12V battery choices

Same thing here. Never would have fit with the handle in place. It was one of those things that was so obvious as to skip my mind when talking about it later.

 

It looks like I'm going to be joining the Optima Battery Club this weekend. I ran my 4 year old stock battery down to around 10 volts in only an hour while I was detailing the car this past weekend. I'd say that's getting near the end of it's life and it's time to replace it.

Today I received the e-learnaid mod kit which cost $15 plus $7.05 shipping for a total of $22.05. I found that Amazon.com has a deal on the Optima D51 yellow top batteries for $122.69 right now ($147.69 less $25 rebate), which is far less than the OEM battery. Details here:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/product/B00075OSD8?tag=priuschatcom-20 with the FREE supersaver shipping - even though they say it will ship in 10 to 15 days or something ridiculous like that mine shipped the next day.

 

August 22, 2008 sighted some at Costco in Eugene, Oregon. Price $139.99 - $25 mail-in rebate.

Of course (as discussed above in this thread and in other threads) this model does not exactly fit the 2004+ Priuses; requires something like the eLearnAid kit to accomodate different sized terminals (and different vent tube fitting?) At this time eLearnAid is selling the kit for $15 plus shipping.

I bought the battery from Costco and ordered the install kit from eLearnAid, so my net cost for materials & shipping will be about $138 if the rebate comes through (rebates can be a bit iffy, but I think Costco pressures suppliers to keep the rebate fraud and shennanigans to a minimum . . . ) The rebate offer runs until Sept. 15, I think. Not sure whether or not there is a similar rebate when buying it from eLearnAid.

I'll install it shortly after the kit arrives from eLearnAid. If anything interesting happens (that is, different from what the giants of PriusChat have already posted about their install experiences) I'll post about it.

It looks like you can order the Optima battery from eLearnAid for $160 + the kit for $15 and in that case the shipping is free.

 

I replaced my 4 year old 12V with the Optima plus eLearnAid install kit Saturday. As noted in my "Dead 12V - can it be resurrected for a couple of days?" thread, it was 8V dead, would only charge to 10V even though I had left nothing on. Not sure why it went so fast but it had been giving me a couple of warning signs - the "Transmission lock mechanism is abnormal" message and beeping a LOT after I shut down even though nothing was on or open. Too bad they can't just pop up a "the 12V battery is weak" message.

As expected, the Optima came fully charged to 13.0V. eLearnAid has a reference to Hobbit's page on their page for the installation kit and while the instruction changes darelldd sent them apparently were not included in Hobbit's package, I think they learned and improved based on help from both. There were a couple of small typos, but they were quite detailed, including the 'keep-alive' battery to save settings and how to get the terminal block off the original positive clamp with and without a vise. (USE THE VISE! ). They also have the instructions to clip the 'fins' out of the red cap, etc. I don't remember if they showed the terminal block bolted below the positive clamp or not, but I had read both Hobbit and darelldd's pages first and knew to do that. Not sure why they have the plastic hose in the install kit since we just throw it away (per their instructions). Maybe other vehicles need them and it is cheaper to have 1 kit than keep track of who does and does not need the hose.

I also removed the brake system power supply as Hobbit noted he did for photographic clarity. It isn't NECESSARY to remove it, but it is a PITA to get the bolt for the hold down bracket between it and the battery. I was a bit surprised to see that the bolts that go into the floor go to open air. Seems like corrosion waiting to happen.

I hadn't seen this page so I missed the part about taking the Optima strap off, though I now notice it is not on the battery in the photos of either Hobbit or darelldd's pages. I did have to wiggle it around some to get the floor cover to fit. I might take it off later if I still can, just to make sure nothing it pushing on other parts unnecessarily.

My battery is not unduly close to the back wall, let alone touching it as shown in Hobbit's pictures. Not sure what is up with that.

I also found that even the jumper cables with thin extensions for side mount terminals were difficult to get clamped to the positive bolt/nut in the fuse block under the hood. I used a 12V marine battery for my 'keep alive'. The 'portable power' units might have smaller clamps. I'm not sure the connection would have been good enough to jump the car, though it managed to be tight enough to keep the settings. I think I'll come up with something that would provide a better contact to the keep alive battery for the next time (i.e. when the wife's '06 needs a new 12V battery) or if we need to try to jump one of them some day.

My thanks to the pioneers who do these things first and write them up. I don't mind following wagon ruts instead of waiting for the paved road, but I'm not likely to be the first one to head off into the unknown!

