I blew up the inverter????

Ginny, Have you tried contacting any news organization? It seems that these days, with gas prices so high, that there would be a keen interest in the Prius - both the plus and the minus of it. I'm sure that some news organization would really be interested in your story.

 

:grouphug:

OK. We're all huddled trying to figure out what to do.

Do you still have the jumper cables? Can you get them?

If so, can you check them VERY CAREFULLY to make sure that the red clamp goes to a red clamp and the black clamp goes to a black clamp?

I'm asking because I recall a notice at my local AutoZone recalling a bunch of relatively cheap jumper cables because the clamps were put on the cables to wire red to black.

If this is the case, Toyota is right, and you get to sue the jumper cable manufacturer / importer / distributer / retailer.

Hope things ultimately go well.

 

Hi Ginny,

On June 13, you provided a list of DTC that had been retrieved by the tech prior to any repairs being performed to your car (see your post #140).

Now that the 12V battery was replaced and all fuses are (hopefully) in good condition, we want the tech to clear all old codes, retrieve whatever DTC(s) are produced now and list them for you, to substantiate why the inverter needs to be replaced. Hopefully the DTC list will be shorter, compared to the list provided on June 13. In particular, we are interested to see whether DTC P0A08 and P0A09 still show up.

By the way, I do not find DTC C1320 in my repair manual.

 

On page 11-32 of the bentley repair manual I think it might have it on the row that says:

DTC: C1310/51
INF Code: 156
Definition: Malfunction in HV system
Trouble Area: Hybrid control system (Enhanced VSC, TRAC system)

Perhaps C1310/51 means C1310-C1351?

 

Hi Bob,

Not sure what the "/51" means. However I do not think that it signifies a wide range of 42 possible numbers from 1310 to 1351. For example, C1336/39 "Zero point calibration of deceleration sensor undone" exists, and is within the range from C1310 to C1351.

 

Doesn't a Boise TV station or newspaper have a TROUBLESHOOTER? Many media organizations have someone who will fight for the consumer.

 

Hi Mark,

Since TV stations and newspapers usually depend heavily upon auto dealer advertising, while Toyota is an extremely large and relatively successful auto manufacturer, I would not expect the Boise media to intercede in an ambiguous situation like this.

 

More information on the bad booster cables:

- Accidents and Injuries

If you used one of these, you get to go after Autozone for the repair costs.

(Curiously, my previous post was _TOTALLY_ ignored!)

 

I think I read about that in Consumer Reports, and thought WOW that could really cause some trouble! And I thought, the only place they could screw something up that bad is China! A whole run of jumper cables with black to red? Do they use a different standard in China? Or just hire the mentally deficient in their jumper cable factories?? You would have thought somebody in the factory would have noticed long before it became a major issue, like maybe when the number produced was only 139,000? ;-)

 

Sooooo...they want you to go on TV and talk about how terrible hybrid cars are because you're getting screwed by your dealer on something that (probably) falls under the warranty. Be extremely careful how you handle this. If you want this to help your agenda, it has to be about the people mistreating you. Not some BS about how expensive and unreliable hybrid cars are in general. It's a shame but the media are not particularly trustworthy.

 

prepare before the interview- you want to speak in sound bites. make sure they tell your story straight, that will be most effective.

good luck! hope it pans out ok for you.

 

you can anticipate what they'll ask you. write answers out in advance. practice.

 

Your dealer and Toyota Corp had a chance to apply Goodwill to your case, and refused to do so. Quite frankly, I could care less if it turns out to be a hatchet job on hybrids in general, or the Prius in particular.

It wouldn't be a huge leap to put short/reverse polarity protection at the underhood jump point. My 700 amp Canadian Tire jump start box has reverse polarity protection built in, and I have tried it - on purpose - on the 1984 Ford work truck at my hobby farm

Hook up the cables correctly, the green LED turns on. Reverse the cables, it stays dead.

It would be helpful to ask in advance what the station expects, and if they truly want to cover your plight with the dealer and Toyota Corp. As others have mentioned, don't get emotional, do "sound bites" that the undereducated, brainless masses expect

 

I thought about that after I posted. You are quite correct - newspapers & TV stations depend on the advertising revenue. I remember when a local newspaper decided to do an expose' on shady car dealer practices. The network of dealers not threatened, but actually withdrew their advertising. MAJOR loss to the paper. After a month or so, things went back to normal. Oh yeah, the paper never finished their 5-part story.

 

I think they did away with the tow. I don't believe towing is part of roadside service anymore. In fact, I don't believe roadside service is covered either.

But....you are absolutely correct. Whatever is wrong with your car (and I don't believe your dealer knows what's wrong) *should* be covered under warranty. They are trying to weasel out of the warranty by blaming you.

If you have to pay for the towing, that's one thing. But they should be paying for everything else. And if you have to rent a car while this is going on....I say take them to court and sue them for the cost of the rental car.