Prius goes off the deep end...

Thanks so much for the replies! I really think they'll take care after we go around in circles a few times.

 

"It is not, or SHOULD not, be unreasonable to expect the Prius blinking bar to be the equivilent of the "low fuel" warning light on other cars. It doesn't, or shouldn't, mean "car has 1 drop left, get gas NOWWWWW". I believe there is a separate warning on the MFD for that."

Indeed there is...and the blinking/MFD warning happened simultaneously in this case. That's not normal, is it?

 

I just got a call from the service department. He said he needed my authorization to put 4 gallons of gas in it since "that's the least it should ever have in there" :cussing: That's got to be the most insane thing I've ever heard. Anyway, he went on to tell me that his tech tells him I let it run out of gas and no one in their right mind would fix that under warranty. I explained to him AGAIN as calmly as possible what happened. He just said, "if Toyota wants to reimburse you, they can. We'll see what happens and go from there."

I have already called Toyota's customer experience line. They were at least sympathetic to my woes (sometimes all that's needed) and told me I did indeed fall under the "guess gauge" TSB. She told me that she doubted the service department even knew about this issue. Hmmmm. Anyway, I have a case number and the customer service person with ties to corporate has been notified. They agree this was not my fault. We'll see what happens. This is too much stress for a Monday! Thanks for all the info/support. It's much appreciated.

 

WHEW! After talking with the service manager, I called 2 separate Toyota customer service people. Apparently, I reached the right one because a few minutes after talking to them the same manager called back with a much kinder attitude. He apologized for blaming me, said I did have adequate gasoline in the tank to get me much further, and that this was all 100% covered under warranty. :mrgreen:

He says he'll order my part under the TSB and let me know when it comes in. I feel so much better. I knew how far I'd gone and I knew there was gas in that tank. I did add how many miles driven, MPG, gallons in the tank (which was not on empty when I put those three gallons in) This was easy to remember because I'd just rolled over 13k that same morning. According to him, all issues are fixed, batteries are charged, and I can pick my baby up tonight. It took lots of phone time, but all is well now. Thanks for the support, guys. I knew I hadn't gone crazy.

 

I would love to have gone down there and seen all this firsthand. I asked about the codes, he said he didn't have them and that all the strange behavior was because the battery ran down. I know the only reason he backed down and treated me like a customer and not an idiot is because one of the many Toyota higher-ups finally told him what was going on. He had no inkling of a service bulletin and seemed suspicious that I even mentioned it.

Honestly, the car seems fine but they didn't even bother to put the cover back on the rear battery. It's just unceremoniously thrown in the cargo area. I'm still getting a follow up call from Toyota's Prius department this morning and at that point I'll demand a list of the codes both for information's sake and so I can perhaps feel confident this won't happen again. The guy is being much more cordial but it still seems like I know more about the car than he does. My new part for the TSB is supposed to be here next week. We'll see....