 

Thanks for the shout-out. And it sounds like you did a great job. That silly little piece of hose must just always come with the angled nipple for folks that didn't originally have a vent house for the battery. I certainly didn't throw it away! That's the stuff that other projects are made from.

I'm glad to hear that the instructions are at least getting better. I still don't understand the typo-s. It just isn't that hard to have somebody else proof read it (though way too much trouble to proof-read my own posts, of course)

 

Yeah, I have a LOT of 'other projects' parts. I feel sorry for whoever cleans up after I die

They were very minor typos. I'll probably send them a quick note in case they want to fix them. Also suggest they add "Remove the handle from the Optima after putting it in the well."

The instructions that really bother me are those that were written by someone who's first language is CLEARLY not English. I have to believe they could get someone to look it over for like $10. An example from a printer ink cartridge:

1. Rive off the package
2. Take out the pin from the lable which is sticked to the top-cover
3. Poke into the air guiding membrane under the lable, and the pining depth is about 7mm.
4. If the cartridge has several holes, please make sure all the holes are poked.

Under "Attention Affairs, letter c is:
After poking the hole(s), please don't press or upside down the cartridge.

Now I READILY admit that the person who wrote that has a much better command of English than I do of Chinese (which is nil) but geez. I'd edit it for free just so I don't have to read stuff like that.

 

Ouch. Well, the worst part for me is that I *did* edit it for free... and we still have this?

 

Anyone tried using Optima batteries on their Prius?

 

Why, yes. And in fact that's pretty much what we're discussing in this thread.

 

I just ordered my Optima kit from elearnaid.com and will be joining the 'club' shortly. I have nothing new to add yet, except that the Autozone Duralast battery is NOT the correct battery, as is listed on their web site and store database. I went down to the local AZ today to try one because my 12V is on the quick outs and I didn't want to wait for the shipping, or pay the dealer's price. Anyway, the Duralast is physically the same dimensions +/-, but it lacks any vent tube connection! It is a typical lead acid battery, not AGM. It also has the non-Toyota, larger posts that would need 'modding' as with the Optima, but the post orientation is not correct either.
Just a word of advice/warning to potential buyers...

 

I've just bench tested a circuit that cuts the supply to the bulb off entirely if the supply voltage drops below 11.7V. Now to do a 'live' version in the car itself...

 

I got a yellow too but will not be putting it in until spring when all the snow is gone and the salt off the roads.

 

Well, I am E learnaid.com battery buyer also. Bought it over the web and it was delivered in 2 days Fast! The install went without a hitch. Wow, I had none of the issues you guys had with the install. Other then the blasted bolt holding the terminal to the block... that thing was TIGHT. I used the the old battery and tightened the poop out of the clamp... then, a box end wrench and a hammer. That finally broke it loose. Great kit and nice to get everything in one place. Thanks Prius chat. You guys made it all possible.
Now my 06 need s battery too. 11.7 volts at ready.
-Paul R. Haller-

 

Paul, are you certain it was in "Ready"? When in Ready, your Prius is trying to charge the battery and it should read just below 14 volts. If you turn Power on without the brake pedal, the battery should read about 12.5 volts (if fully charged) and drop a little (but stay above 12 volts) if you press Power a second time (again no brakes) to add a load.

JeffD

 

Ditto that. If it really is 11.7 V while in Ready then there's a shorted cell or something equally bad.

 

In Ready, using a DMM if you only have under 12 vdc at the battery itself, something is wrong

 

To those who bought the optima kits from learnaid.com, question, their optima D51 batteries are custom-made to adapt the vent connection? Or any D51s from Optima already has the hole that you can plug that angled connector into? Can I reuse the original angled connector? Regarding the ground cable, can I replace (strip an inch or so) the original clamp with one I can buy from walmart? What about the positive clamp? Same size? I have access to buy a new D51 locally for $80, it beats $161 + CA Tax to buy from learnaid.com.

 

Presumably the battery is the same, mine was not obviously modified. If you have your own Optima D51 you really should buy eLearnaid's installation kit. The Toyota clamps are a non-standard size and do not fit the Optima posts.

 

I just now placed my order for the eLearnaid battery and kit and will report back when I get it installed.

My original 2008 battery is down to 11.7 volts doing the diagnostic test with a loss of up to 10 MPG.

I called my Toyota dealer first and their parts Dept. is closed on Saturday. They can sell me a car but not a part for one. 2nd was Autozone and no listing for a battery for my Prius. So eLearnaid got my sale.

 

Yep. There is no direct drop-in replacement for the Toyota battery. Have fun!