was detected while the car wasn't being driven, and locks out the hybrid system. Subcode 351 means it was detected while the car was being driven, and displays the warning without immediately shutting the car down, so you can get to a safe place.

    Because all the safety interlocks are on a simple series circuit, there isn't any way the code could pin down the location for you; if any one of the interlocks isn't made, all the ECU can see is that the circuit is open, not where the open happens to be. Helpfully, there are only a few places to look.

    The different code P0AA6 (the one about high-voltage isolation being compromised) does have subcodes that narrow down which portion of the high-voltage system is suspect.
     
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  15. David Lang

    David Lang New Member

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    just got a call back from the Toyota dealer, they do have a charger, and for $799 they will attempt to charge the battery, but say that if the car shut itself down, there's a good chance that the pack will have to be replaced.

    is charging as simple as putting 240v across the battery terminals for enough time to get it to a better voltage, but not so long that it fully charges the battery and cooks it?

    Since I'm just trying to get enough of a charge to fire up, could I use a 120-240v travel adapter like
    a bridge rectifier, and a current limiting resister and hooking it up for a while (and monitor the pack voltages to keep them from going too high)? what would 'too high' be?

    @ChapmanF Are there any interlocks that open by themselves (i.e. a fuse that can blow) or are they all mechanical?
     
  16. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    There aren't any self-opening interlocks. Around here, nearly every P0A0D turns out to be from somebody messing with the orange service plug, and the remaining nearly none of them turn out to be something else. There could always be a truly weird case like an escaped hamster chewing the interlock wire somewhere.

    There are some threads around here like "build a grid charger for $100" or something that could give you ideas for getting some charge into the battery if that's really something you want to dabble in. Depends what experience you have working safely with such voltages. Hold-my-beer lethal possibilities exist.
     
  17. ASRDogman

    ASRDogman Senior Member

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    The Prolong "Charger" alone is about half that price, with the harness.


     
  18. David Lang

    David Lang New Member

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    it turns out that this was my problem as well, somehow in getting the trunk bin out to get at the 12v battery, or things sliding around, the orange service plug got bumped and opened the interlock. someone mentioned it last night, but I hadn't gotten back out to double check everything yet.

    it turned out that once I put that back in, the car started up immediately, so the initial problem must have been that it needed more fuel in the tank than it first had, and by the time I had recharged the 12v battery and added enough fuel, the orange service plug got bumped. When it shut itself off at ~25% battery, that appears to be enough to easily start the engine, and I was able to get the charge up to 40% in a few min.

    now it's overheating and complaining about low coolant, so I have to do something I've put off for a couple of months and figure out how to get the slightly crunched hood open, but that's another thread (assuming I'm unable to find things and have to ask for help)
     
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  19. ASRDogman

    ASRDogman Senior Member

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    Do you NOT have the covers in place? It's blocked off with a cover, HOW could something
    slide around and loosen it? I doubt that is what happened.....
    Perhapes the aaa guy pulled everything out getting to the 12v batter and removed it to check it
    and didn't connect it properly?

    Running out of fuel was not good. Not putting enough fuel in wasn't good either. By the time you
    did put enough in, you had drained the 12v battery and hybrid you needed a jump. Since you have to
    remove EVERYTHING in the trunk to get to the 12v battery(idiot design), that's why the service plug
    was tampered with.... (y)

    I'm glad you got it going and the hybrid battery had enough juice to crank the engine over and it started.

    You should check all the hoses and fitting for the coolant system. If you do not find any leaks, it's likely
    time to replace the head gasket...

     
  20. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    The best thing about the P0A0D code is it just tells you stuff. It doesn't have an opinion on how any interlock got opened, it doesn't scold you about it, it just says "hey, look at these interlocks" and you do that and you find the problem and it's good.